Delphi is solidly schooling the third level movements. For now I'm leaving the changes alone due to our upcoming show which will (hopefully) be her last second level tests. Worked on flexions and counter flexions at canter. Continuing to develop throughness and lightness in the hand in all gaits.
EXCELLENT work from Wizard today. I was able to get fluid, round canter. His trot following the canter work was to die for. The trot lengthening was buoyant and full of impulsion-- and round and through too! Delphi's pas de deux partner, I schooled Wiz with the first level requirements in mind.
Appassia- learning to neutralize her little tensions by saying, "No, really, you must" and staying firm and positive with her. Schooled some nice canter even on her trickier left rein. She tried to pull the "I'm scared of the swimming pool" routine but I didn't buy it and we had a nice ride instead.
Re-visited the changes today on Rajah: he drops to trot for less than one stride then canters off in the new lead rather than flying through. The first time I schooled Rajah I got good changes but his owner told me today that they are difficult for him. For strengthening we schooled shoulder fore in canter. Got some fantastic trot half pass and walk pirouettes.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
32 right, 6 left, 17 right
The combination of riding a particular horse oneself, then having the opportunity to watch as someone else rides the same horse, then following up by again schooling the horse has proven extremely beneficial for both me and the horses I ride.
Two examples:
Wizard- Centerline Training's Spanish barb- and I are working toward being soft, through, and round. We achieve this in walk and trot but canter and transitions have proven more difficult. Yesterday I got to watch as Wizard's Aunt Rachel schooled him in the canter. I saw her lighten the aids immediately following the canter up transition. I considered that she gave deliberate and obvious, if big, rein aids with a return to subtle rein aids as often as needed (no knitting upon the reins did she!).
With all this in mind during my ride with Wiz today, I intentionally aided him into a very good trot that was favorable to become a very good up trans to canter. Once in canter I thought about what I had watched Rachel doing the previous day and visualized a collected, through, and soft canter. Much to Wizard's contentment I neither fiddled with the reins or got stronger in them. We were able to canter 'round smoothly with several lovely transitions, and it was repeatable in both directions.
Appassia, my barn buddy's lovely Arabian mare gave a new-to-Centerline student a lesson that I audited. This well schooled and elegant horse has a quirk in the canter up trans that if you're not prepared for can take you by surprise. Having experienced the quirk myself from the saddle, I had formed the opinion that it was rather large and alarming, akin to a buck. Watching the student school through it, however, proved to me that what felt to me strangely appalling from the saddle was actually a much smaller difficulty than I perceived.
Today when I rode Appassia I channeled all that Wiz had taught me with his excellent cantering and Appassia and I skipped through the minor difficulty with ease.
While watching others ride I often ride with them in my imagination: making corrections, adding impulsion, or straightening the horse as I follow along. It's neat to be able to follow up from the saddle on what one has learned visually.
Wizard and Rachel schooling canter:
Two examples:
Wizard- Centerline Training's Spanish barb- and I are working toward being soft, through, and round. We achieve this in walk and trot but canter and transitions have proven more difficult. Yesterday I got to watch as Wizard's Aunt Rachel schooled him in the canter. I saw her lighten the aids immediately following the canter up transition. I considered that she gave deliberate and obvious, if big, rein aids with a return to subtle rein aids as often as needed (no knitting upon the reins did she!).
With all this in mind during my ride with Wiz today, I intentionally aided him into a very good trot that was favorable to become a very good up trans to canter. Once in canter I thought about what I had watched Rachel doing the previous day and visualized a collected, through, and soft canter. Much to Wizard's contentment I neither fiddled with the reins or got stronger in them. We were able to canter 'round smoothly with several lovely transitions, and it was repeatable in both directions.
Appassia, my barn buddy's lovely Arabian mare gave a new-to-Centerline student a lesson that I audited. This well schooled and elegant horse has a quirk in the canter up trans that if you're not prepared for can take you by surprise. Having experienced the quirk myself from the saddle, I had formed the opinion that it was rather large and alarming, akin to a buck. Watching the student school through it, however, proved to me that what felt to me strangely appalling from the saddle was actually a much smaller difficulty than I perceived.
Today when I rode Appassia I channeled all that Wiz had taught me with his excellent cantering and Appassia and I skipped through the minor difficulty with ease.
While watching others ride I often ride with them in my imagination: making corrections, adding impulsion, or straightening the horse as I follow along. It's neat to be able to follow up from the saddle on what one has learned visually.
Wizard and Rachel schooling canter:
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Another Fat Envelope
Mailed in my entry for the Windy Knoll Farm Fall Dressage Show today. Goal: to earn our final second level qualifying score toward our USDF bronze medal.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Guest Blogger
My barn buddy and fellow adult amateur has agreed to be a guest blogger today. Also working toward her USDF medals, my friend's current projects include rehabbing from injury her eventer/foxhunter/dressage partner and campaigning her current schoolmaster at second, third, and fourth levels.
She shared this breakthrough:
"I had a great lesson on my schoolmaster this morning, which helped my trainer and me to decide that I will send in my entry for the upcoming show.
We did a great exercise for putting jump in the canter: canter half-pass to quarter-line to halt. Then, from halt, strike off into canter IN half-pass to X, etc. across the diagonal. It took some doing (and incidentally got some volunteered trot half-passes to die for; unfortunately for my schoolmaster, it wasn't what I was asking for), some halt to rein-back, but finally did it. Then ended with canter full-pirouettes in each direction that were really uphill and relaxed.
The breakthrough came while riding my injured horse. She was her normal fussy self at the beginning--didn't want to go on the bit, didn't want to walk, didn't want to do haunches-in at the walk, tail-swishing, waaa waaa waaa. I had been determined to keep my hands still (Madame De Farge casts a very long shadow, my dear), and I was getting frustrated at her shenanigans. Suddenly, I thought, 'Just ride her the way you ride the schoolmaster.' So: my half-halts became STRONG, but very clear. I got out of the reins quickly. I asked once, then demanded. And, guess what? She was delightful. hahahhaahhahaha.
Just ride the frickin' horse!! What a concept. No, my injured horse and I did no canter pirouettes. But we did a 20-m stretchy circle (at the rising trot, a first) in both directions, and a trot serpentine with real bend. On the bit. Calm. I don't know why I'm so dumb-founded, but thought I ought to share. I'll bet if you ride Delphi the way you're riding Wizard/Gryphon/Fee, etc., you'll have a similar breakthrough."
Thank you my friend for that. Point taken!
It takes a village. These folks are a few of the villagers.
She shared this breakthrough:
"I had a great lesson on my schoolmaster this morning, which helped my trainer and me to decide that I will send in my entry for the upcoming show.
We did a great exercise for putting jump in the canter: canter half-pass to quarter-line to halt. Then, from halt, strike off into canter IN half-pass to X, etc. across the diagonal. It took some doing (and incidentally got some volunteered trot half-passes to die for; unfortunately for my schoolmaster, it wasn't what I was asking for), some halt to rein-back, but finally did it. Then ended with canter full-pirouettes in each direction that were really uphill and relaxed.
The breakthrough came while riding my injured horse. She was her normal fussy self at the beginning--didn't want to go on the bit, didn't want to walk, didn't want to do haunches-in at the walk, tail-swishing, waaa waaa waaa. I had been determined to keep my hands still (Madame De Farge casts a very long shadow, my dear), and I was getting frustrated at her shenanigans. Suddenly, I thought, 'Just ride her the way you ride the schoolmaster.' So: my half-halts became STRONG, but very clear. I got out of the reins quickly. I asked once, then demanded. And, guess what? She was delightful. hahahhaahhahaha.
Just ride the frickin' horse!! What a concept. No, my injured horse and I did no canter pirouettes. But we did a 20-m stretchy circle (at the rising trot, a first) in both directions, and a trot serpentine with real bend. On the bit. Calm. I don't know why I'm so dumb-founded, but thought I ought to share. I'll bet if you ride Delphi the way you're riding Wizard/Gryphon/Fee, etc., you'll have a similar breakthrough."
Thank you my friend for that. Point taken!
It takes a village. These folks are a few of the villagers.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Madame Defarge
The thing about riding a variety of horses is that it exposes a rider's faults that can sometimes be hidden when one rides the same horse all the time. The habit that is currently driving me nuts is the tendency to fidget the reins in a most un-dressage-like way (Jeff Moore once said of me "you have very supple wrists").
Help has come in the form of my trainer Karen's Spanish barb Wizard. My fidgety-ness drives him as crazy as it does me-- more so. He will absolutely not put up with it and exposed my less than perfect hands instantly.
With all this in mind during my ride on Wiz today I disconnected my inclination to fidget, channeled my inner Edward Gal, and quietly but deliberately and independently controlled the movements of my hands with elbows down and half halts coming from the shoulders.
Wizard unlocked something in me today: when we finally communicated it was suddenly Zen: Wizard happily went forward from a through and supple connection, and I was able to maintain it by continuing with my deliberate and independent rein aids, working with yet independent from my leg and seat aids.
Wizard just may make a dressage rider out of me yet!
Wizard the wonder pony,
and Zen master.
Help has come in the form of my trainer Karen's Spanish barb Wizard. My fidgety-ness drives him as crazy as it does me-- more so. He will absolutely not put up with it and exposed my less than perfect hands instantly.
With all this in mind during my ride on Wiz today I disconnected my inclination to fidget, channeled my inner Edward Gal, and quietly but deliberately and independently controlled the movements of my hands with elbows down and half halts coming from the shoulders.
Wizard unlocked something in me today: when we finally communicated it was suddenly Zen: Wizard happily went forward from a through and supple connection, and I was able to maintain it by continuing with my deliberate and independent rein aids, working with yet independent from my leg and seat aids.
Wizard just may make a dressage rider out of me yet!
Wizard the wonder pony,and Zen master.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Canter Quarter Pirouettes-- say THAT three times fast
Karen said of Delphi today that she is now consistent enough that Karen is able to simply add to Delphi's daily training things like canter and trot half pass, single flying changes, and canter quarter pirouettes. It is very satisfying to be schooling all of these as well as watching Karen get half steps and teaching Delphi to be very tall, uphill, and maintain more consistent self carriage.
This Just In
Horses never cease to amaze me. Today I witnessed a job swap: the first time my trainer Karen's Trakehner filly Lola jumped under a rider, and the first dressage lesson Blue Fox Farms owner and hunter/jumper trainer Teri's Oldenburg stallion Jeepers experienced in a dressage saddle. At first glance all this doesn't seem so spectacular; Lola has free jumped and has been lunged over cavaletti and is a sensible, willing girl; Jeepers has been in consistent work and is a kind, mannerly boy.
But Lola was so relaxed and workmanlike over her fences: she didn't get strong before the jump or rush after it; she basculed nicely over the jump and tucked up her knees-- "very photogenic jumper-- she hangs her body over the jump" as pro jumper trainer Teri Bludworth put it from the saddle.
Then Jeepers displayed amazing suspension and gaits; he happily moved from shoulder in to leg yield to lengthening, and his canter is simply beautiful. As pro dressage trainer Karen Brown said, "If I didn't know better I'd think I was just riding a very pleasant gelding."
The very fact that these two youngsters took so easily to their earliest lessons in a whole new (to them) discipline and that their respective owners so completely confide in them is what I find amazing and inspiring. Wonders, even the expected ones, never cease.
But Lola was so relaxed and workmanlike over her fences: she didn't get strong before the jump or rush after it; she basculed nicely over the jump and tucked up her knees-- "very photogenic jumper-- she hangs her body over the jump" as pro jumper trainer Teri Bludworth put it from the saddle.
Then Jeepers displayed amazing suspension and gaits; he happily moved from shoulder in to leg yield to lengthening, and his canter is simply beautiful. As pro dressage trainer Karen Brown said, "If I didn't know better I'd think I was just riding a very pleasant gelding."
The very fact that these two youngsters took so easily to their earliest lessons in a whole new (to them) discipline and that their respective owners so completely confide in them is what I find amazing and inspiring. Wonders, even the expected ones, never cease.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Pas de Deux Plus Two
A cute sixpack from our Pas de Deux lesson: Prissy, Rachel, Wizard, Carrie, Delphi, and Nephyn. It takes a village. Photo by Karen Brown.
Monday, August 1, 2011
"How many horses did you ride today?"
...my barn buddy Marlene asked of me. "Only three" I replied.
It's official: I have left a career in ophthalmology to embrace my destiny of riding full time. The first few lesson horses I've been riding are as varied as they are awesome: a powerful if compact Haflinger that teaches me the meaning of correct tempo, two noble Quarterhorse schoolmasters that are as eager to do upper level dressage movements as a southern gentleman is to hold the door for a lady, a pretty Arabian mare that teaches me I can ride one tempis, a Rhinelander mare that has earned several riders their bronze and silver medals and who considers the third and fourth level movements I'm learning as the easy stuff, and of course the challenging but rewarding world of the Trakehner.
While I may not take three riding lessons every day, it will be more common than not. I am excited and humbled at the opportunity afforded to immerse myself in the teachings and daily enterprises of my remarkable trainer-cum-mentor Karen Brown.
It's official: I have left a career in ophthalmology to embrace my destiny of riding full time. The first few lesson horses I've been riding are as varied as they are awesome: a powerful if compact Haflinger that teaches me the meaning of correct tempo, two noble Quarterhorse schoolmasters that are as eager to do upper level dressage movements as a southern gentleman is to hold the door for a lady, a pretty Arabian mare that teaches me I can ride one tempis, a Rhinelander mare that has earned several riders their bronze and silver medals and who considers the third and fourth level movements I'm learning as the easy stuff, and of course the challenging but rewarding world of the Trakehner.
While I may not take three riding lessons every day, it will be more common than not. I am excited and humbled at the opportunity afforded to immerse myself in the teachings and daily enterprises of my remarkable trainer-cum-mentor Karen Brown.
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