Gary Brewster/Leahona Rowland HP Clinic Report

Written by Becky Staden

It’s the first Alberta High Performance Clinic of the year, and contrary to the weather’s opinion, event season is right around the corner. This seasons kicked off with Gary Brewster and Leahona Rowland at Diamond Willow Stables in Calgary. While it was a chilly weekend, the heat was cranked inside for riders and spectators and the facility was impeccable. (Shout out to everyone at DW who organized/hosted us!) Over the course of the weekend there was substantial learning and horses came out of the weekend more confident and correct.

Day 1: Jumping with Gary Brewster

Relaxation and rhythm was the key for success throughout the weekend. This proved to be a difficult concept for my thoroughbred mare, Cora, on day 1 as she finds it extremely offensive when the weather drops below -15C. Low and behold, Calgary dipped to -21C.

We began the day with a long and low warmup, with tons of changes of directions and figures to encourage the horses to stretch and become supple.

Gary had us begin by working on a circle over 5 trot rails, varying our lines we took (inside, middle, outside) and ultimately our stride length to make sure we always had two steps between each rail. The horses settled into the routine quite quickly, and Gary was quick to see and address where horses struggled whether it be a problem strength and/or flexibility. Trot poles became canter poles, with the same idea in mind. The same rhythm in the canter had to be held through all three lines, with relaxed and stretching necks and over the back.

Gary was wonderful to explain the anatomy of our horses as to why there were struggling for certain movements and distances. My mare was particularly tight through her back, and couldn’t release properly around her sacrum which resulted in her also being quite pushy through her ribcage to the left, among other things. (I think she was also giving me the middle hoof for bringing her to Canada where winter never ends).

We moved to jumping, where we quickly added in fences and tight turns. Every route kept horses (and riders) guessing. The idea was to have the horses be relaxed and rhythmic into the fences and rideable through the turns and ends of the arena. Again, Gary was quick to help riders adjust their position to be more supportive to the horses up and to the base of fences, as well as helped me pinpoint some areas where Cora lacked in muscle/coordination and how it was translating into certain shapes over the fences.

Overall, the exercises were unique and unbelievably rewarding. Riders and horses got smoother, more efficient and confident through every course and massive improvement was seen.

And finally, after 75 minutes, my mare finally defrosted.

Day 2: Dressage with Leahona Rowland

In the morning, I got to have a dressage lesson with Alberta HP Coach Leahona Rowland.

Leahona had various pole exercises laid out for Cora and I to help improve Cora’s top line and hind end strength.

Because we were to have a jump lesson in the afternoon, Leahona recommended working Cora long and low through my ride to help her stay soft and supple through her body and really work her topline. We used a combination of various lateral movements throughout the lesson to help quicken her hind legs and get them pushing more efficiently.

We used trot rails on a circle and began to raise them so Cora would sit and bend her hocks. Leahona is extremely talented at gauging the horse’s temperament and behaviour, which allowed us to push Cora and then back off quickly when she felt even slightly anxious/she couldn’t do it. The techniques we used made Cora try considerably harder as her confidence built throughout the flat ride. We progressed to canter rails on a circle, which Cora often struggles with as she has to keep track of all her body parts instead of just powering through. Again, Leahona provided me with certain tricks to help me get to and over the rails better as well as keep Cora in coordination and confident.

Leahona’s rail exercises were challenging for both Cora and I and identified some changes that we both have to make within our positions. For all of these little issues, Leahona had an idea to solve them and we began to chip away.

We gained tons from Leahona’s lessons, with a specific plans on how to target Cora’s body and progress her muscle building for the next few months. Cora and I walked away feeling confident (and very sweaty).

Day 2 Jumping with Gary Brewster

I found that Leahona and Gary were extremely complimentary to each other as they both had lesson plans and exercises that had similar concepts and built off each other.

It should be noted that Cora did not have defrost on day two as I swaddled her in blankets between her two rides and parked her under a heater. (“She’s a lot more relaxed today!”)

Day two was about flexibility, encouraging the horses to coordinate their bodies and stay supple,  and allowing them to look and make decisions.

We began warmups with long and low changes of direction, encouraging the horses to stretch over the backs and really swing. Because Cora was so much more relaxed, Gary encouraged me to push her in the trot and ask for more swing and more give. He, like Leahona, read Cora right away and identified when to push, when to back off, and gave me some more tools to keep her brain working in the right direction when I start to push her body. Some days we will be able to push, and some days we won’t be able to. We worked in the trot and canter with an over emphasized bend to the inside and outside, asking the horses to stay soft and supple. The horses had to sort out their feet, as well as give through not only their jaw and nose but their neck, shoulders, and ribs. Gary had us work these flexions long and low, identifying where some weaknesses were for the horses.

We started the jumping with canter cavalettis, building on our canter poles from the day before. From there, we did lots of trot into fences exercises, and continue in a nice easy canter through various lines. The idea was to let the horse have time to see the question in front of it, and not have the rider make a tug or kick before the fence but instead support and let the horse sort it out. I really found that Cora took to this type of ride, especially through the more gymnastic like lines. She became very settled and efficient at figuring out the footwork. Relaxation and rhythm were again key through the exercises, but as we built on the days previous work, the horses thrived and had took steps forward.

Gary was very specific in what could be improved, and how it could be. He was encouraging and helpful to every rider and horse duo, and provided tons of exercises to use after the clinic. He pinpointed certain places I should target in Cora, and I feel like I have come away from the clinic knowing exactly what needs to be worked on, and how.

Overall the weekend was wonderful. Gary and Leahona complimented each other in their exercises chosen and their coaching styles. Thank you Gary and Leahona for spending your Easter weekend with us – it is so unbelievably appreciated.

Thank you to Kathleen, and everyone who helped organize the first HP clinic of the year. There’s lots of work to be done before the 2018 season, but I’m feeling rejuvenated and ready to bulk up my little mare in the coming weeks.