Level 4 Test
Suggested minimum age: 11
Objective
- To understand the importance of, and to be working towards a secure correct balanced seat, independent of the reins
- To understand why a correct seat is important
- To apply simple aids correctly
- To have a knowledge of the care and working of a pony or horse
Riding
- Turn-out of pony/horse and rider
- Mount and dismount correctly on either side
- Hold the reins correctly
- Alter stirrups when mounted
- Tighten and loosen girth when mounted
- Working towards a balanced independent seat
- Use of seat, legs and hands as aids to increase and decrease pace
- Ride without stirrups in walk and trot
- Sitting trot, rising trot on the correct diagonal and change of diagonal
- Understand the meaning of rhuthm and start to establish
- Walk with a long rein
- Canter on both reins
- Riding school drill
- Ride up and down hill in walk and trot
- Independent work in the open
- Walk and trot over poles as a preliminary to jumping
- Ride in a balanced position over small fences
- Show a smooth progression from one fence to the next
- Simple aids and ride turns and circles at walk, trot and canter
- Aids for canter on a named leg on a circle
- Explain sequence of legs in trot and canter
- Understand the meaning of rhythm and tempo
Pony/horse care
- Elementary feeding, watering and cleanliness of the pony/horse
- Groom a grass kept pony/horse
- Know when a pony/horse needs shoeing
- Put on a saddle, bridle and martingale
- Have some knowledge of correctly fitting tack
- Be able to do up a curb chain correctly
- Know correct fitting for a flash nose band
- Elementary (daily) care and cleaning of saddlery
- Know the main indications for health in the pony/horse. Know to clean minor wounds
- Know which wounds require veterinary attention
- Recognise when a pony is clearly lame
- Know how to take a pony/horse in and out of a horse-box or trailer with adult supervision
- Understand the importance and the means of protecting the legs while travelling
- Put on and take off stable- and turn out blanket
Read
- The manual of horsemanship - read the sections below:
- Mounting and dismounting (omit ‘to dismount using the stirrup)
- The stirrups
- The position of the rider in the saddle
- Holding the single rein
- Position of the rider in motion
- The aids
- The basic paces (omit ‘the rein back’)
- Jumping
- The correct approach
- Identification and classification
- Saddling up
- Putting on and fitting a bridle, unsaddling
- Care of saddlery
- The signs of good health
- Lameness - identifying the lame leg
- Loading - with an assistant
- Unloading from a trailer