Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling is a quite remarkable horseman and human being. His work with horses is unsurpassed.

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Where and how did this remarkable horseman find his gift? As a younger man Klaus wandered in the Spanish Pyrannees observing horses and learning from the Cabelleros – the ancient horseman of Europe who aim to ride ‘by thought alone’. Klaus learnt that being a horseman is a lifelong quest, it is an ongoing search for oneself, that our horses’ behaviour teaches us something about ourselves. The Cabelleros live with and for their horses and every aspect of their day to day existence is touched by the lessons the horses have for them, rather than the other way round. These people epitomise a lost European culture and horses are at the heart of it.

In medieval Europe the horse was symbolic of a connection to heaven, to the gods and to a way of finding inner peace. The Knights went in search of the Holy Grail on horseback, they travelled hundreds of miles and their horses were their constant and devoted companions.

In 21^st Century Europe we seem to have mislaid some of this heritage. Lost, some of us seek inner wisdom from Eastern practices and many seek wisdom about horses from America. Perhaps it is not necessary to look so far, here on our own doorstep is the message from the horses. Maybe we need someone to help us interpret it and to see that the time has come for us to reclaim our lost heritage.

Klaus is not a man who values competition for the sake of it and whilst he rides beautifully he would not dream of entering a dressage competition. What he achieves with his horses is about developing himself as a human being and this is clearly visible by the way the horses look and behave when they are with him.

In this respect he finds endurance riding the most attractive of all the riding disciplines. “Endurance riding,” he says, “is the most original form of riding. In medieval times all riding was about endurance. The Crusaders rode thousands of miles and needed to do so making sure that their horses were in good condition to the very end.” As he says this I am mindful of the endurance motto – To finish is to win.

“To make sure the horse is able to carry himself well and can cover the ground at optimum speeds reducing risk of injury or accident was of paramount importance to the ancient peoples who depended on the horse. Endurance riding was the foundation of the society we see today,” says Klaus. “Without the horse as a key part of our ancient history our society today would look quite different. The horse gave man speed and with that mobility came the opportunity to communicate with other tribes, to share developmental advances in science and medicine and to find other people to quarrel with!

“The horse facilitated the development of all these aspects of our modern life and became man’s greatest ally in the all the great wars - until relatively recently. This is where I see the foundation of Endurance Riding” says Klaus.

“Two very different types of riding have been employed by the original endurance riders. The Europeans worked with a collected horse. This collection came from years of devoted work by the horsemen working to perfect themselves and their mounts for the greatest challenge of one on one combat on the battlefield. If collection allows the rider to move the horse, speed him up, slow him down with the slightest of aids then there is greater efficiency as you cover the ground. The horse isn’t getting pulled in the mouth, or kicked in the ribs. Subtle communication between horse and rider means less exhaustion. The better able your horse was to perform sophisticated manoeuvres after carrying himself and his rider thousands of miles the better was the human’s chance of surviving the battle. A horse that was balanced, flexible and responsive to the lightest of aids was an ally of unimaginable value. The bond between horse and human was so strong that the two beings could hardly be distinguished one from the other. This I would call Classical Way of Endurance.

“The second type of endurance riding emanated from Mongolia, China and India and is also practised by the Native Americans. It is a way of being very light on the horse, seeking the point of moving balance, taking no contact and adopting a ‘flying seat’. Ghengis Khan’s army worked like this. The horses can look quite heavy on the forehand as this approach require the horses to run fast, covering the ground at high speed whilst the 200 000 or more horse-warriors overwhelmed the enemy with a barrage of arrows shot from horseback. This form of combat requires the rider to develop excellent muscle tone and skill in finding and keeping the moving point of balance over the centre of the horse, whilst aiming and firing his arrows. The good riders in this style were able to save horses due to their personal fitness but it wasn’t so vital to create the bond between individual horse and human.

“In either case there is a huge responsibility for the endurance rider to hone his riding skills, to be physically fit and supple and to really understand his horses so he can save his mount as best he can, whether for the arduous battle at the end of a long ride or for the vetting process at the end of a competitive 100 miler.

“For me I favour the Classical way,” Hempfling decides, “I think we must find collection, to have a horse moving correctly and have the ability as riders, using only the weight in our hips to make minute changes to direction or speed to cater for the terrain we are travelling over. That way we get fewer injuries and a more efficient way of covering the ground, this preserves the horses but it also makes the preparation for endurance riding more fun, more interesting for the horses and for us. To develop collection we are required to be the best we can be, we must practice daily and learn from our mistakes. We must learn to trust our intuition and seek out what I call the ‘inspired impulse’ - that moment when we just know we can, at this precise moment, do the thing we couldn’t do before. It is about expanding our own horizons, it is about developing the bond between ourselves and the horse as we prepare to take on any obstacle that life – or an endurance competition - will throw at us.”

Klaus sees everything as an opportunity for self-development. Those of us who have ridden endurance, at any level, already understand how we are required to dig deep, to look beyond the horizon and to believe in the possibilities for ourselves, and for our horses. To have that put into an historical context and to recognise the self-development possibilities somehow makes sense of the desire to ride long distance. It is an echo of the past, a long forgotten memory about what was once important.

Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling demonstrates his work with Borderline horses – ones that are highly dangerous or stressed. He will describe to the audience his unique approach and offer advice for all horse owners about understanding and communicating more effectively with their own horses. Register your interest for Australian Borderlines here.

Klaus teaches through Compact Schoolings – based on his international best selling book "Dancing with Horses". This workshop will take participants on a journey of understanding body language, self-awareness and inner strength. He will demonstrate a series of exercises which he calls ‘Authentic Body Movement’ that can be practised daily and allow us to become physically stronger, more supple and more aware of what we are communicating to the horses through our bodies. Register your interest for Australian Compact Schoolings here.