Training at Applewood
Training with Marilyn
Applewood Farm provides specialized training for your horse in both dressage and jumping. Marilyn Payne has trained and competed numerous horses successfully from entry level through the upper reaches of the FEI levels, and brings her years of experience to bear on improving each horse she works with.
A customized program can range from full training to partial training, depending on how many times per week Marilyn works with the horse, and how many times you wish to ride. Specific goals are outlined for each horse, and often include correcting problems as well as developing new skills. Training is most successful when lessons are included in the program, so the rider learns what the horse is learning, and how to give the aids correctly and ride precisely.
Marilyn is experienced in the whole spectrum of training equine athletes, from starting youngsters to reschooling problem horses, and fine-tuning competition horses to bring their skills to a peak.
Training with Holly Payne Caravella
Holly Payne Caravella has trained numerous horses for her students and herself at all levels, and has competed successfully in the U.S. and abroad at the 4* and 5* levels. She is available to Applewood students who wish to join her and her students for cross-country schooling days, scheduled around her competition calendar. Holly also walks courses with her students and Applewood students at competitions, and when time permits she can help with warm-up. During the winter, Holly takes her horses and client horses to Aiken SC or Ocala FL, and Applewood students are also welcome to join this group. To learn more about Holly, visit www.hollypayne.com.
Starting a young horse correctly is the key to its future success, whether it becomes a dressage horse, an eventer, or simply a companion to take on hacks. Marilyn has a special knack for understanding youngsters. Her approach includes a large dose of patience combined with firmness, a systematic program, and a structured, positive learning experience that instills confidence. The many young horses she has trained have an impressive record of success in their chosen disciplines.
Horses are not born with bad habits. Incorrect training or stressful experiences often lead to undesirable habits and reactions, such as resistance, that take many forms. A frightened, unwilling, or angry horse is no pleasure to ride, but retraining can put the horse back on track as a willing partner with its rider. Marilyn’s proven training methods can help reach this goal. She is available for consultation to evaluate the rider’s concerns and the horse’s issues, and recommend a program to address them.
Marilyn teaches all levels of dressage, from Introductory to Grand Prix, as well as eventing dressage, using a systematic approach designed to bring out the best in each horse/rider team. She believes all horses benefit from a foundation in the basics of dressage, and that all riders can learn to connect with the horse, create suppleness, and ride in rhythm and harmony with their mount.
Marilyn’s years of riding, training and teaching are an invaluable resource for helping riders and horses gain confidence in themselves and each other over the jumps, whether in the ring or out in the fields. With a step-by-step approach, she trains each combination to develop steadiness, proper striding and adjustability to each jump. Applewood has a wide variety of obstacles at all heights, a big plus in teaching the horse to be confident and respond to the rider’s aids when faced with any jumping question that is appropriate for its level of training and experience.
Longeing the rider is an excellent technique for improving seat, position and balance. With Marilyn controlling the horse, riders are free to focus on their own body and suppleness. They learn to feel the horse’s movement with greater sensitivity, which lets them develop expertise in how to influence the horse with their seat, weight and legs.