Creating healthy biomechanics and stronger partnerships through combining

natural horsemanship principles with the art of dressage...

never underestimate the potential for harmony & lightness to improve in ways you cannot yet imagine

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Upcoming Clinics: Clinic schedule click here:

November 21 Private Lessons at Temenos FieldsContact K2@dressagenaturally.net

December 19Private Lessons at Temenos FieldsContact K2@dressagenaturally.net

December 20Open Format Workshop at Temenos FieldsContact K2@dressagenaturally.net

N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 9

Top photos: dana Rasmussen, Center Photo: Terri Miller

Welcome back to the Temenos...Temenos is an ancient Greek word. It refers to a sacred space that has no lim-its, where special rules apply and extra-ordinary events are free to occur.

"To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our

communication with others."

-- Tony Robbins

Auditors Welcome!

Karen Rohlf

Feedback

Dear Karen:It's been about a month now since my *Six Days at Temenos Fields*.   I've thought about my experience at your wonderful facility every day  since I left -- it was such an enlightening, positive and progressive  experience for me, as well as for my horse, Cody!  The small,  intimate group of 8 allowed me to concentrate on not only my own lessons and achievements, but those of my fellow students as well.   

Having no prior dressage training what-soever, I was especially  interested in learning about what relaxed, energetic and balanced movement should look like -- it was a big part of why I chose to drive the 3000 miles to participate!  I wasn't disappointed, as each participant and their partner clearly showed me the prerequisite *sweet spot* leading to im-proved flexibility, mobility and  collectibil-ity.

The diversity of learning experiences over the 6 days was a real plus.  From group lessons to individual lessons, simulations, discussions, partnering exercises, and individual practice time, it all added up to progress.  I am so excited with everything I learned  -- especially my very first *offi-cial* dressage lesson!  Wow!  How  lucky do I feel to have had you as my in-structor for that?!!  VERY LUCKY!  It was a ton of fun, I learned loads, giggled quite a bit (those dressage arenas can be quite

humorous with the right  attitude...), and went away wanting even more lessons!

The group was so very supportive of where I was (and am...) as the  *new kid*, and helped me understand aspects of dressage that were new  to me.  I can say that, by the end of the week, I felt like I had some  real inklings of understanding where I could go with this, and how lucky I am to have such a willing and talented equine partner.   

Learning to lead the dance, while it doesn't come naturally to me, is  now an exciting possibility that I look for-ward to practicing on a daily basis.  With the kinds of movement Cody's given me, both at the clinic and now that we're home, I think he's happy to practice as well.  He's prancing all over the place these days -- just being led,  during the circling game, and even as I try to stay true to a  relatively precise 15m (10m @ the trot...) circle.  

I feel a need to dress better around him these days -- so I don't look like a slum-dog  next to His Highness!  I'm finding that I'm paying closer attention to the real-ity shows *Dancing with the Stars* and *So You Think You Can  Dance* -- relating to the difficult job of getting the *amateur* (me)  up to par with the steps, the musicality, the tempo, the endurance and the attitude of the *pro* (Cody)!  I think he hopes to be voted through as the winner!

I also want to express how much I appre-ciate your incorporation of the  Parelli foundation in everything you do.  Being able to talk about things in Parelli terms and maintaining Parelli principles and Keys to Success made everything easy for me, especially with regards to Key #1:  Attitude.  Your positive and crea-tive attitude as an instructor bolstered my positive and progressive attitude as a student, which kept Cody's attitude willing and cooperative...even in the record heat!

Thanks so very much for the opportunity to ride with you at the Temenos.  It kept true to its credo of being "a place where extraordinary events are

free to occur".  I certainly experienced a  myriad of extraordinary events during my extraordinary time there!

Take care!Sally

PS, I have something I'd like to offer up to the dressage community:   At Karen's Venue, Every Stretching Horse Can Master Relaxation,  Balance, Posture, Freedom    ((:

It has truly been a wonderful journey to learn, feel and love Dressage Naturally. It has really shown me what flexibility and movement is with horses. The results have been amazing. The freedom of movement, with a 19 year old Arabian, between horse and rider is now making sense. I could never actually visualize what it meant and even felt like, until now.

I am very excited that I have found you and to add this part of my horsemanship to my horse awakening. You are intuitive to the horse and rider, which allows us to learn together. Your additional support with your books, DVD’s, and posters help to guide us when we are not riding in front of you.

Karen, your teaching skills and the way you play with horses, along with us as rider’s is your forte you excel at it. My horse and I appreciate what you do for us Thank you. Claudia C. Milton, Acting Chief Miami-Dade Schools Police Department

I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed the Clinic and how much I learned both from my lessons and all the other girls' lessons as well.   Have the feel of an up-right shoulder now, going to use many serpentines (that was feeling very good during the drill, even though we were off course and too fast) and now understand, finally, the value of "follow the rail".  Will do a lot more groundwork and play-ing too - - - hope that we can show some improvement by lesson time.  I'm inspired and excited about where Alley and I can go with this.  Thank You.

Best regards, Bonnie

2 copyright 2009 Temenos Fields, Inc November

Sally and Cody

2 questions: Collection & Horse ‘analities’.

Hi Karen.I searched your website to learn more of your training style. I have a couple of questions that I couldn't find answers to. I was wondering if you teach the horse col-lection on the ground, maybe  without  a bridle, before you teach it on-board.  I know a few people are doing this now, but how they do it is a mystery!

I've been watching a lot of the Parelli dvds, most recently the  'horsenality', and think I've figured out that my horse is quite the  challenging combination - mostly high energy right brain introv/  extro., with a few left brain stubbornness lulus thrown in.  So, I'm  wondering  if you address any of these horsenality issues in your  dressage techniques. Thank you. Dona

Hi Dona,

Thanks so much for your questions.

First regarding collection: I think the first thing is to make sure that we all have the same picture of what collection is. It is when the horse is engaged, carrying him-self ʻuphillʼ. The steps are active, and higher, with a feeling of both potential en-ergy and consistency. A horse in collec-tion will look at the same time as if he could stay there forever, yet also appears to be ready to do anything in a heartbeat. Some people would say that a connection through the reins is part of what defines collection, but I look at a good connection with the reins as part of the ingredients of riding a horse in collection.

A horse is able to collect without a rider. It is the horse that invented collection, we just try to recreated it when it is our idea! And for sure when we are on their backs, collection becomes a challenge because now he has our body weight to try to deal with. That is why solid ʻworking gaitsʼ are an important prerequisite to sustainable, healthy collection.

So do we need reins to collect: No. Are reins an excellent tool to communicate with our horse about consistency, preci-sion and a circuit of energy from horse through rider? Yes. When I first started

learning how to ride bridleless it was my quest to do everything in dressage bridle-less. Now I am not so sure that is as im-portant as I thought. Geez, dressage is already difficult enough for these horses... why try to do it without all our tools of communication? I can do everything bridle-less, but in the end, my picture of collection riding is where the horse and I are connected everywhere and it is still feeling free.

It is easier to communicate to the horse about keeping a stretchable topline, (so important for the health of their bodies), if he has something to stretch in to. When I see people doing bridleless collection, too many times the horse is being taught to contract instead of to be powerful.

But with that said, I do think that there are some excellent ways to build collection both on the ground and bridleless that I would find it hard to live without!

Collection is mental and emotional and well as physical, so their state of under-standing and motivation is key.

Collection is a posture of readiness and balance, so any exercises that re-quire them to be consistent in their rhythm and then able to transition to an-other rhythm (gait) is building their col-lectibility or collect-ability.

This is true riding with or with out connec-tion, as well as at liberty.

I tend to make sure my horses under-stand how to stretch their top lines first, then play with a variety of maneuvers that develop the skills involved in collection. As the human, it is important to develop your eye for it, and what would be great is to play with a horse on the ground or rid-ing that already knows it. Then you will be better able to create it. Always keep in mind that the ingredients of collection are lightness of the shoulder, active, hindlegs, elastic top line, balance, straightness and ability to shift the weight back.

In the exercise pictured below, I am com-bining a few conversations. I am asking the horse to have a ʻquick to initiateʼ, en-ergetic canter depart, while at the same time I am playing within a ʻstick-to-meʼ game. So the horse learns that in order to solve the puzzle, he can direct his steps higher instead of faster. My posture is clearly embodying collection and I hope that in the end, my posture is the pre-dominant signal (aid) to collect.

To answer your question about differ-ent horse-analities (as described in the Parelli system). Well, for sure anyone who deals with horses has had to deal with many different characters of horses. If they havenʼt given it much thought then I am sure they have had troubles!

(continued on next page)

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Atomic (left) learning the first hints of collection at liberty. He is tightening the topline and using his neck muscles to lift him. I allow this (no draw-reins, etc) because he IS trying and he needs to experiment. Monty (on right) understands it better, is stronger, more balanced and more practiced at it, so he has figured out how to use his abdomi-nal muscles and keep his topline more stretched. His posture in the collection is more ‘correct’ as a result of his understanding and keenness to do it, as well as my aware-ness of targeting these habits.

I am personally always trying to figure out who my horses are and who I need to be to be right for them. Most of the time I make sure I observe the cause and effect of what I do. If something goes well, I re-wind the tape in my mind and try to as-sess what it was that made things go well. If things go poorly, I do the same to find out what not to do next time!

To comment on the Parelliʼs Horseanality information specifically I will say that it is a great resource. I wonʼt attempt to ex-plain it here, as Linda Parelliʼs DVD does it so much better. If you are reading this and you havenʼt seen it, it is a DVD I would recommend. But... I will tell you what I have observed has become a problem in the way some students are interpreting and using the information.

I have many students who will describe their horses as a LB/Introvert or RB/Extrovert. They give the horse that name and that is that. I know that horses for sure can tend to be one of these or the other, but I would really caution you against giving your horse these titles.

This is for a couple reasons:

1. There is a saying: “We only know what we see and we only see what is al-ready in the mind”. So if you call your horse a _____. Chances are your brain will see this and you can perpetuate the situation.

2. It doesnʼt take into account YOUR ef-fect on the horse. Is he RB/Extravert ALL the time? Sometimes we humans create these conditions in our horses! I have met plenty of LB/introverts that easily activate... when they are not bored to death!

3. These are often only described as negatives. I think it is important for stu-dents to remember that there are posi-tive aspects to each of these character states! Depending, of course on how you can deal with them!

I think the Horseanality information is wonderful, just remember to use it as a tool to help you make decisions, not as a label.

There are some other books that I just love to help give me some other ways of understanding my horses. One is a book

called: Is Your Horse a Rock Star. by Dessa Hockley (can find it on my More Resources page). She has you assess your horseʼs archetype by looking at whether he is dominant vs submissive, high vs low energy, afraid vs curious and friendly vs aloof. From there she gives each combination a name (and a wonder-ful cartoon caricature). Then she de-scribes what they like and donʼt like.

For example, Monty is a Boss (as in a mob-boss) He is Dominant, High Energy, Afraid and Aloof. He doesnʼt like to be fluffed over, he is very business-like and likes to call the shots, but he can find comfort in a secure, predictable job. He prefers lessons to be repeated the same way each time. He demands respect and prefers to be in charge. He needs me to be firm, fair and fearless for him as he is highly emotional.

Ovation, on the other hand is a Reluctant Rock Star. He would never think of being a star, but if you get him out there, he is so proud of what he can do he just canʼt stand himself!

He is Dominant, Low energy, Curious and Friendly. His ego needs to be constantly pampered. He has a big ego, and he hates to feel undervalued. He is a clown. But his low energy means that I need to be firm and non-negotiable so he actually does what I ask (he can be tolerant to the point of oblivious), but he prefers a variety of different exercises in order to learn the lesson that is common between them.

Monty and Ovation both can have Left Brain, Right Brain, Introverted and Extro-verted moments, and they will manifest differently with each horse, due to their different characters in general.

So Dessa Hockleyʼs descriptions help me know who they are in general, and the Horseanality information helps me know how they are in a particular mo-ment.

There is another book that is a great resource. It is called: Ride the Right Horse by Yvonne Barteau.

She describes horses with respect to whether they are Social, Fearful, Aloof or Challenging, and then how passive or aggressive they are about it. She also is educated in the Meyers Briggs Personal-

ity Indicator for People, which is quite in-teresting, and she discusses how human personalities get along with different horse ʻpersonalitiesʼ.

So if by now you are getting more con-fused by all the different information... Good! Because this is not simple stuff, and the reality is that personalities cannot be described in a simple system. The more you know that, the better you will see the horse in front of you each day, instead of the one you first saw years ago, when he was wild, or bored, or whatever. There is another saying that “anything really worth learning canʼt be taught.” So when I find complex concepts such as trying to figure out my horseʼs personality, and it gets really confusing, I know I am getting close to really under-standing, (welcome to the strange world inside my brain!) :-)

At best we can learn different ways of looking at it, understand different systems of describing it, then let that swim around in your mind. The observe your horse and do your best to notice the cause and ef-fect.

Most of all do your best to know yourself. It takes two to have a relationship, but if one of you changes it changes the entire relationship.

So, Dona, that was a very long answer and now I will answer what you really asked: Do I address it in my materials? No, I donʼt have a system mapped out, but I do use the resources discussed above. I think they did a great job of ex-plaining it, and I can benefit from them and share them with you so you can also!~Karen

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Photo: Dana Rasmussen

Product Reviews:As usual, GREAT DVD! [#5, de-veloping lengthenings] Loved it! I always learn so much from you and continued to be inspired to be better than I was yesterday. My horses also thank you...Bonnie C

The poster is amazing! What a beautiful way to stay reminded of ‘where I am’ and ‘where I’m going’. And you were right about the pa-per its printed on... as soon as I hung it up in the barn, my horse blew his nose on it, but it wiped clean with no damage. :-) THANKS! I sure appreciate you thinking of everything!Tracy

DVD #5 is the missing piece I was looking for! I have tried to ask for lengthenings but nothing ever really happened, my horse just ran faster and it stayed a big mystery. Now I know that how I do all my transitions is what will build his ability to lengthen. What a great example of prior and proper prepa-ration! My foundation is good, but I always wondered where the power was supposed to come from after putting such a big emphasis on calming him down and (unfortu-nately) knocking the energy out of him!

Now I know! Thanks so much for all you do!

~Chris

Wow, that’s a lot of informa-tion on that poster! what a great reference. You did it again!

Terry

New Featured photo on homepageYou’ll have to go to the website to see it. Every month I will feature a new photo, this one is a sweet, artsy kind of shot.

A couple spots still open for January 23-28 clinic at Temenos Fields!Contact Karen Jones at K2@dressagenaturally.net if you are interested in participating in this course. It is limited to 8 riders.

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Instructional Poster

This 22” x 34” poster reminds you of the Big Picture of Dressage, Naturally in a single glance. The reality of horsemanship is that we are in many stages at any given time. That is why simple recipes only work to a point. We need to have the big picture of where we are and where we are going. I designed this poster so that from across the room, you can be reminded of how the whole process fits together. Then, you can come up close and read through the ample text to get more detailed checkpoints regarding the qualities and skills that are important for each stage.

This poster reflects the way my brain organizes and processes information. I am really proud of this and hope you find it as useful as I dream you will. It is printed on material that is water and tear resis-tant, too so it will hold up to being posted in a barn, and will still look good in your home! Oh yeah, and no trees were cut down to produce this poster!

#5 in the Results in Harmony Series

This DVD is about Developing Lengthenings. Ovation re-turns to show you his first attempts at lengthenings. I will dis-cuss the necessary ingredients and how I prepare them. Then once again, you will watch an entire session (with minimal editing). The entire time I am narrating while I am riding. Lengthenings are all about building potential energy. The skills learned in developing this movement will set you up for success for powerful move-ments and true collection later.

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6 copyright 2009 Temenos Fields, Inc November

“Yeah, that’ll happen when pigs fly!”

Well... I now have a flying pig at Temenos Fields, so I guess all sorts of ‘impossible things’ can start

happening!

Carlos in his new ‘Dog Mahal’ He looks like he is quite sure he deserves this!

More photos from Dana Rasmussen... Ovation and I practicing our bridle-less riding.

Ahhh, my little wild child!

Atomic being his fabulous, dramatic self! Auditor Dawn Garner took this photo!

6 Days at Temenos Fields...It’s very serious, and very fun!

C L I N I C P H O T O S

Copyright 2009 Temenos Fields, Inc THANK YOU DAWN GARNER & CARALEE GOULD FOR THE PHOTOS!! 7