Tag: J.L. Hardesty

We are often asked if the Balance Rider is only for equestrians, or if it has value for people who don’t ride horses. So we’re going to take a little side trip before going on with our explanations/definitions of balance, core strength and proprioception.

Essential facts: Good balance, core strength and proprioception are the basis for healthy/successful performance in any physical activity, from walking to pole-vaulting, from rowing a boat to swimming the English Channel.

Comfort and confidence rely on balance . . . and balance relies largely on core strength.

In this series focusing on RIDER confidence, we’ll cover a number of ways to develop this fundamentally important attribute.

From this rider/writer’s perspective, the most essential physical attributes of the confident equestrian are:

Confidence is the belief that we can accomplish or handle a given task or enterprise.

A confident rider is a comfortable rider.

A confident rider shares confidence with the horse.

A confident horse and rider know, together, the joy of the ride and of their relationship.

Before summer arrived, in that year when my anticipation of it was marred by fear, Jim presented me with a gift that soon found its way to the top of my best-ever list. Unbeknownst to me, shortly after the Sunday of my sadness, the creative genius I love began inventing.
First, he dug out a saddle stand that we weren’t using, separated the top from the legs, and hid away the lower half so that I wouldn’t run across it and get curious.

Birth of the Balance Rider ~ Part One © J. L. Hardesty It all started one day in early spring,...