>>> that said, stjarni ground-ties and will just stand there whether i hold him or not, and i don't think my instructor's ponies were trained to ground-tie.
I don't think I've ever literally trained a single horse to ground-tie, but they are usually engaged in the situation enough to stand quietly. I can't imagine using a less-than-100%-engaged horse for teaching beginners to vault. If you MUST hold a horse for mounting, let someone hold a lead line. A lead line has some "give" via its length, and won't trigger a panic reaction nearly so easily...assuming the handler doesn't hold the line by the snap with a death grip. That's a standard joke Pat Parelli tells at the start of each of his weekend tour stops. The three "project" horses come into the arena, led by their owners, who invariably are tense and nervous. Almost without fail, they have a white-knuckled grip on the snap of the lead line. Then Pat, or one of his instructors, will take the horse, giving the horse most of the 12' lead line, and the horse almost instantly relaxes. Pat then says something like, "We sell 12-foot lines, so feel free to use the full length. We don't sell buckles alone, but I guess we could start stocking them." Karen Karen Thomas Wingate, NC No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.503 / Virus Database: 269.16.9/1158 - Release Date: 11/28/2007 9:11 PM IceHorses Community for Photos and Videos: http://kickapps.com/icehorses "The greatest enemy of the truth very often is not the lie- deliberate, contrived and dishonest -- but the myth -- persistent, persuasive and unrealistic." "All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident." ~ Arthur Schopenhauer [] Lee Ziegler http://leeziegler.com [] Liz Graves http://lizgraves.com [] Lee's Book Easy Gaited Horses http://tinyurl.com/7vyjo [] IceHorses Map http://www.frappr.com/IceHorses Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IceHorses/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IceHorses/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
