Welfare Wednesday Webinars return and consider how rider balance affects horses

World Horse Welfare’s hugely popular series of webinars is set to return on Wednesday November 3 at 7pm for the winter season, after taking a break over the summer. The first webinar will see Dr Russell MacKechnie-Guire tackle the important topic of how rider balance affects a horse’s way of going, something anyone who rides will want to find out more about.

Russell will show us how a horse’s movement changes in response to rider balance, how we can tell if we are unbalanced, and what we can do about it. Russell has extensive research experience in equine biomechanics, the horse-saddle-rider interaction, and the effects of rider asymmetry on equine back movement – all of which are relevant to this webinar.

Following his presentation Russell will be joined for a panel discussion by Richard Davison, a four-time Olympian and European medallist who has been at the forefront of the international equestrian world for almost four decades, and Tony Tyler, World Horse Welfare’s Deputy Chief Executive, who has been involved in the horse industry for more than 35 years and who has extensive experience of training riders and horses.

Among other topics, the discussion will cover what the most common rider faults are, whether suboptimal rider balance leads to over-reliance on artificial aids, and how riders can improve their position without spending a lot of money. The panel discussion will be followed by a Q&A session in which you will have the chance to ‘ask the experts’ any questions you may have.

By registering for the webinar through Zoom, you will be able to take part in the various polls, ask questions during the Q&A and enjoy an interactive experience.

The webinars are free to attend and if you are unable to attend via Zoom they can be viewed as a Facebook Live session. If you have missed any of the previous webinars – which have tackled subjects as fascinating and diverse as keeping horses fit, weight management, euthanasia, biosecurity, horse mental wellbeing and travelling – they are all available to watch on the World Horse Welfare YouTube channel.