Finals are over!!!!!
Since late August, I've been taking some equine classes over at Pierce College and I'm happy and relieved that finals are done with and I can now get on with the holidays and renew see Max more often (like he's really broken hearted not having to work...yeah, right! :-)).
I think I did pretty good in my classes- either Bs or As and lord knows, I put in a lot of study time. Sure, there's some stuff that got me but I think overall I studied hard and memorized what was necessary. But more importantly, I think a lot of the information will "stick" long after the exams. The point of the whole exercise here is to learn practical information that I can use in my horse dealings later on- it's not really enough to just know it for the final exam.
But more imporatntly, I have to say that these classes were a real eye-opener for me. I thought I knew things but in reality, the classes proved how little I know and the need for more education. One area that stands out is the whole sciece/art of biting the horse. There's a lot to know and it's very easy to mess up a horse's mouth with little effort- there's a wide variety of bits out there with all sorts of mouthpiece and port configurations and it's easy to get lost.
The bottom line is that there's two basic types: direct pressure and leverage. But with that, there's a lot to consider between teh horse's disposition, your sport, you hands, etc. A lot to think about. So why the preoccupation with bits? Well, it's one of the most basic parts of riding the horse (unless you plan on going bitless or bridle-less) and anyone who is serious about riding needs to know this stuff , or at least be aware and especially what the various bits DO to a horse's mouth.
Now this doesn't mean that I'm now an "instant expert"- far from it. But it does tell me that I need to know more. One thing I can highly recommend, even though it wasn't required for the class or anything, is get a hold of the Myler's "A Whole Bit Better"- it's very instructive and the various demonstrations of how bits act on the horse is excellent.
I'll continue to press on with the education program although one of the most frustrating aspects is that some of the classes are held during the day at hours that I simply can't take off time from work for. Perhaps I can eventually work something out but that's been one of the most frustrating aspects of the whole education process.
More soon but I'm relived that school's done for now! :-)
I think I did pretty good in my classes- either Bs or As and lord knows, I put in a lot of study time. Sure, there's some stuff that got me but I think overall I studied hard and memorized what was necessary. But more importantly, I think a lot of the information will "stick" long after the exams. The point of the whole exercise here is to learn practical information that I can use in my horse dealings later on- it's not really enough to just know it for the final exam.
But more imporatntly, I have to say that these classes were a real eye-opener for me. I thought I knew things but in reality, the classes proved how little I know and the need for more education. One area that stands out is the whole sciece/art of biting the horse. There's a lot to know and it's very easy to mess up a horse's mouth with little effort- there's a wide variety of bits out there with all sorts of mouthpiece and port configurations and it's easy to get lost.
The bottom line is that there's two basic types: direct pressure and leverage. But with that, there's a lot to consider between teh horse's disposition, your sport, you hands, etc. A lot to think about. So why the preoccupation with bits? Well, it's one of the most basic parts of riding the horse (unless you plan on going bitless or bridle-less) and anyone who is serious about riding needs to know this stuff , or at least be aware and especially what the various bits DO to a horse's mouth.
Now this doesn't mean that I'm now an "instant expert"- far from it. But it does tell me that I need to know more. One thing I can highly recommend, even though it wasn't required for the class or anything, is get a hold of the Myler's "A Whole Bit Better"- it's very instructive and the various demonstrations of how bits act on the horse is excellent.
I'll continue to press on with the education program although one of the most frustrating aspects is that some of the classes are held during the day at hours that I simply can't take off time from work for. Perhaps I can eventually work something out but that's been one of the most frustrating aspects of the whole education process.
More soon but I'm relived that school's done for now! :-)
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