Newsdate: Tuesday January 31, 2023 - 9:00 am
Location: SOLVANG, California

In his latest series on Monty Roberts’ Equus Online University horse trainers and owners can learn how to build and test their own mannequin rider. 

Woman enjoying a ride on her trotting horse

Mannequin riders are valuable tools when putting the first riders on a horse.
© 2006 by Louis New window.

Monty is happy to outline some guidelines for making a dummy rider as outlined in Chapter 8, Tools of the Trade, of his textbook From My Hands to Yours where the use of the dummy rider is illustrated showing the placement of the attachments.

“In this lesson series, the mannequin rider is about five feet tall and weighs about 40 pounds. His body size proportions are about the same as an adult of the same height. He is wearing a man’s pair of jeans but with shortened legs. We learn that legs with an inseam of about 18 inches is about right and will allow for an elastic strap to be sewn at the bottom of each leg.

The elastic strap is equipped with a snap at the bottom that will clip onto the stirrups. Make the elastic strap just long enough so that there is good tension when it is fixed into place. The two stirrups are strapped together under the chest of the horse with a strap and buckle. This prevents the stirrups from rising allowing the dummy to dislodge. Mannequin riders are valuable tools when putting the first rides on a horse.

Launched in 2009, Monty Roberts and his team developed the first of its kind Equus Online University; an interactive online lesson site that is considered the most effective educational tool for horsemen on the web.  

It is established now that this learning system is the most comprehensive globally in horsemanship. It was important to Roberts not only to quantify the language of the horses he calls Equus, but also to share its interpretation with lessons from world renowned horse persons such as Stefan Peters and Jan Ebeling from dressage, Will Simpson from Olympic jumping and Phillip Ralls and Richard Winters from Western Reining.

Since launching, Monty Roberts and many more legendary trainers have contributed their knowledge of horsemanship. “Considered a rosetta stone for horse communication, one of gestures like signing for the deaf, online lessons are available 24/7 have contributed greatly to the encouragement and study of non-violent training of horses.” said Roberts. He wants the global impact to spread in his lifetime and encourages interested persons to log on at http://montyrobertsuniversity.com/library and have a free look around.

When Monty Roberts was invited by Queen Elizabeth II in 1989 to demonstrate his understanding of horsemanship, horse training’s 6000 year old tradition was forever changed. Roberts had cracked the code on the communication system horses used to survive for millions of years before humans had domesticated them. Roberts demonstrated concepts that drew a line at pain in training and his life’s goal is to leave the world a better place for horses and for people, too.

Debbie Roberts Loucks, Monty’s daughter, spearheaded the development, “We are first and foremost advocates for keeping horses in people’s lives. The more than 700 video lessons are in categories of Ground Work, from foundational to Advanced, and Ridden Work, from foundational to problem solving. And there is a terrific forum plus a searchable data base of over 800 Questions and Answers from Monty with a handy search bar.”

MONTY ROBERTS first gained widespread fame with the release of his New York Times Best Selling book, The Man Who Listens To Horses; a chronicle of his life and development of his non-violent horse training methods called Join-Up®. Monty grew up on a working horse farm as a firsthand witness to traditional, often violent methods of horse training and breaking the spirit with an abusive hand. Rejecting that, he went on to win nine world’s championships in the show ring. Today, Monty’s goal is to share his message that “Violence is never the answer.” Roberts has been encouraged by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II with the award of the Membership in The Royal Victorian Order, as well as becoming Patron of Join-Up International. Other honors received were the ASPCA “Founders” award and the MSPCA George T. Angell Humanitarian Award and FEI’s Man of the Year. Monty was recently included as Horse and Hound Magazine’s Top 50 Horsemen of All Time. Monty is credited with launching the first of its kind Equus Online University; an interactive online lesson site that is the definitive learning tool for violence-free training.

Monty Roberts has created Join-Up International, a 501c3 non-profit foundation. With his learning center on his Flag Is Up Farms in Solvang, California, he has produced a growing list of certified instructors globally. These facts insure that Monty will meet his life’s goal which is to leave the world a better place than he found it for horses and for people, too.  www.MontyRoberts.com

Press release by Debbie Loucks