Who is the talk aimed at? 
Riders of all levels, ages and disciplines of horsemanship who want to find natural, stress-free excellence while preserving their horse from unnecessary pain and injury during training, whether it is competing, hacking or just caring for horses.
What is the talk about and what happens on the day/night?
1.FOCUS ON THE RIDER:
Joni kicks of the talk at 10.30am if you are coming to a whole day talk and finishes at 5pm. The evening talks start at  7pm and rap up around 9.30pm
It is a well known fact that you learn more when you’re having fun, therefore Joni opens the talk with a chair game. This is not only great fun, Joni promises that this simple, fun game will give everyone present a unique insight into how their mind  and body inhibit their riding progress. She asks for volunteers to take part in the chair game. During this simple, fun game Joni takes the opportunity to present  her cutting edge teaching by  demonstrating to the  audience:

2. FOCUS ON THE HORSE
In the second part of the evening Joni lets the audience into a big secret. How to diagnose the horse's crookedness. She explains how horses continually throw the rider off balance, making it impossible for them sit straight. Once the rider is made aware of this, riding lessons make more  sense and become  much more  “straight forward.” Asking for volunteers to sit on the wooden horses Joni then goes on to demonstrates:

3. FOCUS ON THE SADDLE:

It's shocking to think that this horse has worked with  it's saddle slowly eating into it's way into his back. Instead of the saddle fitting the horse, the horse is fitting the shape of the saddle! If he plays up when you arrive with the saddle, there is a problem! If he swishes his tail and bears his teeth there is a big problem!! Warning behaviour like this is the horse's way of telling you there is something wrong, but all too often it falls on deaf ears. Instead of  seeing this reaction and thinking, 'ummm I wonder if something's wrong here?' The horse is usually punished for his, "bad manners."
If he plays up when you arrive with the saddle, there is a problem! If he swishes his tail and bears his teeth there is a big problem! Warning behaviour like this is the horse's way of telling you there is something wrong, but all too often it falls on deaf ears. Instead of see this reaction and thinking, 'ummm I wonder if something's wrong here?' the horse is usually punished for his, "bad manners!"
	This horse's saddle and rider have been leaning over to the right. You can see the deep hollow on the right shoulder where the muscle has been pushed down. Even worse the left side of the saddle has been pressing the edge of the horse's vertebra as the saddle leans over to the right. While visiting a client one day, Joni witness a big cob at a riding school that she was told carried all the heavy novice riders.
"This cob stood still for at least five minutes, while the rider tried to haul themselves up onto his back from the ground. Every time the weight of the rider pressurised the left stirrup the pommel jammed up against the right edge of the vertebrae on the right side. When the horse flinched and tossed his head, he was smacked with a whip by the assisting instructor for his bad behaviour!. The sad thing was only five metres away stood a high mounting block! When I mentioned this, the instructor said, "Oh they are for wimps, proper riders can mount from the ground!! This rider was a very overweight novice, who rode once every two weeks. The pain and suffering our horses endure through traditional old fashioned mind sets horrifies and saddens me deeply and that is the reason I make the time to fit and supply riders with saddles. " Joni adds

Since 1984, Joni Bentley has been lecturing and training thousands of riders around the world from novice to grand prix with a simple, easy, logical but revolutionary style that has produced extraordinary results. She is a qualified BHS instructress, Alexander Teacher, Reiki master and NLP practitioner. She has two best-selling books published, "Improving the Riders Position," and "Riding success without stress," Six part audio CD series, and a newly published, "DVD.
Her passion is to help riders find natural, stress-free excellence while preserving horses from unnecessary pain and injury that often result from the rider’s tension and crookedness. Click here and if you have any further questions. If you are a member of a riding club committee and would like to receive further details on Joni’s Riding club talks or if you think your riding club may be interested in a talk, Joni would love to have a chat click here to send her an email, or phone her on 01494 791776       

"Joni's approach is totally cutting edge. Her training style proves without a shadow of a doubt,
that less is more. In the workshop and talk, we all felt very relaxed and calm with no pressure put on us to do things correctly, or in such a way that would over stretch us in our mind or bodies! I have heard many times that less is more, but I never imagined that such seemingly small, easy, changes, would make such enormous lasting improvements in riding. Before Joni came to our club, I did not believe that years of crookedness in both my own and my horse's body, could be altered so dramatically and so quickly.
My perception has now totally changed.
Using Joni's training tools regularly, has not only transformed my position, sensitivity and riding, it has given me quality time with my horse. I now see
negatives as positives e.g. my shoulders were a big tension point, now they are my entry point to relax my whole body, straighten my seat and improve my own and my horses posture. This powerful but simple, organic approach, has also benefited my
work life. I would definitely recommend Joni's talks and workshops. Everyone loved both the evening talk and the workshops. Best still we continue to feel the improvement in our riding. Roll on the next workshop. We are all chomping at the bit!!" Lorna Richardson Chairperson of Uckfield riding club, East Sussex