Tag Archives: horse

Horse Height, Rider’s Weight: 10%, 20%… or more?

Posted on March 17, 2026 by thegrailquest

For those people in the equestrian industry, the “20% or less” rule needs no explanation. It is an unquestionable standard, an axiom, according to which that the weight a horse or pony is to carry in exercise, rider and tack … Continue reading →

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Bridles, Bits and Bitlessness

Posted on November 21, 2025 by thegrailquest

Bitless equals a crazy happy My topic today is more about modern than medieval horsemanship, though I will get to medieval in time, too. What provoked me to write it was a social media post criticizing the stereotypes that riding … Continue reading →

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Racehorses and Racing Rats aka Researchers

Posted on September 5, 2025 by thegrailquest

A recent study has found that racehorses are more likely to be successful on the track if they were raised with plenty of outdoor time and fed longer by their dams – in other words, in conditions closer to natural … Continue reading →

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Training a Two Year Old Horse at a Pony Camp

Posted on July 31, 2025 by thegrailquest

Following up on my latest post, where I wrote we are not putting the bridles on the young horses, I decided it’s time to remind Hector of the absolute amazing medieval reproduction bit and bridle that was made by Seats … Continue reading →

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Chaucer’s Ploughman and His Mare

Posted on April 25, 2025 by thegrailquest

My year 2025 started, totally unexpectedly, with a commission from the Medieval World magazine, offering to write for them an article on medieval horses for their special horse- themed issue. Horses are becoming an increasingly sexy topic, I thought. I … Continue reading →

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Medieval advice on horse breaking: from theory into practice

Posted on November 29, 2024 by thegrailquest

Myths about medieval horsemanship and horse training methods abound. Some people think that medieval riders were cruel and abusive, and that medieval horsemanship was built on dominating the horse and submitting it to the rider’s will (this view has been … Continue reading →

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Medieval Curb and Hinged Bits

Posted on November 26, 2024 by thegrailquest

During the third in the sequence of the Cheiron seminars on historical methods in horse training and horsemanship, we turn to the issue of the medieval bits. Medieval curb and hinged bits are notorious for looking rather severe, but were … Continue reading →

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The FEI met to improve equine welfare in sports – any outcomes?

Posted on October 3, 2024 by thegrailquest

The FEI met to decide the future of the dressage sport – allegedly – and to improve horse welfare in equestrian sports: https://horsesport.com/horse-news/fei-meeting-unified-vision-future-of-dressage/amp/I don’t see how the resolutions outlined in the articles are going to produce results.I would not say … Continue reading →

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Pack Train to Steam Train: a new video available on the @Cheironjournal YouTube channel

Posted on September 29, 2024 by thegrailquest

I had some trouble with the upload, but voila, a new video paper by Dr Miriam A. Bibby is available on the @Cheironjournal YouTube channel Miriam A. Bibby, Pack train to steam train: curiosities of the horsepower-steam interface  When steam … Continue reading →

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Starting a horse the Ruffian way with Anastasija Ropa, PhD | Schola Eque…

Posted on September 18, 2024 by thegrailquest

Famous and shameless – the story of our little konik Basja is at the heart of the interview with Schola equestris

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