By April Clay, Psychologist

What kind of athlete is best suited to becoming a successful three day event rider? If you’re involved in this horse sport, it’s a question you may want some answers to in order to better inform your training.

Every sport has its own unique blend of physical and psychological demands. This specific combination of requirements can then be translated into skills necessary to meet those demands.

On the physical side, you’ll likely have elements that have to do with endurance, versatility, bravery, and horsemanship, among others. The psychological aspect of the performance profile relates to the physical skills, but can be identified, and trained for, in a targeted manner.

Endurance of body and mind
The mere fact that this horse discipline takes more time means some special considerations. Not only is physical stamina required, but also a mental endurance. Even though event riders don’t spend all of their time mounted, the competition itself is not over until the final event. This means mental energy going to a strategic focus over three days. An effective event rider will have to know how to best manage this focus and not be worn out by its presence.

If, for example a rider were to become too focused on scoring and placements, this may drain mental energy rapidly. If their placement is not strong, it may also induce feelings of disappointment which at best can lead to changes in the ride and at worst behaviour indicative of giving up.

Most endurance sports carry with it what Buddhists would refer to as the challenge of the “monkey mind”. Because you have so much time on your hands, the possibility of your mind getting monkey-like or busy in the wrong direction, is always possible. Marathoners can start to think about fatigue and who is passing them, and event riders can start to dwell too much on negative thoughts about their rankings.

To combat this feature, the athlete must be well grounded in a few different mental skills. One is to learn to stay present or in the here and now. This enables the rider to stay focused on the task at hand while also conserving much needed mental energy. As well it guides the rider away from being focused on the potential outcomes of each event, which can raise anxiety.

Second is the ability to switch between two different types of focus. An associative focus involves being keyed into what is happening in the conversation that you are having with your horse. This may be almost anything related to your ride, from the length of your horse’s stride to the rhythm of your own breath. It is called associative because the focus links you to what you are presently engaged in. The other type of focus is called dissociative, because it involves the art of distracting yourself when needed. In between events, you may need to do a few things: keep your mind away from negative ruminations and allow your mind just to plain recharge. One effective way of doing this is learning to play some fun “mind games”.

You may choose to distract yourself by grooming your horse (without thoughts). Or by listening to music on your ipod. You could also think about something really pleasurable like where you would want to take your dream vacation. You may engage in chatter with fellow riders or visualize yourself in a beautiful location. It doesn’t really matter what you use, so long as it keeps your focus on something non-horsey, that is either neutral or positive.

Three game faces
Every athlete comes to develop a state in which they perform best. This state is often referred to as “the zone” or being in your “game face”. It is made up of physical, mental and emotional elements. How it comes to look exactly is dependent on a number of factors, the type of sport, and the personality of the athlete and in the case of horse sport, the equine factor.

One key aspect of the physical/emotional is the amount of energy or arousal carried in the body. Generally speaking, the more technically oriented the sport, the lower the arousal level required. To understand this, just think of how relaxed and focused a target shooter must be to hit his mark. Those sports on the less technical side benefit from higher levels of arousal in the body (think power lifting). In the latter, intensity is built and released in a very short period of time.

So generally speaking, in horse sport, the more power there is necessary (jumpers, barrel racers) the more energy you need. The more technical (dressage, rieners, hunters) the less you need. As some of you have undoubtedly experienced, too much tension/energy in the latter category leads to a loss of focus to detail and an unrefined performance.

Now add into this mix the rider personality. Are you a highly-strung person prone to worry? Perhaps a low-key easygoing sort? We all start with a baseline of energy that comes most naturally to us. If you’re not sure, go ahead and ask your trainer or stable-mates for feedback. They should be able to give you some pretty accurate readings. Then there is the horse factor. Horse people know that horses come in just as many personality types. You have your tightly wound thoroughbreds, your clunky warmbloods. Our equine friends carry their own energy that in turn interacts with ours.

For eventers, what this all means is developing three different game faces that effectively match their task for the day. They would need to be knowledgeable, for example, of how to move from the more relaxed state required of dressage to the changes in intensity needed for cross country and stadium. It’s all a balancing act of sorts, but an important one. Consider how crucial it is to be able to have the right amount of arousal to communicate confidence and assertiveness to your horse for the cross country, but not so much that you deplete all your energy at the beginning.

Courage required
It has been said many times that courage is not the absence of fear, but the ability to carry on despite fear. This aptly describes the task eventers face: how am I going to manage the real physical risk that goes along with this sport?

Not all riders will have this issue at the forefront, but many will face it over the course of their career. It is common for some riders to carry more awareness of physical risk than others. This is not wrong, and should not be approached with the idea of eliminating this fear, but rather how to manage it like any other riding problem. It is especially common for older amateur riders to experience such an awareness, as time and experience has taught them sometimes things do go wrong. As well, age typically brings with it an understanding that injuries take longer to heal and accidents can mean time away from work or responsibilities with loved ones. Again, these are pretty normal thoughts; they just should not be allowed to dictate each and every ride.

If this sense of risk does become large in size, it may of course interfere with the rider’s ability to perform effectively. Too much energy will be going into survival, or how to stay safe. This is where having a plan to help put the risk back into perspective is a helpful skill. Such a plan may include making a list of resources, such as: years of experience, fitness level, coaching support. It can also be made up of skills, like how to challenge irrational thoughts about fear and turn them into reasonable thoughts that direct action.

The essence of this discussion is that every sport presents physical and psychological challenges to be met. As an event rider, it makes sense that your mental profile is at least half responsible for your success. Taking the time to make sure this aspect of your training is represented in your goals can mean a considerable edge in the competitive ring.

copyright April Clay, 2007