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Quotes of Nuno Oliveira
Nuno Oliveira
(1925 - 1989)
“Descente de main: the rider relaxes his fingers and the horse meanwhile maintains the same pace, the same attitude and the same cadence.”
Reflections on Equestrian Art (1965)
"Training a horse is above all feeling and trying, according to what you feel, to help the horse and not to force him."
(1976)
"It is rare to see a rider who is truly passionate about the horse and his training, taking a profound interest in dressage with self-abnegation, and making this extraordinarily subtle work one of the dominant motivations of his life."
"For the young, the practice of equitation is a valuable lesson, as it requires the exercise of all human virtue.
If they are introduced to the practice of riding by understanding and patient teachers, then they too will develop these traits.
The young rider grows to realize the horse is a partner rather than a slave who also deserves love and understanding."
"A horse will never tire of a rider who possesses both tact and sensitivity because he will never be pushed beyond his possibilities." (1976)
"Fixing the reins means establishing a soft contact. "
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"One has to have an immobile hand with mobile fingers."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"The hands have to be like concrete when the horse resists and like butter when he yields. "
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"The descente de main is not a gesture, but it is simply a means to cease using the hand actively."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Descente de main: the rider opens his fingers and the horse has to maintain the same gait, the same posture, and the same cadence."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Every rein aid must be preceded by an action of the torso. Otherwise you only address the horse's head."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Don't let the horse fall asleep on the hand. Don't have a dead hand. "
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"The hand should be a filter, not a plug or an open faucet."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"It is always better to risk losing the contact a little, than not to yield at all."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"When your legs are hard, you risk a horse that is hard in your hand."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Mistakes of the legs show up in the mouth."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Don't lose sight of the fact that hip and legs drive the horse forward and the hands merely channel this power by gentle rein aids."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Follow the horse's mouth by means of a supple back."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Discontinuing the aids does not mean abandoning the horse, but to maintain the contact and to do as little as possible."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"If you want to accompany the young horse's walk, do it with the lumbar back and not with the hand."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"When the horse resists the left rein, try to replace the left rein aid with the left leg."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"One must not begin riding by learning the rein aids, but by learning how to feel."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"I was in a corner of a well known manège watching a Horse Master (an Écuyer) work. The latter stopped near me and gave me in the beautiful French language, academic French, an extremely knowledgeable and detailed explanation of the difficulties in the mechanics of the movements of his horse. He invited me to sit on the horse. I did and, at the end, finding that I had obtained results, he expected a long and detailed knowledgeable explanation. I simply said to him to try and relax his hands and have a lighter contact. I have been giving riding lessons for more than 40 years and it is this I repeat incessantly to all students and pupils who show me their difficulties in all corners of the world. Think of this and all will be easier and, what is more important, the horse will thank you. "
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"When your legs are hard, you risk a horse that is hard in your hand."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"If you continuously act with your legs, you don't give the horse a chance to go completely on his own. And you could squander an advantage resulting in a lack of sensitivity and a waste of aids."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"The strongest attack, even with the spur, has to come out of a soft leg. If one touches with stiff legs, the horse resists."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"The legs have to give and take, just like the hands."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Mistakes of the legs show up in the mouth."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Don't lose sight of the fact that hip and legs drive the horse forward and the hands merely channel this power by gentle rein aids."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Discontinuing the aids does not mean abandoning the horse, but to maintain the contact and to do as little as possible."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"One must not begin riding by learning the rein aids, but by learning how to feel."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Try to awaken curiosity by the tenderness of your aids."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"When riders give excessive aids, it is often because they apply to aids too late instead of at the right moment."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Don't lose sight of the fact that hip and legs drive the horse forward and the hands merely channel this power by gentle rein aids."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"The rider controls his horse with his hip."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Use hands and legs sparingly, and maintain balance through the seat."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"If you want to accompany the young horse's walk, do it with the lumbar back and not with the hand. "
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Breathe deeply and calmly in the canter. Expand your rib cage."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"The upper body should not move back and forth in the canter. Instead, the lumbar back should become supple."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"Maintain the seat in the canter. - That's all."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"The less the rider moves, the better cadenced the horse is in the canter."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"In the flying change, for example from right to left, it is helpful to let the right seat bone slide over to the left, which corresponds to bringing the shoulder back."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
"One of the greatest secrets of obtaining the first steps of the piaffe easily from the horse is not to forget the formula, “prepare and allow it to happen”. This means that the energy and the roundness of the horse are such that it makes possible the piaffe at the time of arriving on the spot, through leaving the horse alone, so that he remains mobile."
(tr: Thomas Ritter)
Equestrian art begins with perfecting the simple things.
N.Oliveira (1998, 16, translation: TR).
Dressage is the perfection of the three basic gaits of the horse. Equestrian art is the poetry of all that.
N.Oliveira (1998, 16, translation: TR).
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