The two day clinic involved a a 1 ½ hour unmounted session and 1 hour mounted session each day. During the unmounted portion the riders followed James through a series of Tai Chi based stretching and balance exercises. These movements are designed to help riders discover and change imbalances within their bodies that inhibit the connection with the horse. The movements also involved the unblocking of several “chi” (energy) meridians to allow improved flow of energy. James monitored each person, cheerfully encouraged and carefully explaining as we went through the series.  This gave him a chance to evaluate each rider and to have an idea of what he would then address in the mounted session. This work was quite revealing, as we all discovered areas of stiffness, one hip less flexible than the other, a balance challenge, or tight neck and shoulders. With greater controlled range of motion in your joints, you are able to main tain structural alignment with out creating tension, thus enabling you to ‘follow’ the motion of your horse more closely. This in turn allows the horses to relax and move with greater fluidity. Believe me – these are not just empty, fancy sounding words! This really did work, in horse after horse during this clinic.

     Mounted sessions then incorporated what we felt and what James observed about each of us. Again, James did not instruct us on how to ride or perform a movement, but rather guided us on the path of discovering more about how to use our bodies and our breath, and then noticing the influence on the horse. Rule #1: Smile! We are, after all, supposed to be enjoying this! Besides, the smile literally and figuratively lightens things up and eases tension. James then moved us along the Pat of: Mind… Breath… Body.  The Mind has to stay focused and aware. Be aware of your Breath… how deep does it usually go? To your throat? Your chest? Your abdomen? We returned to the focus on the Breath many times, and almost always as attention was drawn to the Breath and we allowed the Breath to flow deeper in to the abdomen, relaxation of both rider AND horse occurred. James taught us about 8 specific areas of our bodies he calls “Gates of Energy”. By focusing awareness on these Gates and allowing them to ‘open’ we discovered a corresponding openness and freedom occurring in our horses – more freedom, less effort. What a concept? James frequently  pointed out how the horses ‘mirror’ what the rider is doing, often demonstrating stiffness and tension in a similar area to where the rider is tense. As we released these areas of tightness or tension, by opening the nearby Gate, we really could notice a difference in the flow of movement provide by the horses. James often told us to ‘ride with our Intent’, not just our muscles. He also encouraged some visualization techniques, suggesting we visualize a perfect transition at some point in the arena, then riding with that Intent, believing that the transition already existed at that spot, and truly, it often did! Effortlessly.

     To me the proof of a clinician’s effectiveness is what goes on in my riding in the weeks following the clinic. Have I “gotten” something that I continue to use on a daily basis in my riding? And my answer is absolutely Yes. Now every day I am conscious and aware of my Breath, and changing it continues to produce a change in me and then in my horses, subtle though it may be. I remind myself to ride with Intent, not just muscle. I visualize those perfect transitions ahead of me on the track,, and as often as not, find them.