Selena O’Hanlon and Foxwood High. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
Looking for a way to brush up on your riding this winter? Getting out to competitions or even lessons and clinics can be a challenge when you’re looking at a global pandemic and winter weather. In an effort to get creative, make a little extra cash, and help other riders in need of instruction, Canada’s Selena O’Hanlon has joined the ranks of riders offering virtual training. But there’s a twist with Selena’s program! This “virtual bootcamp” of sorts will offer six sessions featuring live demonstration from Selena as well as the option to add a private lesson.
These training sessions will be hosted on Zoom on Saturdays beginning February 6. Here’s a look at what to expect from the six sessions:
Session 1: The Importance of Position and Balance Visualizations and exercises to improve your horses performance. Participants will be introduced to Selena O’Hanlon’s favourites and we will explain how we use them to impact our horses. Selena will demonstrate on both green and inexperienced mounts
Session 2: Applying Correct Aids from the Correct Position Thinking about the horse understanding your aids and maintaining the balance. We will discuss the correct aids and how to improve transitions, turns and circles, lateral work. Including the half halt and when and how to use it.
Session 3: Adding Poles and Cavaletti Learn how to build and correctly accomplish poles and gridwork that will build the strength and balance you need for Dressage or Jumping.
Session 4: Jumping Rhythm, Line, Balance, Position and Exercises to prepare yourself and your horse for the Spring. Blending your flatwork training with your jumping exercises so that one compliments the other.
Session 5: Groundwork, Long Lining and Lunging. How to? Why to? When to? When not to? Basic stable management rules to compliment performance
Session 6: Designing a Custom Program Participants will be guided to develop programs to prepare a horse for competition and other goals using the tools from the first five sessions. We will discuss programs to prepare for Jumper, Evening and Dressage. You will learn how Selena prepares a program for her young horses doing their first ever competition and her FEI horses with carefully constructed programs that build over the month and years with a goal to develop an Olympic level horse.
For those seeking more private, one-on-one time with Selena, this option is also available. Riders can submit videos of themselves riding for feedback from Selena:
PRIVATE Sessions: Have your own private virtual trainer! Submit a 20- 30 min video of you riding. Morag or Selena will watch your video with you and give you expert teaching advice. Videos may be of flat work, lunging or jumping. Cost: $100 per hour session (review of tape and discussion with you).
“We at O’Hanlon Eventing are big believers in goal setting to stay motivated especially during a pandemic in the winter months,” Selena explained. “We use visualization skills to give our riders the tools to coach themselves as I cannot always be at the warm-up. Now we can’t have riding lessons so we’ll learn how to ride from the warmth of our homes!”
It’s a team effort to put these virtual sessions together: Anne Marie Duarte will produce the sessions with Selena’s mother, international eventing coach Morag O’Hanlon, serving as director and coach and Selena herself as the demo rider. Selena also thanks Kelsy, Brittany and Sian for their organizing assistance. To find more information and to sign up for a spot in this program, click here.
