Article & photos by Allison Lail
The sun is coming up over cool mountain air in east Tennessee. Michael Tokaruk has “galloped” his way across the state to judge a very successful East Tennessee Hunter Jumper Association (ETHJA) schooling show on Saturday August 24, followed by a clinic on Sunday August 25. Both events were held at Stone Creek Farm, 8335 Beaver Ridge Road in Knoxville, TN, hosted by Matthew Lawson and Ashley Jenkins.
In Sunday’s “Fine Tune Your Ride” clinic with Michael Tokaruk, there were four groups of 3-4 riders ranging in abilities. Everyone seemed to go home with something new learned or to improve on.
A major goal in Michael’s training is to help you the rider make the most of your ride! He emphasizes that we all make mistakes, but it’s how you learn from your mistakes and adjust accordingly that is important. As well as learning from the clinician, you may also learn from others: learn what they did right, what mistakes they made, and relate those to your own riding and adjust. You are only on your horse for a short amount of time. So, be smart and think as a rider, he advises.
Michael gave each group tips for warming up. When you first get on the horse, ask the horse to go calmly, forward, and straight. Ask for a “big” walk, i.e., walking forward, stretching, by alternating your legs with the horse moving in front of your leg. Stretch you the rider, as well, with two point position, stretching your heels down.
There are several exercises Michael likes to begin with on the flat to not only help improve the jumping, but also steps that need to be done before starting to jump. One is a series of 4-5 poles on the ground in a curve. Start with your horse at the walk, moving outside and inside on the circle, lengthening and shortening the horse’s stride. This gets the horses paying attention to the rider, as well as learning where to put their feet, and adjusting their steps accordingly. Then come through the poles again, this time at the trot. You are teaching both shortening and lengthening of stride, as well as steering and some leg yielding. This solid foundation translates to the skills needed in jumping.
For beginners, and for practice riding lines precisely, Michael puts two poles on the ground, about 84 feet apart (approximately 7 strides). Riders can work on steering, control, forward movement, and other skills before actually jumping.
As the riders moved into jumping lines of fences, Michael cautioned them: “Don’t confuse speed with impulsion.” (Somehow I have heard this quote before from my younger days.) As they jumped the lines of fences, he reminded them that horses are going to make mistakes, but it’s how you react to those mistakes that makes the difference between the well-schooled, responsive horse and the not so well-schooled horse.
For more information about Michael Tokaruk, visit http://michaeltokaruk.com. For information about Stone Creek Farm, visit Adamo Equestrian at: http://www.adamoeq.com/ For information about ETHJA, visit: http://www.ethja.org/ For horse shows in east Tennessee, visit the Smoky Mountain Horse Show Series website: http://www.smokyseries.com/ or Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/StoneGateFarmHorseShowSeries
The sun is coming up over cool mountain air in east Tennessee. Michael Tokaruk has “galloped” his way across the state to judge a very successful East Tennessee Hunter Jumper Association (ETHJA) schooling show on Saturday August 24, followed by a clinic on Sunday August 25. Both events were held at Stone Creek Farm, 8335 Beaver Ridge Road in Knoxville, TN, hosted by Matthew Lawson and Ashley Jenkins.
In Sunday’s “Fine Tune Your Ride” clinic with Michael Tokaruk, there were four groups of 3-4 riders ranging in abilities. Everyone seemed to go home with something new learned or to improve on.
A major goal in Michael’s training is to help you the rider make the most of your ride! He emphasizes that we all make mistakes, but it’s how you learn from your mistakes and adjust accordingly that is important. As well as learning from the clinician, you may also learn from others: learn what they did right, what mistakes they made, and relate those to your own riding and adjust. You are only on your horse for a short amount of time. So, be smart and think as a rider, he advises.
Michael gave each group tips for warming up. When you first get on the horse, ask the horse to go calmly, forward, and straight. Ask for a “big” walk, i.e., walking forward, stretching, by alternating your legs with the horse moving in front of your leg. Stretch you the rider, as well, with two point position, stretching your heels down.
There are several exercises Michael likes to begin with on the flat to not only help improve the jumping, but also steps that need to be done before starting to jump. One is a series of 4-5 poles on the ground in a curve. Start with your horse at the walk, moving outside and inside on the circle, lengthening and shortening the horse’s stride. This gets the horses paying attention to the rider, as well as learning where to put their feet, and adjusting their steps accordingly. Then come through the poles again, this time at the trot. You are teaching both shortening and lengthening of stride, as well as steering and some leg yielding. This solid foundation translates to the skills needed in jumping.
For beginners, and for practice riding lines precisely, Michael puts two poles on the ground, about 84 feet apart (approximately 7 strides). Riders can work on steering, control, forward movement, and other skills before actually jumping.
As the riders moved into jumping lines of fences, Michael cautioned them: “Don’t confuse speed with impulsion.” (Somehow I have heard this quote before from my younger days.) As they jumped the lines of fences, he reminded them that horses are going to make mistakes, but it’s how you react to those mistakes that makes the difference between the well-schooled, responsive horse and the not so well-schooled horse.
For more information about Michael Tokaruk, visit http://michaeltokaruk.com. For information about Stone Creek Farm, visit Adamo Equestrian at: http://www.adamoeq.com/ For information about ETHJA, visit: http://www.ethja.org/ For horse shows in east Tennessee, visit the Smoky Mountain Horse Show Series website: http://www.smokyseries.com/ or Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/StoneGateFarmHorseShowSeries
