What we’ve been up to…
Last week we spent quite a bit of time up on the Grand Prix field schooling. The weather cooperated well with beautiful days that felt like summer. There have been years when it snows in May while we are schooling on the field, so we appreciated the warmth.
Here are some quick video clips of Beezie, Katherine, Claudia and Daniel jumping on the field.
Up Next…
This Friday, we fly our horses (and a few dogs) from Hamilton to Vancouver to head to Thunderbird for two weeks before six weeks up at Spruce Meadows.
Q&A with Beezie…
“I've noticed Beezie rides her horses in a wide variety of nosebands including a Mexican grackle, flash, drop noseband, to name a few. And of course a hackamore sometimes. Maybe the only thing I haven't seen on her horses is a regular cavesson noseband, except when she's jogging them before a competition. What factors lead the JMS team and Beezie to choose one noseband versus the other for each of your horses? Can you share your thinking/process behind those decisions and why you think each noseband suits a different kind of horse? -Courtney L.”
Hi Courtney, we start all our young horses in a regular cavesson noseband and sometimes we have one who that just works for and they stay in in. Kickstart II currently shows in a regular noseband. My first choice after a regular cavesson is to move to a figure eight (also called a Mexican grackle). This gives freedom when the horse’s mouth stays closed, but gets snugger if they open their mouth. If this doesn’t offer enough control or the horse doesn’t seem happy in the figure eight, I might try a drop noseband or flash next. With everything, it’s often trial and error, and if the horse is worse in a specific noseband, it’s time to try something else. Sometimes adjusting padding or width can make a difference too. It’s most important to properly fit the noseband to not be too tight, impede airflow, or cause the horse discomfort. -Beezie
If you would like to submit a question for Beezie, John, or another member of our team, email it to JMS@johnmaddensales.com!