# Winning Bridleless Ride



## equiniphile (Aug 16, 2009)

What an amazing horse! I've just started parelli and would hope to soemtime get to the point where I can do that with my TB. Thank you for the inspiration!


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## MacabreMikolaj (May 9, 2009)

That's awesome, but I have a question.

If you need the stick to guide him anyway, wouldn't it be EASIER with a bridle? I thought the point of bridleless was to have them trained to your leg and seat?


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## Deer Run Stables (Nov 26, 2010)

MacabreMikolaj said:


> I thought the point of bridleless was to have them trained to your leg and seat?


Yup, it certainly is.  Unfortunately, we're not that good yet. I can usually get away without the stick these days when we're bumming around the farm, but it would have been asking for trouble not to have it during a precision competition, at our level of competence. 

You'll also notice I didn't walk into the arena with nothing on his head. I honestly had no idea what to expect; it was the first competition I've ridden in since starting NH. I figured it would be dangerous to assume that I'd be riding the same horse that I ride at home. :wink:


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## Deer Run Stables (Nov 26, 2010)

equiniphile said:


> What an amazing horse! I've just started parelli and would hope to soemtime get to the point where I can do that with my TB. Thank you for the inspiration!


Thank _you_ for the kind words! Tucker's the kind of horse that I always should have owned-- a nice, lazy LBI to complement my own rather RBI tendencies. Unfortunately, I spent an awfully big chunk of my life clinging to the backs of extreme RBE horses as they exploded right, left and center. :lol:


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

LBI? RBi? RBE?
I must be too old to know what that means.
Nice ride and nice horse. YOu, and old lady? hUH?


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## Deer Run Stables (Nov 26, 2010)

tinyliny said:


> LBI? RBi? RBE?
> I must be too old to know what that means.
> Nice ride and nice horse. YOu, and old lady? hUH?


Ha, ha-- my apologies. I dropped into Parelli-speak for a moment there, since a previous poster said she was doing Parelli as well.

Parelli classifies horses as being broadly either Left Brain (thinkers, non-reactive, non-emotional) or Right Brain (emotional, reactive), and either Introverts (don't really like to move their feet, often called lazy) or Extroverts (move their feet A LOT; often more than you'd like!).

So LBI=Left Brain Introvert (lazy, non-reactive); RBI=Right Brain Introvert (emotional, but tends to shut down or "freeze" when stressed);LBE=Left Brain Extrovert (playful, bold, mischievous); RBE=Right Brain Extrovert (emotional, tends to spook or bolt when frightened).

As you can imagine, the training method for a left brain introvert would be very different than for a right brain extrovert, and so forth. LBIs need mental stimulation to avoid boredom and increase engagement and enthusiasm; RBEs need repetition and consistency to increase confidence and calmness. It's an incredibly useful system, and Parelli folks tend to apply the concepts to people as well, like a shorthand Meyers-Briggs test. 

As for looking like an old lady, my posture here (or lack thereof) is a scary, scary thing (for me, at least!). Need. More. Pilates.


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## Juniper (May 4, 2007)

that is fabulous


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## Caitlinpalomino (Nov 16, 2010)

well done that was great.......just wondering how long did it take you to be able to do that?


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## Deer Run Stables (Nov 26, 2010)

Juniper said:


> that is fabulous


Thanks, Juniper! I love my horse.


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## Deer Run Stables (Nov 26, 2010)

Caitlinpalomino said:


> well done that was great.......just wondering how long did it take you to be able to do that?


Thank you, Caitlinpalomino!

There's a short answer and a long answer to your question. The short answer is that Tucker became my Parelli levels horse (the one I focus on while learning Parelli Natural Horsemanship using the old study-at-home levels packs) in late 2004, and I took the bridle off for the first time after reaching Level Three in late 2006. This video was taken last summer.

The long answer is that I've been riding since I was 9, and was introduced to natural horsemanship (not Parelli, just generic NH) when I was 19. I'm pushing 40 now. I don't feel like I made huge strides in my horsemanship while riding until starting with Parelli, though I learned a lot about groundwork from other NH sources.

Of course it's not set in stone, but I feel it is totally reasonable for a fairly fit and athletic individual with an uncomplicated horse (that part's important!) to reach Parelli level 3/4-- and bridleless riding-- in 3 years.


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## equiniphile (Aug 16, 2009)

I'm not doing the "levels" yet, I know someone who's a trainer and sends me the DVD's when I need a new one. Right now I have the Horseonalities, the 7 Games, and the Stick 2 Me DVDs. I'm about ready to send them back for the next ones


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## Deer Run Stables (Nov 26, 2010)

equiniphile said:


> I'm not doing the "levels" yet, I know someone who's a trainer and sends me the DVD's when I need a new one. Right now I have the Horseonalities, the 7 Games, and the Stick 2 Me DVDs. I'm about ready to send them back for the next ones


I *love* the old Levels packs. Maybe you could ask for one for Christmas. 

Ebay is about the only place to get the old ones these days, but that's good, because they're much cheaper than buying the new kits from parelli.com. There's one here with a current bid of $15.50.


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## equestrian (Oct 12, 2010)

Wow that was awesome!


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## Clair (Jun 7, 2010)

So impressive! 
*claps*
I'm doing mixed bitless/bareback NH with my boy but I'm a few years from achieving zero head-gear riding!
Really inspires me!
Keep it up


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## Amlalriiee (Feb 22, 2010)

haha good job!!! I can steer without headgear and I'm okay on the bareback...but my HUGE issue is that my horse has zero brakes so I can't ACTUALLY get away with not using a bridle except for at the walk


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## Amlalriiee (Feb 22, 2010)

Oh...mine's an arab QH too!


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## WickedNag (Sep 7, 2010)

Great job!

Here is a link to one of the videos that sold us on buying Sheldon


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## Tralauney (Oct 9, 2010)

I really enjoyed that video!! so glad you posted it!! You have much to be proud of!


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