Evamar farms Equestrian Centre

07/29/2026

“I asked for a plan for my HORSE’S movement, not mine. It’s the horse that needs rehab, not me.”

A student said this to me after receiving feedback on her riding.

Her horse was hollow, crooked, and struggling to carry himself well. She had expected a list of exercises for the horse—a rehabilitation program to strengthen his body and improve his way of going. Instead, much of our conversation revolved around her: her balance, her posture, her awareness, and the way she organized her own body in the saddle.

She was surprised.

Like many riders, she viewed herself as the instructor and the horse as the student. From her perspective, the horse was the one with the physical deficits, so surely the horse was the one who needed the exercises.

The problem is that a horse cannot separate their movement from the person sitting on their back.

Our bodies become part of their biomechanics.

Every shift in our pelvis changes how the horse uses their back. Every collapse through one side of our torso influences how they load a limb. Every moment we brace, grip, lean, or become asymmetrical changes the information the horse receives about balance, direction, and weight.

In other words, rider and horse become a single athletic system. One cannot move independently of the other.

This is why any rehabilitation or gymnastic program is only as effective as the rider’s ability to perform it.

Shoulder-in, for example, is a brilliant exercise for improving lateral suppleness, engagement, and straightness—but only when it is ridden correctly. If the rider overbends the neck, collapses a hip, drives with the seat, or blocks the horse’s back with tension, the exercise no longer develops the horse as intended. It simply rehearses poor movement under a different name.

The exercise itself is not therapeutic.

The quality with which it is ridden is.

This is why the conscientious rider learns to balance themselves, control themselves, and understand themselves before asking the horse to do the same.

They understand that horses cannot separate our influence from their own movement. Every aid, every posture, every habit becomes part of the environment in which the horse learns to carry themselves.

The goal, then, is not simply to find better exercises. It is to become a better influence.

Because a horse can only move as well as the conversation we create with them allows.

In the end, horsemanship is not simply the education of the horse. It is the continual education of the rider.

07/28/2026

One of Egon von Neindorff’s favourite sayings that he repeated countless times in every lesson was: “Light hand, friendly hand, the hand is always ready to give.” This sounds great. But how do I do that? How do I keep my hand and forearm muscles so relaxed that there is no residual tension and no backward traction on the reins coming from my hands and arms?

The answer is the seat. The hand is only as good as the seat. If the seat is balanced, stable, and supple, the arm and hand muscles can relax. If the seat is not balanced, the rider will have to seek stability through the hands by balancing on the reins.


When the seat is balanced so that the rider’s pelvis, spine, shoulders, and head are stacked on top of each other like a tower of wooden building blocks for children, the upper arms can hang from the shoulder joints, and the forearms can create a connection with the pelvis and lumbar spine.


This feels as if our forearms and hands were attached to our pelvis, rather than our shoulders. The rein contact that the horse takes is then transmitted from our elbows to our hips, and from our hips to the horse’s hips, bypassing our shoulders. It allows the rein aids to become a part of the seat and weight aids. The forearms feel like extensions of the hip joints going forward to the bit, similar to the femurs that drop down from the hip joints and create a connection to the ground.


If the hands are not part of the pelvis and lumbar spine, the rein contact will travel up the arms to the shoulders, which creates tension in the entire arm.


A good way to check how light our hand really is, is to try and relax all muscles in our forearms and hands completely, so that we are no longer holding onto the reins with our hands, but let them lie in our hands.


Überstreichen, i.e. completely releasing one or both reins for a few strides will also tell us whether we were pulling on the reins or holding them with too much tension. If we were holding the horse together with the reins or pulling on the reins, the horse will invert or speed up when we release the reins. If we release the inside rein and the horse loses his bend, it’s a sign that he isn’t balanced yet, and that the previous bend was achieved by pulling on the reins, rather than balancing and straightening the horse.

07/21/2026

HOW TO KNOW IF YOUR HORSE IS BEHIND THE VERTICAL

When you are riding, especially if you are on your own without the helpful eye of a trainer or the use of arena mirrors, it can be difficult to tell if your horse is working behind the vertical.

Ideally, you want to be able to feel through your seat and body when your horse is working correctly and connecting to the contact. But until you develop this high degree of feel, here are some visual from-the-saddle clues to help you.

CLUES TO HELP YOU IDENTIFY IF YOUR HORSE HAS DROPPED BEHIND THE VERTICAL
👉 Your horse’s ears are lower than his neck.
👉 Your horse’s poll is not the highest point.
👉 When you look through your horse’s ears, you see the ground a few steps in front (rather than the end of the arena).
👉 Your horse’s neck is bulging at the top.

Unless you are working your horse in a long and low frame, allowing him to stretch over his topline, your horse’s poll should be the highest point, and his ears should be higher than his neck. If they are not, then your horse is probably working behind the vertical.

When looking at your horse’s neck from the saddle, it should appear wider at the base. If your horse’s neck bulges at the top, this usually indicates that your horse is working with a short, tight neck and a closed throat latch area.

Illustrations created and copyrighted by HowToDressage

07/14/2026

Never Judge an Exercise by How Simple It Looks. Judge It by the Feedback it Provides💡

One of the most memorable coaching sessions I've had wasn't memorable because of the horse.

It was memorable because of what it taught me about people.

A lady came to me wanting help with her dressage horse. She wanted a better forward response, improved canter transitions and help with movements such as shoulder-in and travers. The horse was behind the leg and struggled to maintain canter and this was impacted her scores.

Whenever someone presents me with a training problem, I don't begin with the advanced movement.

I begin by checking the quality of the basics.

Not because I think the rider is inexperienced, but because the horse's responses tell me almost everything I need to know.

I asked her to show me her horse's lateral flexion before moving on to a simple hind quarter yield so I could assess his response to the leg.

She stopped me.

She explained that these exercises were beneath her level. She wasn't a beginner and wasn't interested in spending her lesson on beginner work.

I explained that I wasn't assessing her.

I was assessing the horse.

The horse didn't know whether an exercise was basic or advanced. I simply wanted to understand how clearly he understood the rider's aids before asking him more difficult questions.

She wasn't interested.

So we did exactly what she had asked for.

Shoulder-in.

Travers.

Canter transitions.

The horse remained behind the leg. The transitions lacked quality, the lateral work was laboured, and she became increasingly frustrated that he wasn't responding the way she wanted.

The irony wasn't lost on me.

The answers she was looking for were probably hidden inside the very exercises she had refused to do.

That lesson has stayed with me because it highlighted a way of thinking that occasionally appears in horse training.

Some people judge an exercise by how advanced it looks.

Experienced trainers judge an exercise by what information it provides.

A lateral flexion isn't "beginner work."

It's an assessment.

A hindquarter yield is an assessment.

A halt.

A rein-back.

A walk transition.

Each one answers provides important information from the horse.

Does the horse understand the cue?

Is he responsive?

Can he organise his body?

Is he balanced, coordinated and emotionally settled?

Is there any sign of confusion or physical discomfort?

If those foundations aren't established, every advanced movement will carry those weaknesses with it.

The best trainers I've watched aren't obsessed with advanced exercises.

They're obsessed with understanding the horse in front of them.

Elite athletes still practise fundamentals. Concert pianists still play scales. Pilots still use checklists. Not because they're beginners, but because fundamentals reveal information that complexity often hides.

Experts don't revisit the basics because they forgot the advanced work.

They revisit the basics because that's where understanding, responsiveness, balance, coordination and emotional regulation are most clearly revealed.

They're looking for the small flaws that later become big problems.

Advanced movements don't hide weaknesses. They magnify them.‼️

Looking back, I don't remember that lesson because of the shoulder-in or the travers.

I remember it because we never really investigated the problem because I failed to influence this woman to takes on board my approach.

We skipped the diagnosis and went straight to rehearsing the symptoms.

The horse wasn't telling us he needed more advanced dressage.

He was telling us something much simpler.

We just never gave him the opportunity to show us what it was.

So here's today's collectable advice:

➡️Never judge an exercise by how simple it looks. Judge It by the Feedback it Provides‼️

The simplest exercise in the arena is often the one that holds the answer you've been searching for.

Collectable Advice 257/365. I would be grateful if you could please hit SHARE, SAVE or leave a comment ❤️

Image📸: Stock photo from Canva 🙂

06/17/2026

10/29/2025

The timeless lesson? What we feel in our hands so often begins behind the saddle. I was incredibly fortunate to learn under 𝗚𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘆𝘀 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗲𝘆, who trained with 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘇 𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿, 𝗡𝘂𝗻𝗼 𝗢𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗶𝗿𝗮, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗘𝗱𝗴𝗮𝗿 𝗟𝗶𝗰𝗵𝘁𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗸 - a tradition that shaped my understanding of true connection and self-carriage from the very beginning.

Nuno Oliveira said, “𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘶𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩.”

Decades later, 𝗗𝗲𝗻𝗻𝘆 𝗘𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 explained the same principle in his own way, using a brilliant analogy between engagement and athletic discomfort. Both of these wise horsemen’s words still make me pause and think - not only when I feel too much in my hand, but especially when I see a pupil learning to lighten theirs.

It’s a reminder that what we feel in our hands so often begins behind the saddle - not only in the clarity of the rider’s seat and legs, but also in the strength, balance, and weight-lifting ability of the horse’s hindquarters.

So next time you feel your horse leaning on your hand, or you’re tempted to tighten or fight the contact - pause. 𝗔𝘀𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳: 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙞𝙙 𝙄 𝙖𝙨𝙠 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙜𝙨?

With respect and gratitude to 𝘋𝘦𝘯𝘯𝘺 𝘌𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 (𝘛𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘏𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘍𝘢𝘳𝘮) for articulating this so clearly. His full post follows - it’s well worth the read.

"My horse leans on my hands" and other similar comments----A discussion.

Let's say we jog in place---we humans. Now let's say we squat down while jogging in place.
Try it, it hurts more. Now squat lower, jog higher----It hurts still more, we pant more, we struggle more. We are feeling the effects of athletically induced discomfort.

Now imagine that you are sitting on a horse being ridden (correctly) back to front. You drive with seat or legs, create some impulsion, and simultaneously you "contain-receive-balance" that impulsion with your quiet, negotiating hands, so that the horse is being asked to take a "deeper" step, come more under himself, and lift himself more rather than simply push himself along, as he'd do naturally.

We call this things like "asking for more engagement", "asking him to carry himself".

Even though what we are doing may be careful asking rather than forceful demanding, it STILL hurts the horse. No, it doesn't INJURE the horse, but it causes him athletically induced discomfort, because when you ask him to engage his hocks, and start to lift and carry his own weight, it's the same as what you felt jogging in place while squatting, lots of physical exertion.

Now the horse, feeling the effects of being asked to be a weight lifter, (and having zero incentive to become a well trained dressage horse---hahahaha, you anthropomorphic dreamer!) the horse tries to avoid the engagement.

He can invert. He can roll under. He can lean on the bit. He can flip his head. ALL these front end/head evasions are---listen here---to get rid of the "correct" connection between the driving aids and the receiving aids, because that connection makes him weight lift, and he'd far rather not.

In other words, we FEEL the resistance up FRONT, in the bit, reins, hands, but the resistance we feel up front is because he doesn't like the pressure of engagement BEHIND. (It took me about 212 years to figure this out, by the way)

So now we MAY think, as many of us do---"My horse is "resisting" in his mouth/jaw. I need to use stronger rein aids. I need a sharper bit. I need draw reins. I need one of those leverage rigs."

(This process can turn, easily, into ugly adversarial fighting, rider demanding, scared, uncomfortable horse resisting)

NO---What we need is to think very long term about strength training.
We ask him to step under (engage), negotiate for some moments of semi-lift, back off, let him recover, ask for a little more, back off, repeat, repeat for months, tiny increments, little by little, "building the horse like an onion", one tiny layer at a time.

WEIGHT LIFTING IS SLOW. WEIGHT LIFTING DOESN'T FEEL GOOD. Yes, it will eventually turn your horse into a better athlete, but your horse doesn't know that. He isn't "being bad" when he resists, he's trying to get away from athletically induced discomfort. So----GO SLOW, HAVE COMPASSION for what he is undergoing.

End of long discussion. I was no big saint about horse training. It took me too many years to equate much of this. Don't make the mistakes I made, and that so many riders make. Be better than that.

Denny Emerson, Tamarack Hill Farm

(𝘗𝘚 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 - 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴: 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥.)

10/24/2025

Unfortunately we are having to cancel the clinics with Alexis.
She was turned back at the border because she didn’t have the correct documentation.
We are all devastated to hear this news and our hearts go out to Alexis for having to go through that ordeal.

10/23/2025

Riding spots are full!
Auditors welcome!
4046 Hwy 28 North, Lakefield.
Starting at 8:30!

01/01/2025

Happy New Year everyone!