The Rider's Guide to Real Collection: Achieve Willingness, Balance and the Perfect Frame with Performance Horses

I have always been a dressage rider and have ridden and trained warmblood horses to upper levels using classic principles of European dressage. I bought a QH filly and decided I needed to read the literature on Western training. To my surprise and pleasure, Lynn Palm has taken classic dressage and rewritten it into friendly, American terminology that is easily understood by anyone riding any discipline. Apparently, I don't have to change a thing for QH's. My only criticism is that eventually a western rider must use a curb bit and only one hand in showing and I am not sure how that transition occurs or how much contact one is allowed on the curb bit. I am hoping that after learning to bend, collect, extend, etc. that my horse and I can make the transition easily.

If you are looking at this book to learn techniques for asking for dressage collection you will be very disappointed. What Palm calls "collection" is what a dressage rider calls being "on the aids" and this book has nothing to do with collected gaits. It also has only 2 paragraphs that deal with putting the horse on the bit, which of course is part of being on the aids. If the book had been titled THE RIDER'S GUIDE TO PUTTING THE HORSE ON THE AIDS--its actual focus--I wouldn't have bought it b/c I already know how to do that. This book is more appropriate for a Western or hunter rider who wants to learn some low level dressage to improve her horse's soundness and performance. I have no objection to that--dressage is for every horse and every discipline--but I wish Palm had called the book what it was. I should have seen the Western rider/tack on the front cover as a warning that this was NOT a book on collection as a dressage rider would see it.

What I like about the book is the simplicity for every day riders like my pupils and a good read to the more advanced rider too. It is full of very useful with tips for teaching, it all makes such sense, easy to see and easy to read. One of the best lessons I have read which is very similar to the French man Philippe Karl is about lowering the horse's head and so horse friendly.Lyn has a breadth of knowledge which she shares with the reader in a clear and step by step fashion.

I'm not a dressage rider, I'm a western rider who was looking for a well-written book on getting a horse collected, and this book was an excellent fit for me. There are some very good exercises that are listed progressively in this book, and I really like how Lynn included typical problems that may occur and how to solve them.

FIRSTLY I LOVE LYNN PALM WITH ALL HER ENDEAVORS. THIS BOOK IS ONE OF HER GREATEST WORKS ON PAPER. MUST HAVE FOR ALL RIDERS!

A great help to all riders. Easy to read and understand with useful exercises to bring your horse through the stages. I have already recommended it to many of my friends

Lynn Palm is a knowledgeable horsewoman with realistic information on how to improve your horses movement. I recommend this book for anyone trying to improve their horses collection and general training.

Awesome book. I needed something to refer to and this book is great.