Excercises to Improve Rideability,
Ajustability, and Performance.
“
36 www.EliteEquestrianMagazine.com EQUINE Lifestyle
www.indiebound.org/book/9781501196232
EE
CRAZY about Horses READ & LEARN
It may surprise you to learn that there are over seven million horses in America—even more
than when they were the only means of transportation—and nearly two million horse owners.
Acclaimed journalist and avid equestrian Sarah Maslin Nir is one of them; she began riding
horses when she was just two years old and hasn’t stopped since. Horse Crazy: The story of a
woman and a world in love with an animal, is a fascinating, funny, and moving love letter to
these graceful animals and the people who—like her—are obsessed with them. It is also a
coming-of-age story of Nir growing up an outsider within the world’s most elite inner circles, and
finding her true north in horses.
In the book, published by Simon and Schuster this summer, Nir takes readers into the
lesser-known corners of the riding world and profiles some of its most captivating figures. We
meet Monty Roberts, the California trainer whose prowess earned him the nickname “the man
who listens to horses,” and his pet deer; George and Ann Blair, who at their riding academy on
a tiny island in Manhattan’s Harlem River seek to resurrect the erased legacy of the African
American cowboy; and Francesca Kelly, whose love for an Indian nobleman shaped her life’s
mission: to protect an endangered Indian breed of horse and bring them to America.
Woven into these compelling character studies, Nir shares her own moving personal narrative.
She details her father’s harrowing tale of surviving the Holocaust, and describes an enchanted
but deeply lonely upbringing in Manhattan, where horses became her family. She found them
even in the middle of the city, in a stable disguised in an old townhouse and in Central Park,
when she chased down truants as an auxiliary mounted patrol officer. And she speaks candidly
of how horses have helped her overcome heartbreak and loss.
Infused with heart and wit, and with each chapter named after a horse Nir has loved, Horse
Crazy is an unforgettable blend of beautifully written memoir and first-rate reporting.
Order at:
Learn to FIND and RIDE the DISTANCE
Stride control (striding) is an essential part of any rider’s development when jumping obstacles,
and jumping them well, is a goal. Understanding and implementing stride control
(being able to adjust the number of strides before and between fences) improves a
horse’s rideability and allows the rider to further improve the horse’s technique over an
obstacle. Jen Marsden Hamilton was taught striding by former US Show Jumping Chef
d’Equipe George Morris, who credits her as being the first student to whom he taught the
method that he himself had learned from Bertalan de Némethy, one of his mentors. Now,
after coaching countless riders and horses around the world in the striding techniques
that brought her success during her own impressive competitive career, Hamilton has
compiled her knowledge in an illuminating book of exercises and insightful strategies.
This fun, approachable guide will help all riders train with correctness and form good habits
at home so they can be stars at their next jumping or eventing competition. Exercises
include detailed set-up instructions and illustrations for reference; clear discussion of the
purpose and strategy for the training session; and helpful tips to ensure all involved are
benefiting from the lesson. Throughout, Hamilton’s straight-talk and wry humorventertain
as well as advise, providing an all-around superb guide to an invaluable jumping skill.
Millions of people own, breed, look
after, drive or ride horses. The common
element is our passion for horses. Few of us
are elite competitors, but that shouldn’t define
us as horsemen/horsewomen.The love of the
horse, our enthusiasm for the welfare of our
horses and for the sport, spurs us on to
improve our own skills an our horses’.
”
To order, contact: Trafalgar Square Books,
Box 257, Howe Hill Road, N. Pomfret, VT 05053
Page 15 800.423.4525 • www.horseandriderbooks.com
/www.EliteEquestrianMagazine.com
/9781501196232
/www.horseandriderbooks.com