When we lunge our horses and prepare them for the rider we attach the rubberband as on the picture to make the horse use to a soft resistant of the bit, once the rider is on the back the horse has already felt a soft contact with the rubberband and the mouth.
Note that the band is long and it is not forcing the horse's head into any particular position. The rubber band is as you can see secured under the stirrups.
The horse that demonstrates the rubberband attachment is Merdjen.

1. maria06/04/2006 16:33:44

Jessica,

Does the rubber cord (we call it bungie here) go behind the ears? I thought it should go from one stirrup to the bit, then over the poll and then down to the bit on the other side, then to the other stirrup. Am I wrong?

2. Jessica D.06/04/2006 22:36:36

This is like side reins...right?

3. Jessica 06/05/2006 09:50:46

There are no shoulds when it comes to the rubber band (I'm sorry Maria but bungie sounds to violent and scary to me ).
You can attach it in many different ways depending on what you want the horse to learn at that point. I have another version that I will add pictures of later. In this case I only want the horse to feel a light contact with the bit. I am not interested at all in artificially position the head of the horse. The goal with the different ways of attaching the rubber band is to make the horse engage the hindlegs in all gaits and prepare as well as strenghten itself for the rider. In this picture the rubber band does not go over the neck it is used exaclty as you would use reins.

4. Jessica 06/06/2006 09:07:09

Jessica D and Maria. We went to Barrington Hill last weekend. It was a really nice show and I got to see different hunter classes. I think that the hunter classes might really fit the Tekes, the way they move, their looks under rider. I saw many TBs there and they seemed to do good. I would love to find sports for Tekes that fits the Teke type and movements so that we do not have to remake the Teke into something it is not.
Jessica D, next time you are in Florida you must really pop by to try out some of our Tekes and tell us what you think about their hunter abilities. I also imagine that the training of the hunter performer differs from the training of the Continental training. In that case I will have to decide which way to go with my youngsters? Do you have any input on that? I will also discuss it with my rider, she has a good insight in both worlds. English and Continental. Maria are you training Mualim for English or Continental riding, what do you think are the biggest differences?

5. Jessica D.06/07/2006 12:39:04

Jessica,
Hunters like their horses to go long and low...a lower headset but on the bit...not like a dressage horse...their heads are too high and collected...they like a relaxed look to the horse...Basically when a judge is pinning a class, they are looking for the horse they would MOST like to ride in the traditional Hunt...(in the field going over fences....they don't really have jumps out in a field anymore but now they are done in an arena) Horses pin well on the flat by being on the bit and having the "daisy cutter" type trot....many TB's have this. Latly, many warmbloods have been entering the hunter world but the traditional TB still does well. They like a nice flowing stride at the canter as well. (not a lot of knee movement...flat knees).

As for jumping, they look for a horse that does not change it's pace throughout the course. It has a nice long stride that can get the required number of strides between lines...they usually have multiple lines set to test to see if the horse changes pace or not. They want a horse that not only has a nice way of going and gets flying changes if not lands on the leads, but they want a horse that jumps round with square and even knees in front.

I hope this description of what judges look for in hunters will help you figure things out. I believe that any horse can do hunters if trained well and has a relaxed way of going with nice movements.

I would really love to see your farm and horses and take pictures! My husband and I are both photographers and I have a passion for equine photography! I hope to soon...his grandmother lives down in Clearwater and is getting near to....well...she wants it to be over...she is 90+ years old and she basically wants to die. Well maybe when we go down there at that time, we will make a stop at your place for a visit. (yes I know it's sad, but best to make lemonade from lemons, right?) I also have family that still lives in the area...so we will definitly be down there at some point....who knows...maybe by that time I will be able to buy a horse (I already have an arab mix pony...but I need a horse for Hunters...Im too old to compete in the ponies!) and be looking at some of yours! ;)

P.S. - I recommend reading a book called "Hunt Seat Equitation" by George Morris. This book explains EVERYTHING about judging hunters and equitation as well as common faults that are seen and what to look for.

6. Maria06/21/2006 18:19:00

Jessica, please put another photo of the rubber string you use for training on the blog.