Ebook · pre-order
The path to bridleless
A choice-based approach to riding classical dressage on a neckrope, through positive reinforcement.
Sixteen chapters and over 100 pages, suitable for all horses, no prior experience needed. Taking you from the start all the way to riding shoulder-in, travers and renvers on a neckrope.
The ebook will be released on 1 December. Pre-order now and you will receive it on launch day.
€24.95
Exclusive pre-order price, €29.95 after release
What you will learn
- How to give your horse real choice in training
- A full science-based explanation of how your horse learns
- How to use positive reinforcement the right way, and how to avoid common mistakes
- Preventing frustration and negative emotions
- How to start teaching your horse the neckrope from the first lesson
- How to stop, steer, bend, and position the head on light aids with a neckrope
- A full explanation of the mechanics of shoulder-in, travers, and renvers
- How to achieve light and easy transitions between gaits
- Linking side-movements together properly, while maintaining balance
Who is this for
This ebook covers all aspects of bridleless dressage, from the very beginning to a high intermediate level. If you ever wanted to ride on a neckrope, and implement positive reinforcement and choice-based training, this is the ebook I would recommend.
My goal was to write a book that gave you the knowledge you actually need to ride bridleless dressage. It shows you real exercises that have proven themselves invaluable during my lessons over the past decade. You will get a thorough understanding of learning theory, choice-based training, how to achieve good bend, side-movements, lightness in the aids, and having a horse that wants to work with you.
A complete list of all the chapters
Preface: Why ride bridleless, or ride at all
- Finding another way
- What this book will help you with
- Should we even ride?
- How does classical dressage fit in?
- A new movement
Part I – The foundation – Learning theory and beyond
How horses learn
- The four quadrants
- How positive and negative reinforcement work in practice
- What is the best way to make aids light?
- Motivation, timing, consistency
- How reinforcement shifts into punishment
- Keeping things predictable
- How the intensity of pressure and rewards affects your horse
- Why the horse’s feelings are part of the training
How to use positive reinforcement in riding
- How can we be fast enough with R+?
- Is this not just clicker training?
- How timing and consistency matter in classical conditioning
- How to teach your horse the marker signal
- How I carry my food rewards and other practical tips
- Will I always need to use food rewards?
Shaping or how to teach almost anything
- A practical example: teaching targets through shaping
- Training behaviours to last longer
- How many rewards should I give?
- How many sessions should I do?
Choice and errorless learning
- How choice in training is important
- Enabling choice in the environment
- Teach your horse to communicate with you
- Let your horse initiate something
- How errorless learning makes horses happier
Beyond operant conditioning
- Spending time with your horse
Part II – The neckrope – Practice and theory
Getting started on the neckrope
- Theory: Safety and neckrope choice
- Theory: When to start?
- Practice: Requirements in order to start
- Practice: How long to train for
Stopping
- Practice: Requirements for stopping on a neckrope
- Practice: Taking this to the neckrope
- Practice: Other issues you might encounter
Steering and bending
- Theory: The two are not necessarily the same
- Practice: Teaching it in standing
- Practice: What if it is not working?
- Practice: Getting a quicker response
- Practice: Teaching bending in walk
- Theory: Teaching the difference between neck bend and shoulder rotation
- Practice: Taking this to standing
- Practice: Taking this to walk
- Practice: How to correct your horse from falling out
- Theory: Straightness
- Theory: Alternative training
Head and neck position
- Theory: Why head height matters
- Theory: Perfectionism in bridleless riding and liberty
- Practice: How to actually start teaching the lifting aid
- Practice: What if they don’t respond
- Practice: Implementing this into your regular work
Shoulder-in
- Theory: The difference between sideways and shoulder-in
- Theory: The complexities of shoulder-in on a circle
- Theory: Why shoulder-in is not just about the front
- Practice: How to start teaching shoulder-in to your horse
- Practice: What level is your horse at?
- Practice: Using standing to fix falling in
- Theory: Why correct doesn’t exist
- Practice: How to use your seat to maintain rhythm and throughness
- Practice: How a good shoulder-in should feel, and how to get there
- Practice: Straight lines and using targets during shoulder-in
Travers
- Theory: The different variants of travers
- Theory: Why you should focus more on the shoulders
- Practice: How to start and problems you might encounter
- Theory: The importance of the seat in travers
- Practice: Improving the bend in the travers
- Practice: Moving on from a straight line and riding a circle in travers
Renvers
- Theory: Are renvers and travers not just the same?
- Practice: How to ask your horse for renvers
- Theory: How circles make renvers very complicated
- Practice: How do we ride a renvers circle with a neckrope?
Half-pass
- Theory: Why half-pass is basically a travers
- Practice: How to develop a good half-pass
Linking side-movements together
- Theory: Keeping the bend the same
- Theory: Changing the bend in side-movements
- Theory: The rest of the transitions
- Practice: Tips and tricks for transitions
Transitions between the gaits
- Practice: Simple walk to trot transitions
- Practice: Trot to walk transition
- Practice: Walk to halt and trot to halt
- Practice: Canter transitions
- Theory: Other transitions
Conclusion
Terms and definitions
Questions
What do I get?
The ebook is delivered as a PDF, made to be read electronically. You will not receive a physical copy.
How do I receive my ebook?
Your pre-order is confirmed by email as soon as your payment goes through. On the release date, 1 December, your personal download link is emailed to you. Please note that by default there is a maximum of five downloads allowed per link. If you need more for any reason, please contact me at info@barthartogsveld.nl.
Can I get a refund?
Yes, until the ebook is released. You can cancel your pre-order at any point before the release date, and you get the full €24.95 back. To initiate the refund process just send me an email with your order number and full name. Once the book is released and your download starts, there is no refund option. This is in accordance with EU law on digital downloads. Also see the terms and conditions.
Do I need a neckrope to start?
You don’t at the start! Part one is entirely about how horses learn and how to teach with positive reinforcement, and you can use that in your liberty work and groundwork as well. The neckrope is needed from part two on, so from chapter 6.
Can I print the ebook?
Absolutely. As long as it is for personal use, you can print the whole book.
Does it work on mobile?
You can open it on any device. It is designed as a full page, so it reads most comfortably on a tablet or a computer.