Saturday, November 25, 2006

Horse Trainer



John Herriott with the Ringling-Barnum Circus. Posted by Picasa

Posted by Buckles at 11/25/2006 05:47:00 AM

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

There's that ill-suited rubber matting again that caused so many comments a few weeks ago.

25 November, 2006 07:16
Anonymous said...

Notice the horse at liberty doing a capriole. This is the way we did it in the circus before the Royal Lippos became famous doing it with 3 people. 2 on side lunges and one with long lines behind with a whip. In those days we called it a Buck Jump. We also did Menage and High School and would have a Cooch horse, Rockin fore, Cake Walk, High Trot, Side Pass, Rear and Bow. Now its Dressage, Haute Ecole, Ronveurs, Traveurs, Passage, Spainish trot, Extended Trot, Courbette, Levade, Pissad and its all the same thing, only now we Circus trainers are looked down from above because we do those silly Circus Tricks. My reply is that we were not in the business to win red or blue ribbons but to get paid. Those ribbons wouldn't put food on the table.

25 November, 2006 11:51
Anonymous said...

Johnny
do you have a photo of that caprole horse in Japan? (JR?)
I remember a news paper photo maybe with JR fully collected in front,fully extended rears and you in perfect form under him

25 November, 2006 20:01
Anonymous said...

Hi Mr. Herriot,

I was really impressed by this photo. I have never, ever, seen this very difficult movement done at liberty! I am interested in classical dressage (which uses all those technical terms you mentioned), and there is great overlap between good circus horse training and the training of dressage horses outside of the circus. In fact, some dressage masters, (Baucher?) honed their skills in the circus. It is sad that some horse people these days do not always think so highly of trainers in the circus, but they probably have never seen yourself or many of the other great trainers that have graced the rings. However, a visit to a circus may change their mind! I am pretty sure that they would recognize many of the difficult, fancy movements that they are so familiar with in the high school horse.

-Chris J.

25 November, 2006 21:35
Anonymous said...

To Chris J. I was quite pleased with your comments in regard to circus training and dressage and note your reference to Baucher [1880s-90s I believe] . A number of years ago a doctor down in Venice contacted me to do some high school training on his horse and give him some riding lessons as well. He brought me out a book about that type of horsemanship that was printed also [1880s,etc] by Mr. James Fillis, who at the time was "ecuyer en chef to the central calvary school at St. Petersburg" and had taught in calvary schools in central Europe and given lessons to Emporers, kings, tsars and royalty of all sorts. I was vcaguely familiar with each gentlemen and in reading this book and later writings by Baucher that they were competitive with each other and critisizes withrespect to the other. I have never read any books in regard to training having my knowledge been handed down and also trying things on my own, except for Fillis book , of which I still have the old tattered manuscript. Its great but you would have to have some riding expertise to understand it, and it is quite lengthy, but the ver last paragraph in this book speaks for itself loud and clear and I quote, "I ought to mention that in Belguim no one ever thought of blaming me for riding in a circus, hich in that country to be the only place for equestrian work, and that it is as natural for a horseman to ride in the circus, as for a lyric artist to show himself at the opera, or for an academiciam to dress himself in green, in order to croak out an address under the cupula of the institute. I believe I convey the opinions, on these matters of the Belguim Calvary officers whom I had the pleasure of meeting." The title of the book is " Breaking and Riding with military commentaries" I understand that Mr. Fillis is highly recognized by the modern day great dressage riders and trainers. Hope you find the above interesting.

26 November, 2006 09:47
Anonymous said...

Hi Mr. Herriot,

Thanks for all of the information, I appreciate it. I liked that quote as well. If I had my own horse, I would give my right arm to any reputable circus horse trainer to "start it" for me.
I also have a book by Hilda Nelson--it is called "The Ecuyere of the Nineteenth Century in the Circus." It is about female equestriennes (only) of the past and present, and I believe it mentions Fillis and Baucher.

Thanks again,
Chris Joyce

27 November, 2006 00:01

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