Awareness: The Foundation of Feel in Horsemanship
- Dennis Cappel
- May 19
- 1 min read
Clear Mental Horsemanship with Dennis Cappel
Developing feel is really about developing awareness.
*Awareness of what you’re doing.
*Awareness of how much you’re doing.
*Awareness of where you’re doing it.
*Most importantly, awareness of how the horse is responding.
The horse is always giving feedback. The question is --whether you’re paying attention to it.
The horse finishes the conversation. You don’t define your feel; the horse does.
What feels soft to you might feel heavy to one horse. What feels light to you might not even register to another. The only true measure of feel is the horse’s response, and that’s where your adjustment comes from.
This is the art of feel in horsemanship
Feel isn’t mechanical. It isn’t exact. And it’s never finished. It’s something you continue to develop over time as your awareness improves, your timing improves, and your ability to read the horse improves.
Good horsemanship isn’t about doing more; it’s about doing just enough.
Final Thought
When you can meet the horse where he is, offer what he needs in the moment, and release at the right time, you begin to develop true feel.
And when that happens, everything starts to get quieter, clearer, and more connected between you and the horse.
This is where true horsemanship begins.
Mindful Riding,
Dennis Cappel
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