Great Turn Out in Baldivis for Retired Racehorses

Our OTTWA Classic Clinic in Baldivis was a huge success, with so many riders bringing down their retired Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds.

While we were a little delayed at the start, everyone got in and prepared for their first lesson.

With Viktoria Chlapik, Krystal Wang and Hannie Byrne all set to teach their respective lessons, the morning kicked off with many wonderful horses participating and learning.

Viktoria Chlapik guided our green horses through groundwork lessons, teaching the horses to yield away from their handlers’ pressure and to halt and listen when asked.

This was a great foundational starting point for the newer off-the-track horses such as ‘Prepare for Change’, who retired from racing only a few weeks before the clinic.

These groundwork lessons are also a great opportunity for nervous horses to gain exposure to the arena before participating in their ridden lesson.

Viktoria’s ridden green lessons focused on working with the horses to establish a calm rhythm whilst focusing on responsiveness to aids.

On the grass, Krystal set up a zig zag pole exercise, helping the horses learn to bend and straighten when asked.

This tested the riders’ steering aids, ensuring that they didn’t pull their horses off balance with tight turns.

The first lesson started with poles, allowing the green horses to experience the exercise at a walk or trot.

Later, Krystal and the more experienced horses and riders raised the poles into jumps, with some of the riders learning to canter and trot the turns without unbalancing their horses. This was great exercise for everyone involved.

Hannie and the Intermediate and Advanced riders focused on softness and responsiveness. While there were fewer Advanced horses attending, Hannie instilled her riders with helpful and insightful suggestions that allowed the horses to improve throughout their lessons.

Of the horses in attendance, we saw many repeat attendees’ return, and a good number of new horse and rider combinations.

Tempest Miss and Kirsten were highlighted by both Viktoria and Krystal as a great pair, with ‘Lollipop’ thoroughly enjoying her day of lessons and leaving Kirsten riding around with a big smile. It was great to watch this pair together. A clear example of a good partnership formed.