F&I Study Day with Judy Harvey FBHS

Inspirational training from Judy Harvey.

Judy gave us a great insight into why she’s been so successful coaching some of our best riders and trained horses and judges to the top of the sport.

 Judy has an exceptional way of creating a great atmosphere that gets riders and horses working in a supple and harmonious way, and her eye for detail with both horses and riders is outstanding.  All the riders responded and rode to an exceptional level showing really interesting and quality work that was great to watch.

We watched two beautifully ridden TB’s belonging to Lisa Spence, both having successfully raced.  They worked on suppleness and balance, to transform their way of going, showing us how Judy’s subtle support and corrections improved both paces and posture into a classical way of going.

Liz Eaton and Maggie Doel both again rode really well on warmbloods. Here Judy’s help with improving collection and riding the horses uphill showed us how getting a correct posture transformed the balance, enabling the horses to move with cadence and better placement of the hind legs. We discussed nosebands and it was interesting to see the mouths were shut and relaxed when in a correct frame.

Judy worked with the riders’ own programs and then subtly moved them on where she felt necessary. She gave us good examples of setting the riders up and then watching and observing with a razor sharp eye, then giving simple easy to understand tips on the move. The horses and riders were always at the centre of the lesson. Judy’s “There… there… there…” highlighted the improvements for both the riders and us watching. Judy gave lots of subtle rider correction in such a nice way that the riders stayed relaxed and were able to get more harmony and depth of seat.

I felt totally inspired and couldn’t wait to get back to coaching.

Four members put their brave pants on, in front of their peers, and coached Judy’s willing and generous guinea pigs at various levels, and again hopefully they found it a supportive environment to work in. Judy gave tips and advice for their future development.

I think Judy’s example will be the most memorable thing for us all to take away.

Many thanks to Judy and her team for a fantastic day and to Ann Bostock for organising and looking after us all.

Report by Rob Pickles FBHS