Clinic Season

It seems we are well within clinic season here in the midwest. Fall temperatures mean it's dipped below freezing a couple of times now and the show season is pretty much over. Through November I think i just about have a clinic every weekend.

To start it off I went to a Jennifer Truett clinic today. This is the second clinic that I've attended with her as a clinician and I really enjoy her. She is great with people of all levels, is comfortable and able to climb on horses if needed, and will teach anything from proper saddle fit to biomechanics, to just good solid dressage principles. I think one of my favorite things about her as a clinician is that she also does work in hand that would sort of be "natural horsemanship" but only in that she uses a rope halter and lead and moves horses around on the ground. What I really like about how she does this is that she mainly focuses on their mental stability and focus rather than just moving them around until they submit. 

          Photos from http://www.mydhf.com/jen-truetts-clinics.html

The first lesson was someone who hasn't been riding for very long but had a good grasp of basics. It was wonderful to see some amazing improvements after a 45 minute lesson and I, as always, learned a lot. The second was a women who has an advanced level dressage horse that has such major anxiety that she's never been able to show him. Jen had worked with them on Friday as well and by this lesson on Saturday he was soft, listening, and licking and chewing. People who had seen him both days couldn't even believe the difference and based on the horse she had today the rider was going to try to ride on Sunday!

There were two more intro - training level riders one of which just did a lesson on saddle fit. It made me check my saddle fit as soon as I got home but, other than still being slightly wide in front from the flocking settling (I do have it shimmed in front and that's working for now), it's fitting wonderfully.

Then I watched two training - first level riders and learned even more. The emphasis was on adjustability within the gaits and straightness. I've been starting to work on adjustability within trot and canter in my lessons so it was good to gain some more insight in this. One of the riders was also doing too much to balance her horse through the reins which is something I used to do a lot and still do at times. It was another great reminder to me.

After the clinic I went to the barn with two goals in mind. Straigtness and being able to send her forward or slow her within trot and canter. I also wanted to work on not loosing her shoulder. I decided that based on the weather, and for a chance to change things up a bit, I wanted to ride her outside. This was the second time that I've riden her outside so I figured she might be a little flighty. After pulling her into the barn and tacking up quickly I headed outside to make the best of the daylight. 

Indeed pony was quick and rushy so at first I just worked on getting her settled a little and slowing her tempo while lengthening her stride back to its new and improved length. I wasn't going to push for any kind of extension but just a good working gait. In a fairly short amount of time I was able to get her back to a good quality working trot so I went right to a canter. It was amazing!!! I swear she's been doing homework since it was one of the better canters I've gotten. I was also proud of myself because I put on my big girl pants and galloped her even in the new ring. We felt a little like we were going to win the Kentucky Derby (short pony legs eddition) and then when I asked she went right back to a nice working gait without any sass!

I was really impressed and ended with that especially since it was starting to get dark. I'm looking forward to my lesson tomorrow! Then next weekend Susanne Winslade will be teaching a clinic at my new barn! L really wants me to ride with her when she comes back next time (I think early next year?) so I'm going to go watch her next weekend. I'm especially excited about this since I know L wants me to ride with her :-)

Then on November 14th my friend H is riding for Janet Foy! I've never seen such renowned dressage clinician and having H actually ride for her is especially exciting! I can't wait to go to that clinic either.

I'm not thrilled that it's already late October but I'm so truly enjoying all of these amazing opportunities that I'm not even too unhappy that winter is coming.

Summer Favorites

I’ve been wanting to do a post like this for a long time. I actually had a post typed up for summer favorites but never completed it and didn’t have as many fun things to talk about. My idea is to do a seasonal favorites post about items used in the previous season since I would have a pretty good impression of the product by then. This summer in particular I feel like I had a lot of new things to try since I basically refitted Katai with a new saddle, new bridle, new reins etc. I’ve also been riding in a new wool pad and got some new dressage saddle pads that I really like but since that wasn’t until more recently they’ll need to wait for my fall favorites post.

 

So, let’s start off with my saddle!

 

In early spring I started saving for a Heritage Custom Saddlery mono flap dressage saddle and it arrived, I think, sometime in June. I was really hesitant to order this saddle since there was no opportunity for me to sit in one and during the waiting period while it was being made I was really concerned that I would get it and it wouldn’t fit or would just be uncomfortable or put me in a bad position. Luckily my fears proved to be untrue and it fit both pony mare and myself very well.

 

I think my review of this saddle is almost completely positive with just really one small thing that I wish I could change. I would absolutely, 100%, do exactly the same thing again though and it’s a really amazing saddle.

 

 One thing I wish I could change is the placement of the stirrup bars. I’ve always had trouble with a chair seat no matter that placement but my personal confirmation wishes that these were a little further back. Matt will actually make saddles with adjustable stirrup bars so part of me wishes I’d done that but I also know that it adds more bulk and sometimes still doesn’t adjust to the point where it would be helpful. Instead, I’ve put small spacers on my bars to keep the leathers back a little further. Between that and working on my position I have no ongoing issues with this.

 

The only other small things right now are that the flocking has settled which is causing it to be a little low in front and #newsaddleproblems it’s still a little squeaky and smells strongly of new leather. I’ve actually never owned a new saddle before so these are obviously things I haven’t dealt with in the past J I’m currently trying to locate a good saddle fitter that can come out and reflock it but until then I have my wool pad!

 

This saddle is one of my favorites for obvious reasons and I hope that it works and fits Katai for a long time because its easily the best, most comfortable saddle that I’ve ever ridden in.

 

My new Micklem bridle is my next favorite item but honestly it didn’t easily make the list. It fits, doesn’t look bad on Katai’s particular head, and does what it’s supposed to but it also hasn’t been a magic bullet. I do think that Katai was a little more likely to take the bit when I first got it but ultimately her being comfortable going on contact came from hard work. She also still rubs her head after every ride so it hasn’t seemed to make much of a difference in that either.

 

So basically it does pretty much what any bridle I’ve ever owned would do and let’s face it, the leather just isn’t very nice. Mine is all wrinkled looking across the brow band and the lining around the nose seems to be coming unglued a little. Honestly, I’m really considering getting a PS of Sweden instead since they’re still anatomical bridles but with nicer leather and a more traditional look. With the price that is pretty far in the future right now though so I’ll happily keep riding in the Micklem for the time being.

 

The reason the Micklem makes the favorites list is that for a reasonable cost I have a nice bridle, in brown to match her saddle, that fits Katai. It was also her first exposure to any type of flash and she’s been really comfortable with it and never seemed to have any issue so I’ll chock that up to the Micklem and who knows, maybe she’ll hate any other bridle now that she’s worn this one! I also really like the way it’s designed with fewer leather straps. It just seems nice and simple and is easier to handle for cleaning than other bridles I’ve owned.

 

The next thing on my list of favorites is something I’ve been waiting to talk about for a while. It’s the Topline conditioning spray and it is AMAZING! This stuff smells like an Aveda salon in the best possible way. It’s very herby and almost has a toasty smell, it also leaves Katai nice and glossy without the same slipperiness of Show Sheen.

 

 

Unfortunately I have the last two known bottles in existence. *que crying*

 

I originally got this at a local tack store only because it was on clearance. Once I realized how much I liked it I started looking online for other products but couldn’t locate the company. Of course I went back to the store to ask and she said that it had been made by a local guy who had gone out of business and whatever they had was the last of it. I pretty much ran to the back of the store and found one more bottle. So I have 1.5 bottles of this amazing, incredible, perfect stuff and then it’s gone for good.

 

The Total Saddle Fit shaped girth is the final thing on my list. Of course this thing can’t make every saddle fit but it sure helps keep my saddle back where it should be on my pony (provided I remember to actually girth it up tightly enough J ) I’ve had one of these for a long time and I think I’ve talked about it before, however, I had an 18” but with my new saddle’s shorter billet straps I needed a longer one so I got a 24” and I love it just as much. The leather isn’t quite as nice on the 24” as the 18” but otherwise the quality is the same. I would absolutely order another if I ever needed to and have been eying the fleece cover that they now offer.

 

Since it was 34* out this morning and we are rapidly moving into Winter I will have a Fall Favorites review in a couple more months!

Back and Forth: Lesson Recap 10/11

Oops!! Just realized that this has been sitting in draft form. Just in time for me to do the next one.

I woke up on Sunday and just didn’t feel like myself. Over the past couple of months I’ve noticed how much changing my sleep schedule affects me and since I got too much sleep on both Friday night and Saturday night think that’s what was going on. I’m also really sensitive to weather change and after a few weeks of consistent mid-60s to low-70s Sunday’s high was in the 80s so that could have been it as well.

 

At any rate I pulled myself out of bed, got dressed to ride, and picked up a coffee on the way to the barn but I was feeling negative, tired, and just sort of out of it. Once at the barn I started to feel better as usual and was able to actually get Katai in the barn and tacked up for our ride despite feeling like I was still half asleep. At some point last week I thought I had heard L saying that she was going to ride Katai for my next two lessons but true to form, Katai decided to be a sweet heart for the lesson and so I think that L decided not to ride her. 

 

What she started us off with was changing the speed of the trot. She said that she’s noticed that Katai gets into a rhythm and doesn’t want to break it. “Hey lady, I’m trotting here.” she then tunes me out and doesn’t want to go faster or slower. This is, of course, going to be very important as we progress up the levels and it’s another moment where I’m so glad that I have an instructor who has ridden several levels above me since she can be proactive about correcting things now rather than when they become an issue. 

 

She had let me know that she didn’t want to start this too early with my pony since Katai has only recently started to trot at a decent tempo and rhythm and L has been concerned that we’ll blow her mind and she’ll regress. At this point though I think we are both feeling that Katai has truly passed that sewing machine phase and is ready for this concept before she gets too determined that she’s only got one trot speed again. L had me slow her trot until she almost broke into a walk and then push her up slowly to baby lengthenings. She cautioned me that she doesn’t want me working on this on my own since I still can’t really feel it and it would be too easy to teach both of us a bad habit. From working on this in my lesson I can absolutely agree that I’m glad I have an expert on the ground and my main takeaway is that I’m giving up too much rein when I’m pushing her forward which will teach her the opposite of what we want.

 

Then we started working on doing a canter transition out of that tiny trot. Katai nailed it a few times and then later, when I was just picking her up after a nice long walk break, she spazzed out and did a walk stride, canter stride, walk stride really balanced on her hind end. L laughingly told Katai not to show her how athletic she is or she’s going to have all sorts of fun new things to teach us J

 

After that long walk break we started working on the same thing in the canter. L wanted me to kick her up to a gallop and then bring her back to a small canter. I did push her but I think my enthusiasm was lacking because she really didn’t get faster at all until L intervened. L wants her to jump forward off my leg cue but I think it would help if I actually gave strong enough cue! I used to be terrified to canter and while I really trust Katai and have gotten over the worst of it I think my canter PTSD came back a little and I was reluctant to gallop feisty pony. That, in a nutshell, is my homework. L wants me to make sure that Katai really responds to my forward cues and even gallop her if needed and I need to make sure I’m confident about it and actually push her to go fast. Out on a beach or a trail I wouldn’t have any trouble but I’ve had a horse fall on me in an arena and I’ve seen a friend have a horse fall on them so that’s scarier for me. Unfortunately we don’t have any safe clear stretches of trail to practice on so the arena it is.

 

So, for next time hopefully a more forward pony, a braver rider, and maybe even some pictures!

Video Recap - 10/5

Finally a video that I'm comfortable posting! I know we've got a lot of work to do, please forgive my complete and utter lack of ability to do anything properly with my upper body, but I'm so proud of how far we've come and Katai is seriously like a different horse!

I think this video is private so if you can't see it please let me know!

In Line with Charlotte: Lesson Recap 10/5

I’ve been trying to make time for lesson recaps even if nothing else just because as far as journaling my progress on this blog I think these are most important. I apologize for the continued lack of posts but I’m making baby steps to increase my blogging and at least weekly is better than I’ve done in the past :-)

 

My lesson was on Monday this week due to an event that L was attending so I rushed to get there after work. I like not having to plan my Sunday around a morning lesson but I really dislike being at the mercy of rush hour traffic to get to my lesson on time so I’ll keep my Sunday lesson thank you very much.

 

My rides this week have been rough but things were looking up on Sunday so I was hoping we could hold it together for my lesson. Katai started out prancing and stiff right off the bat but I got a good warmup in (thanks to rush hour traffic letting me get there on time) and so was in a better place by the time my lesson started. With that being said, she still felt like a stick of dynamite that could go off with the slightest leg pressure so when L asked how she was I explained my rides that week and let her know that this lesson may not be as productive as the last couple. Indeed when she asked me to pick her up Katai got sticky, sucked behind the leg and threatened to rear. L clicked and encouraged and I did a couple of my best pony club kicks and we got to a canter for a little while. After she had settled a little we got back to trot and started to make some progress! While we trotted and I worked on bend L coached that whenever she feels like that I need to send her forward as quick as I can. Gallop or canter or whatever it doesn’t matter but push my elbows forward and kick her on. I know this in theory but in practice I struggle to actually do it so that is one of my main take aways from this lesson and something I’m going to make sure I’m doing this week because it has such immediate results.

 

After that we had a really great lesson! Katai got sticky and stubborn once more after a walk break but this time she didn’t suck back, she just wanted to go. L coached me through it by again reminding me to just keep my body the same, keep doing the same thing, not to escalate and just to wait for her to comply so that I can praise her. She also reminded me to keep my leg on her and not keep taking it off since that just rewards her for doing the wrong thing. Of course with that expert advice I had a nice walk after a bit and we went back to trot.

 

Then, once I had a compliant pony, we worked on doing trot/canter transitions into the wall on a ten meter circle. I feel like starting with this lesson I’ve got more to work on than Katai. Her canter is so balanced and while certainly not fancy, it is easy to ride and she is comfortable doing it. I pulled her in an extremely small circle once, my fault for going into autopilot and not looking where I was going, and she just kept right on cantering and doing her best. I was stuck on the struggle buss and was having a tough time seeing the 10 meter circle so our snap was all over the place and couldn’t seem to make the transition at the right point. We finally got one good circle exercise and after a walk break started working on leg yields along the long sides. 

 

We pretty much had leg yields figured out on a spiral 20 meter circle at my last lesson so I’ve been working on my homework and slowly trying to get all the parts of my body to work together. This was another moment when I felt like I’ve got more to work on than Katai. I was struggling with turning down the quarter line and then wasn’t too bad yielding to the right but was blocking with my right rein when trying to leg yield to the left. I finally got it, and sort of felt it, so hopefully I can replicate that tonight when I ride!

 

Reset

This week has been a mixed bag. After last week being so amazing it's a little disappointing but I'm continuing to learn how to improve to make another incredible week possible.

My main issue has been my schedule. Being an adult sucks sometimes and recently I feel like there just isn't enough time in a day. After never having much of a social schedule I suddenly feel like I've got all kinds of events I could participate in and even with being selective I'm running out of time.

Last Sunday after my lesson I had finally decided to take the rest of the day for myself to decompress after my previous busy week. Unfortunately that still meant doing laundry, grocery shopping, cleaning out my car, cleaning my room, doing dishes, cooking dinner, and taking Veggie out for a walk since those were all things I failed at the week before.

On Monday I had my normal day off riding and thanks to my work from the day before I actually spent a quiet weekend, curled up in bed, binge watching How To Get Away With Murder (sooooo good, you should seriously watch it!). It was a wonderful quiet evening and I feel like I need more of those sometimes.

     How I function on my late barn nights

Then on Tuesday I had a date and was proud that I went straight from work, got there on time, did the whole date thing and then got home, took Veggie out and went to the barn. I had a WONDERFUL ride and got to hang out and talk horses with someone that I used to board with at the last barn who also moved because of what was going on there. I got home around 10:00 and pretty much went right to bed.

Wednesday I had my yearly physical, had to leave straight from work again, and had plans to ride but was just too burnt out to make it happen.

   The ladies at the barn found a Fresian weanling blanket that fits her perfectly so she's trying a new look :-)

Thursday I had a normal evening and rode again but between my haphazard schedule and Katai being in raging heat it was a rougher ride than we've been having. I'm proud though because I still got us to a good place by the end of the ride. There was just a lot more tension than there has been and she was being bit fussy.

Now tonight I was planning on riding again but that would have meant that by my lesson on Monday she would have been ridden for 5 days in a row and that's just too much for her right now. Plus I would have had to go to the barn straight from work and then get to a date straight from the barn. Probably better to not show up to a date wearing full seats, tall socks, and tennis shoes and smelling like the barn. Or that could be a good technique to find out if the guy will be tolerant of my horse habit :-)

So that leaves us in the sucky position of every other day rides so far this week which just isn't a good way to do things.

The plan going forward is to ride tomorrow morning and then I have a plans in the afternoon. I should still get some time to myself though which will be great. On Sunday I'm cheering for a friend who's running in a local marathon in the late morning and I'm planning on heading out to the barn to ride in the afternoon sometime. Then I have my lesson on Monday evening!

I'm hoping we can pull it together again by my lesson and am already making plans for how I can improve next week to make sure I get my five rides in. I'm not that disappointed that I only managed four this week since that's still really good especially considering everything going on right now. I just want to make sure that I get back to five before that feels like a stretch because that's how I've ended up at two rides per week in the past.

New Barn Brag

I ADORE my new barn. It is so wonderful here and just so much more friendly than the last barn. I didn’t even realize how cold and clinical that place felt until I moved out here. The other improvement that I’m most happy about is how everything at this new barn is set up how it should be for horse owners. Nice big strong clips on all the gates (rather than having to mess with a chain getting wrapped around the gate and then clipped), Convenient cross ties, handy muck buckets, saddle racks everywhere, and the ability to leave a little bit of a mess if your safety requires it.

 

Everyone has been so welcoming and it’s so nice having other dressage riders around!

 

Katai is in a semi private paddock with one other small Arabian mare. That mare is most definitely in charge but Katai is good in situations like that because she reads other horses well and is sensitive enough go get out of the way and not enrage boss mares (sounds like her owner). Apparently this Arabian mare has had some issues getting along with other horses in the past but she and Katai seem to be doing really well together. There is also some talk about moving her to a different stall. I’m both happy and slightly concerned about this since the new stall is much nicer, closer to the tack room, and has a lower front so Katai won’t have her head craned around to see out all the time. The negative is that it’s pretty much in the busiest part of the barn which means either Katai will thrive with that much going on, like a good tv show sometimes, or not. Basically as an owner it’s a nicer stall but not necessarily as a horse.

 

The footing has also been getting nicer and nicer. At first it was a little packed, opposite problem of the last barn which was always a little too deep, but now a little has been added and it’s been ridden in enough that it is getting way nicer. 

 

The ability to ride outside and around the property is also really nice. It reminds me of when I was growing up and we would go on adventures. Katai and I have gone out once but just for a short trail ride and it was so much fun! None of the craziness that was the busy biking/walking/running/rollerskating/baby crying/icecream stand trail that was the only place to ride outside at the last barn. Here I feel comfortable going out alone which is nice especially since I usually end up at the barn at odd times so it’s tough to consistently have anyone else to ride with.

 

I’m so glad that I made the decision to move and, knock on wood, hope to be here for a long long long long time :-)

Making Plans: Lesson Recap 9/27

So sorry for being such a bad blogger recently. I'm still trying to figure out my schedule and we are understaffed at work so there's no way that I have the time to blog from there. I've been riding consistently five days per week and doing a great job of sticking to my schedule. I'm especially proud this week since I got almost got derailed by a migraine on Wednesday and still managed to get five rides in! With those five rides, dates, and doing adult things like buying groceries and cooking food so that I don't have to eat out all the time I feel like I've got very little time. Now I just need to get a blogging schedule figured out around my riding :-)

The good news about all of this is that we are making real, actual, tangible progress.

For so long I've felt like we are on the struggle bus and yes, making some improvements such as that pony stopped rearing, but not much that was really visible to most people watching. It's part of why I haven't posted video because honestly it's just been making me feel fucking depressed.

(Pictures are good moments from the bad video)

I was feeling especially bad about myself after a crummy ride on Thursday where after Katai's extra day off and having stayed in all day due to rain she was stiff and just not wanting to move. Of course I'd chosen to video myself that day and so the resulting video made me feel like giving up.

For about two hours.

And then I moved on and really looked at what was happening on the video. I watched it through, cringing, but thought about what L would have been saying as I was riding if it were in a lesson and I realized that while I've been thinking I've "got" certain things down it's just that they've improved. They aren't actually to where I thought they were yet but I actually do have the tools to get us there.

With that analysis I went to the barn the next day and really RODE my horse. Every step I chose what we were doing and kept making instant, small, gentle corrections. Every time I felt her just barely beginning to get hollow I'd make a small correction and bring her back before we were at the head flinging in the air stage. I kept her bent, I kept her at the same speed, and I kept her back up and I had a sort of epiphany that when I'm always letting her change her balance she never is balanced and that makes her feel panicky and like racing around. If instead I'm more firm about her staying the same balance she can get comfortable there.

Part of this is that I was riding more this way about 6 months ago but I was doing it in a very strong, forceful way and that was pissing Katai off. She also didn't have the skills or strength to go there at that point so it was just making her more upset and defensive. In some ways I've actually needed to get to a point where I was riding less and letting her do more as she developed that strength for us to be able to get back here but we are definitely at a point where I should be riding more consciously now.

Today for my lesson I planned ahead and got to the barn with plenty of time. At one point I was trying to keep my warm up to a minimum because Katai was getting tired by the end of the lesson and I didn't want to push it even longer. Now though she is getting to a point where I can have her warmed up before my lesson and able to start right in on more difficult stuff. When L showed up she was really impressed and started off saying how amazing Katai looked. She let us go for a little while and then said that we were looking so good that she wanted to start working on lateral work! Yay!!! She also decided that we were doing so well that she didn't want to climb on for this lesson.

For most of the lesson we worked on getting my body in the correct position for spirals in and out. She doesn't want me cheating anymore and steering her or pushing her in with my leg and wants it to properly come more from my body. Then we took those skills and used them to help me cue the canter correctly on the spiral while on the way out to the edge of the circle. Going to the right I had a tough time and that is also Katai's tough side for canter. One time I even had my body so perfectly wrong that she instantly picked up the counter canter. We did get two good transitions that way though and then I got two great ones in the other direction and we called it quits so that my amazing progress pony could get a break before she started feeling to fatigued.

One of the best parts of the lesson for me, other than a perfect left lead canter depart that had L grinning from ear to ear, was that after watching us for a few minutes at the beginning of our lesson she said that if she keeps going like this we could start out showing training next year and dabble at first!!! She said that Katai would be in a great place compared to some rated tests that she's seen at training level as long as we can continue to make improvements in a couple of areas. I've got homework, namely not allowing Katai to throw my weight to the outside of the circle and to practice picking her up at the walk and then giving her the rein again. She wants me to do this a lot so that it no longer offends princess pony and she just expects that its part of the routine.

I really thought I was going to be starting out at intro at a schooling show and maybe possibly doing a training level test at the end of the year. Training with a possible Level 1 test at the end of the year is more than I even thought we could accomplish next year but with how she is feeling I have complete confidence that as long as the wheels don't fall off the wagon before then we'll be able to do it!

WWLS: Lesson Recap 9/20

I adore my trainer. We are making so much progress and I'm enjoying every lesson. She has been so good at helping my identify what I need to work on and making me feel enabled to make those changes.

On Sunday we started out with L having me pick up contact at the walk and keep Katai's speed the same. At first she used to throw her head in the air, get hollow and freak out but it's slowly become better and now she just tries to rush and eventually work her way into a trot. As I was working on this the first time L actually said "She's too good of pony to let her get away with this." It was such an amazing thing to hear about my pony especially after the way that J treated both of us. It was so encouraging to hear that she has some talent after all and that it's not just me that believes in her completely. 

That walk work set the trend for the lesson and that was that we were going to get speed and rhythm above all else, then bend through her body, and finally good contact. L pointed out that sometimes I settle for pleasant and don't push for great work. I agree completely but it was good to have that pointed out to me because I didn't even realize until she said that. 

The other thing that we both identified is that at times I just sort of give up and try to hand off control to Katai. Except she has no idea what we're doing. Sort of like the person leading the dance just throwing their hands in the air and telling their less experienced partner good luck. Anytime I do this, of course, Katai has no idea what to do so we really falter and L pointed out a few times I do this consistently such as changes of direction.

By about 5-10 minutes in we were getting really good work. I'm still getting used to/enjoying it not taking the whole lesson, and I was really figuring out how to get a consistent speed. Funny how when my coach says I'm going to do something I can do it but on my own I just sort of coast along thinking man wouldn't that be nice. That same sort of thought during the lesson led to me saying I was going to make a WWLD bracelet and then she said it should be WWLS for What Would L Say. 

I really think I need one :)

We were getting a nice enough and consistent enough trot for us to be able to work on canter and that went well as well but we've got some new evasions. It sounds like L is probably planning on riding her at my next lesson so I'm hoping that she'll have some canter specific feedback for me. I can't wait!

Human Analysis

I've had a couple of not so good rides this week on Tuesday and Wednesday. Don't get me wrong, compared to where we were about a month ago we were still ahead but she was beng resistant again and our biggest improvement lately is that she'd mostly given that up. For that past couple of weeks she has consistently been more reasonable and when she has resisted it's been for individual movements rather than a whole ride and once we've moved past that moment she doesn't bring it up again. She been a really grown up pony and that lack of resistance has meant that I've actually been able to get things accomplished since I don't lose whole rides to pony-tude.

That's why going backwards a bit in just that one area this week has been depressing. I got through the ride on Tuesday, hoped it was the weather or that she was cycling but then after a repeat ride on Wednesday I realized that that was not the case. 

 

So on the half hour drive home on Wednesday I analyzed what I thought was going on and came up with three things. 

1. I was riding too much with my hands.

 

I think it's always going to be my natural instinct to go to our hands to fix a problem and I used to only ride with my hands. I've gotten so much better at riding back to front but I failed at that both days that things went wrong. L has me working more on consistent contact so since I'm concentrating there suddenly it seems like that can fix everything.

 

2. I was going into my meditative mode and tiping forward like a rag doll and thus throwing off pony's balance and causing her to rush around on the forehand.

 

When I start concentrating I stare at a point that gets lower and lower and slowly topple forward led by my head. Sometimes I think that if I weren't pulled out of that meditative state I'd probably just fold completely over and eventually end up like this.

 

Failing hard at the dressagez

 

3. That whole relationship thing. 

I'm just not an especially soft, sweet, cuddly person and, while I did have my Black Stallion moments when I was growing up, I'm an eventer born and raised. Pony crosses me and she knows about it and that's why she's become such a good citizen. Every once in awhile though I feel like she's concerned that some Pony Council is going to kick her out of the Pony Club unless she pulls some proper pony attitude. Her go tos are little things, since she knows I won't stand for big stuff, and are usually things like trying to turn around in the cross ties for no reason, refusing to go to one end of the arena for a few minutes, or (what she knows really gets my blood boiling) trying to climb on the mounting block.

She started this behavior about a year ago when she was young enough to not know better and I dealt with it then and thought that I'd defeated it. It's surfaced intermittently ever since just like the trash monster in Star Wars.

 

She's never gotten away with it, I've never thrown my hands in the air and not ridden, in fact all she's ever gotten out of it is a lot of lateral work and then a normal ride. Therefore, since she's smart, I've come up with the pony council theory.
 

On Tuesday she decided to pull this stunt. She lines up to the mounting block, I climb up, and then she slowly walks perfectly sideways over it which puts it under her belly which then pushes me off - or knocks me off. Or she puts her foot on the first step when I walk her over to it and tries to smush the mounting block or maybe her goal is this maneuver.

 

At any rate she gets lots of sideways work with her shoulders and lots of gentle and progressively firmer lateral work until she gets the point that putting her shoulders into me is a no go. Then we go back to that mounting thing and it normally works.

We repeated the same situation on Wednesday.

Tonight she started getting tense and tight through the jaw (her stubborn pony face) on the way to the mounting block but I had already decided that I wasn't going to handle it the same way I did on Tuesday and Wednesday. Instead I stopped her before we ever got there and, very much like a girl in one of those bad horse movies that we all loved (who am I kidding, I still love them), I put my hand on her neck and talked to her. Told her that we were going to get along tonight, "lets work as a team", etc. (can you tell I work in HR?) and petted her and cooed to her until I saw her relax. Then I led her to the mounting block and she stood stock still for me to mount while staying relaxed.

Then, thanks to me also making improvements in the other areas, we had a really wonderful ride. She was right back to being sweet and not overreacting to things. She was forward but not fast and listening to both my legs and the contact. She wasn't trying to pull the reins out of my hands but also wasn't ducking. It was actually pretty magical and I hope that we have a similar ride tomorrow morning :-)

  

Book Review: Light and Easy Dressage by Penny Hillsdon

I bought this book only because I was hanging out the a local Half Price Books store while they were tallying up the total offer on some books that I was selling them. I was in the horse section and then the sports section and was looking at a different dressage book that was more pictures rather than instructional. When I put that one down I saw this one, picked it up to look over, and it just looked friendly enough that I decided to try it out and I'm so glad that I did!

This is probably one of my favorite Dressage books that I've read recently and I read it from cover to cover in about a week.

To start off, let me just say that it's probably not for everyone. It may be a little touchy feely for some of you but for me it was amazing. I'm already a perfectionist and this is something that I ultimately do for fun so the typical language of dressage books can be discouraging to me. Especially when they're talking about flying changes by something like chapter 4-5. It's easy to get the message that if you can't do it perfectly you just shouldn't do it but this book isn't like that at all.

The writer routinely talks about how it's ok to make mistakes as long as you analyze and go back to try again. She talks a lot about the relationship with the horse and about not bullying them or expecting more than they can give. She takes on a very fun, relaxed and comforting tone while still making sure that she makes her point about how certain things are necessary or other things should be avoided at all costs.

I loved that the entire book felt like it was at a level that made sense for me and, while she talks about things like counter canter and shoulder in which is above our pay grade at this point, that means that the whole book was useful while still feeling like there was room to stretch and grow. I actually go so much out of the explanation about canter transitions that I've changed how I'm cueing and have been able to get Katai to take the correct lead about 9 times out of 10 when before, to the right she was only correct about 2 times out of 10.

She makes some great points that I needed to hear about how certain things are like bullying the horse and that, while expecting a quick upward transition is great and will be necessary, when you are starting out you need to give them time to react. This and many other things in the book made me think and gave me things to work on.

I would highly recommend this book for anyone in Intro through maybe somewhere around 1st level and while I think that all riders could gain insight from this book I think it would be most valuable for the lower levels which is what it was really written for.

I would give this book 5 stars out of 5 for the truly encouraging tone, lovely exercises, and fun writing.