Sorry everyone for disappearing again (not that I have a TON of followers or anything....) but between my concussion, then being not so smart and attempting to go schooling before my balance was fully back, I ended up breaking my tailbone.
The photo evidence of the fall that broke my tailbone
I never really realized just how much your coccyx affects...not just sitting. Which let me tell you was realllllllly unpleasant for a good two months. Which meant no riding for me. Luckily my horses stayed in work with the help of my new trainer ive been relying on this year (who also had us play with bridle less last winter!).
Definitely want to get back to playing with this again!
The plus side to being sidelined was forcing me to really evaluate my riding goals and so much more really...I have struggled the last two years with my workload. I bought kiss in September of 2017 which started this whirlwind of changing barns completely so both my horses were together, which led to me starting a lesson program there etc. All in addition to my day job, which I got a new one in April and LOVE.
Just gonna leave this cuteness of miss Penelope here in the middle of my complaining
However its been ALOT. I kept feeling like I had more on my plate than I could handle and toyed with selling kiss off and on for the last 8 months. This tailbone injury sorta made me realize this all feels way too much like a job. All I do is work to pay for two horses, and finding time to ride two and compete two was feeling more and more like a job than fun.
Kiss and I doing novice this year!
So I decided to list her, and pretty darn quickly she got snatched up by a 14 year old in a 5* eventers program. She left last Friday and the updates since then are just so darn cute and make me so darn proud at how far kiss has come since bringing her home.
While it made me really sad, it also provided a huge sense of relief and pretty quickly allowed me to focus on Tillie again.
Snap of our ride last week
Tillie has really excelled with this new trainer in dressage - which is why I sought him out. I was getting really frustrated at how stuck she was at shows. (see the post on tillies first 2019 show at Fair Hill here).
Winter 2019 - definitely have a different trot and canter from this !
Since that show I have sort of let showing take a back seat and thrown my budgeted show money towards dressage boot camp. And boy let me tell you how excited I am to see Tillie's progress.
I actually have a soft uphill canter!!! what on earth is this?
So with that said, after my lesson yesterday on Tillie, my new trainer commented Tillie's canter looked really amazing and would do well in a working equitation class. I laughed and said sure you can take her...its a totally foreign discipline to me! But he insisted we give it a try and entered us in the L4 class on October 26th!!
Getting back to enjoying this crazy passion we all have
NeI have a bit of catching up to do on sharing videos with you all so I am combining this post of my xc schoolings from last weekend and last evenings. We have been a bit busy with me wanting to really feel confirmed at prelim stuff going into the weekend.
Brother and sister stare down
Last Saturday, right from the start Tillie came out warming up super relaxed and waiting on me. It felt super comfortable and set the tone for the entire schooling. Its nice when shes like this because then I ride her more confidentially and forward like she needs to be for this level. This also was my first time schooling without a trainer there pointing at things telling me to go do it.
So picking and choosing was definitely something I had to think smartly about and feel out Tillie.
Here is some of warming up over some of the smaller stuff, but we finished off with the big table at the end! It felt nice and gave me more confidence to try the prelim stuff on my own.
This was pretty early into schooling after warming up. Tile came right up to this very confident. It was the first skinnier test of the day and she came in nicely without any worry. I knew I needed to keep my shoulders up with the terrain question.
Next we moved on to this bending line with corner/brush type fences. I knew my ride in needed to be accurate without drifting. We got a bit of an add to the second fence and it really should be a 4 stride not a 5 but we worked on this with Dom yesterday.
From here we moved on to the keyhole combo. I was very proud with how much Tillie hunted out the final skinny.
This was a fun combo to try! The first time through I came in too forward of a ride so came back and learned that I needed a better, deeper approach to the first log so we could be ready for the bending line out over the final log. It rode a lot nicer that way!
Then I felt brave and decided to give the big trakhener to the skinny a try. I knew we needed enough power to get over the trakehener but then be able to rock back and focus on the skinny. I was worried Tillie might land from the first and get too wooden before the second, but she shocked the hell out of me and coasted right along to the skinny.
Next up we moved onto banks...the dreaded banks. Its no secret that I dislike riding them despite down banks being fairly easy so long as you sit up and let your reins slip. Sounds so simple right?
But I knew I needed to conquer this because prelim drops, well, are much larger and more prominent on courses than previous levels. So I started with a bank down I did before so had that in the back of my mind to boost my confidence.
Tillie is super keen and has no issues with banks, so of course it rode just fine.
So I ran the house to bank down in reverse to add that shorter combo and timing to make sure I didn't anticipate too much and was able to keep my shoulders up. I knew I needed a deep distance into the house so she landed softly for the bank. Then we circled around to give the skinny a try that we have had issues with last year. Tillie jumped it cool as a cucumber.
We stepped up our game and did this bank complex. I remember looking at similar combos here before (they change jumps around but typically have similar questions around) and thinking wow that looks really scary. Tillie made it feel effortless. Riding this definitely turned a corner in my mind about riding banks!
Last but not least we moved on to water so I started with this slight bending line. Tillie came in a bit powerful to the log and I didn't let my reins slip enough. Luckily I sat up and recovered in time to direct her to the skinny out. NOTE TO SELF: Slip the reins!!!
I knew next I needed to conquer the larger bank into the water. At prelim there will be a combo there so I pulled up my big girl pants and gave it a try.
With that I ended our schooling for that day. Tillie gave me such try!
My kiddies
Up next (below) is a recap of our schooling last night. I don't have as much footage but will walk through the footage I do have. I wasn't feeling super great physically going into this schooling so came out of the gate riding more like a weenie. Which I believe caused Tillie to be a bit more keen to lean on me and be up to some old tricks to start like taking the bit any time she had a moment.
Dom reassured me its normal, we all have those days its just about getting the rideability you want before you go onto course. So it was actually nice it happened here so he could walked me through my XC warm up for Saturday in case she was more like yesterday's ride. He really implored when shes like that not to get too backwards. That I need to learn how to keep the forward and get her more rideable out of that forward canter without shortening it too much.
The first footage I have is this corner which she jumped great after this, but I only have the first attempt where I left her drift so she dropped her shoulder. She was still being a bit wooden at this point in the schooling but Dom talked me through it.
Up next we did the skinny brush bending line. This was the second attempt since the first one was nice and quiet, but he wanted me to come back and do it out of a more forward canter. While Dom agreed it wasn't as pretty, that's the canter we need to get smoother in these combos.
At this point I was still feeling a bit defensive and coming into this exercise was able to over come and ride it forward, but as we came to the table with it feeling a tad down hill I got a bit too greedy causing the dreaded gappy distance. We did finally manage to get the right ride, but no video footage unfortunately. This is the point in time we talked more about doing the homework of that forward ride...which until today has been better. He told me not to fret, just try to not make this the habit for Saturday which will likely be my go to with my nerves.
At this point she got much more rideable though and we gave the roller coaster complex a try. I was fully expecting issues from this one. This is the better take on it, the first one wasn't caught on film...but as a learning experience: I misunderstood Dom and rode the first time on a deep approach to the first jump causing a need to push to get to the second making the third jump just a tad less approachable.
So instead you want to come into this out of an open canter off the first with a longer take off so making the distance to the second you get that deeper ride. That way the second one backs them off on the landing so you have the adjustability to the final jump. My nit pick is I still got a bit forward in my shoulders here.
To end we went to the water like usual and we ran through this combo and small bank down. We refined my shoulders for the down bank before moving on but it felt pretty good!
Finally Dom laid it on us and had us finish with the big brush out. I was extremely skeptical we would get over the big brush at the end the first attempt but Dom confidently said as long as I got my right line, didn't let her drift and had the right canter she would do it.
Of course he was right!
So here's to hoping she feels ready and I feel ready on the big day.
When a big life event happens, good or bad, it has residual effects. Either way there will be a period of time where you are just stuck in between. Where things aren't settled, there is no new routine yet and your new normal hasnt been established yet.
It can illicit feelings of excitement, relief, restlessness, anxiety and a whole medley of emotions. Not exactly something you want going on when riding. It was a great motivator to keep my emotions in check so it didn't push back our progress.
It was amazing though how quickly the main emotion of relief took over and then happiness. I finally felt the freedom to dream big without the pressure. I realized I was using my riding as a way to escape my life and putting way too much pressure on myself and Tillie.
So much happier with actual smiles when riding!
I went into this season with the mentality of just do what feels good. If you aren't happy about it, overly stressed or it isn't feeling great, lets take it slower or reevaluate rather than push so hard to make it perfect.
What do you know, it made riding fun again. Not to mention a much more pleasurable Tillie. So fast forward to now...we are about to make our prelim debut this Saturday. As terrifying as it is, I am excited. I keep reminding myself the training is in there, as long as I don't get too frazzled, we can do this.
My Dom lesson last night was a nice little boost from him reminding me that we have been doing lessons, we have been schooling the prelim questions and Tillie has been show jumping clear and running XC like it was made for her.
He warned me prelim stadium shouldn't be as much an issue for Tillie, but it will feel much bigger to me and not to let it get me wound up and lose my cool.
He has had us do a few jumping exercises in a rotation leading up to shows that, so far, have seemed to get Tillie jumping very careful at events.
One is setting up either a one stride to one stride or a two stride to two stride with the middle jump being a wider square oxer. The distance should be set a bit shorter to encourage the horse to sit and jump powerfully.
As long as I don't over ride and try to compress her too much, I am confident she will be ok. No pressure on me right!?
In either case, its encouraging to hear your trainer back you. Its reassuring for me and his "you'll be fine" comments instill a tad more confidence that we really can do it. He said the jump to prelim is one of the larger step ups and it will feel that way, but not to let it back me off. His biggest piece of advice was for me to let the mare go. Don't sit there and not ride, but stop micromanaging her canter and gallop so much and do what you need to do and let her at it.
The rideability we have gotten from the slower gallop and canter we have to start achieving out of a more open stride. He reassured me it is there and to trust her more. He repeated several times, if you chose the right line and you have the right canter, this horse will do it. But you get her in too weak, she might run out and tell you she didn't feel good about it...and then Ill feel silly for doing too much.
So in a nutshell, let the horse get her butt going and when in doubt sit my butt up, put my leg on and get her shoulders square. He even told me I shouldn't even wear my watch...to just go out there and not worry about the time, but to make sure I did let her gallop out when I could.
The next piece of advice was to pay attention to the first combination on course. He said its typically jump 4-5 in and its typically one that will set the tone for the rest of the course...
Come in to it and add too much, youre setting up for a harder ride the rest of the course, but come in and nail the striding and get the right ride its confidence building for the horse and money in the bank for later on course when you need it.
Today and tomorrow will be a dressage day working on really memorizing my test so I don't get any errors!! Then one more jump school Thursday, this time doing an ascending grid based on Dom's recommendation.
He reassured me the mare has got it in there, that I just need to keep a cool head and ride it confidently like its just another training with the adjustability and speed needed for prelim.
Ill keep you all posted through the week and post some xc videos soon! What do you all do to keep your nerves in check?
Happy belated Halloween everyone. Can you believe its already November?!
It seems like it wasn't all that long ago when this show season started...and it was this time last year Tillie and I were xc schooling and experiencing more not so fun moments more than we were experiencing fun moments.
Not so fun moment
I have resolved that November will be all about exploring and keeping an open mind. That will include me riding horses other than Tillie and being diligent in my own personal progress, outside of Tillie. (In addition to her too of course).
Tillie snoozing this morning
I have yet to sit down and really iron out a lesson schedule to stick to...but that is part of my plan so I have something to hold myself to. I need to make it a priority, but I am pretty busy with my latest drawings and commissions...I cant say no to them, and I LOVE doing them and the more the merrier! It'll all go in the bank towards lessons and our show season next year.
My latest drawing from last night - if you are interested in one, email me: kaitlyndzn@yahoo.com
My main focus on me right now are:
getting a better seat in the canter
being more firm with my hands (they will wiggle around when I don't take a firm contact)
For Tillie:
Improve the canter so she is less braced, more uphill and engaging
Improve canter to trot transitions
Keep her on the aids into a halt and from a halt to trot
Tillie after our ride yesterday looking chipper
The good news is, Tillie is happy to work and I am ready to dig in to my own homework. The trick is finding a place I can ride other horses...What sort of things do you look for in a lesson barn?
This past Saturday was the first day Tillie was allowed back into work after her injections. I fully expected there to be some interesting moments...so much so that I even lunged her lightly to let her sort out some wiggles.
Extremely fit horse + 4 days off of work = pshyco mare
Except this is the horse I got
Ok she did let some sass out on the lunge. But when I hopped on her, there was no tension, no jigging or bracing...not even the usual goading me into argue with her when shes been out of consistent work.
She showed up ready to work and was shockingly good...so bipolar in a good way.
Such a hard life
I was so freaked out about how good she was, I even took her temp a few times...all was normal! Poor Tillie. I do not give her enough credit, but seriously up until this, if I even gave her a day off I would be riding a very opinionated horse the next day.
Tillie isn't sure what the fuss is about
Her canter felt AMAZING. We were in the smaller ring, so she naturally tends to balance herself better in this one...and tends to stay straighter and better about not throwing her shoulders around. She was slightly down with her left shoulder when we tracked left, but that was also her more positive hock, and the side she is more downhill on.
Sleepy mare...and looking very tiny in this picture
It didn't take too much to get her to lift that inside shoulder when in the past, it would sometimes be an open door for bolting, head flicking or any number of her antics. She felt really nice and balanced, even willing to sit and engage.
Donkey Ears
Now, I don't think the injections work THAT fast. I have been told they can take anywhere between 10 days to 1 month before feeling the effects. So I am not really sure why the drastic change.
Her canter has been what we are trying to improve the most lately...and she certainly has given me nice moments, but an not usually an entire 2-3 circles.
At any rate, I am excited to get back into our lesson routine and prepare for our dressage debut next weekend. Here's hoping Tillie stays on this end of the spectrum!
As you all know, Tillie and I are competing a ton this year and doing alllll the events. After the last 2 years of being sidelined, I made it my goal this year to do all the things (obviously gauging Tillie and how she is doing). With all the events we have been doing, I have entered in a new world of learning...
The difference in test riding versus schooling and also the effect shows have on your horse.
Got our ribbon from Plantation HT!!
Test riding you basically have to get it done and right in that moment. There is no oh wait, lets circle and get a better trot before I ask for canter...there is only ok well this is the trot I have and we have to canter now. It also means sometimes helping your horse out when you normally wouldnt at home in a training ride to quite literally squeak by on a movement.
How not to squeak in a movement
I had a dressage lesson with C yesterday...thank god!! and was telling her how I feel like our flat work has regressed lately and I am a bit frustrated by it. Our canter work is improving, but it seems like our walk and trot work has slipped back to some of her antics and generally just not feeling as consistent there.
C laughed and said not to worry!! What I was feeling is basically a result from all the showing and that "get it done" riding that happens there can sometimes mean training may take a few hits. Basically we are trying to teach our horse to do more self carriage and schooling at home doing all different levels, even harder, but we get in the dressage ring and we may have to help our horse out more or do some things we otherwise wouldnt do at home.
Makes sense...and my next questions was, well should I back off the shows then?
Going all the places
C said no...based on what she was seeing in our lesson it was nothing to stress or worry about. She actually felt the more we show, the more it will help us A) work through show day stresses and B) Get better at improvising in test riding for more correct and accurate riding - basically start trying to ride more correctly at shows and stop helping the damn horse.
Which she laughed and said Tillie is telling you she doesnt need it! I am still riding her like a green horse when she no longer is.
Yea mom, I got this!
So we started out warming up just showing her some of the inconsistencies I was feeling...surprise surprise (NOT) they are due to me over riding her and riding her like a baby when she doesnt need all that. Leg asks for the bend, my hands need to be suppling and that is IT - no more using my reins as much for bend. I need to keep my hands lower and closer together. No more high/wide hands which also makes her look way more downhill.
C then said she wants us to try to break through the cycle of me helping her soooo much and we did that by doing transitions within the gaits in the walk and trot. C was super excited with how large her trot extensions got and said they were definitely the best shes seen in her shoulder to date!
Not current, but yay lengthenings!
We also did the same in canter, really focusing on my seat and finding a happy medium (I either lean too far back or perch and sit too forward on my pelvis). C had me think about my knees coming on and off and using my seat more over my hands to control the tempo.
We also established a stronger outside rein half halt to help back Tillie off when she starts to bogg down and get too low/heavy but then following her when she does soften. KEY: Bend the elbows!
What happens when im too straight in my arms...stiff!!!
C then said she wanted us practicing more sitting trot and that would be the key to helping Tillie get more up hill since it would force me to work on my seat and opening my hip angle properly. So that we did and her canter transitions from sitting trot were on point (when I go with her that is and not get left behind!).
Again in canter, she wants me to think still in my hands and keep them low and together with BENT elbows.
By the end of the lesson it was soooo much better...and exactly the ride I needed to feel like our dressage is getting back on track.
I really didnt think Tillie and I were ready to embark on a dressage clinic and just recently turned down the change to enroll in a few in early spring...but a good barn mate just has major surgery and was feeling pretty down about her green bean not getting ride time and convinced me to take Tillie her her horse (I did not ride her horse in it, our trainer you all commonly hear me talk about "C" did).
I couldnt say no and decided to forgo our normal saturday jump lesson to attend the clinic instead. all in all it was a great experience...It felt more like was really a really expensive lesson, but it was totally worth it!
Sneak preview from the video
I was a bit more aware because I had a lot of eyes on me with auditors...I even forgot my phone to ask someone to video. Luckily, some of my helpers caught some and I am hoping I can round up a few more clips in the next few days from a few others.
I got on a gave a brief overview of Tillie but didnt want to share too much to try to keep the clinician coming to their own conclusions and have a fresh perspective. Basically - Tillie: Red head mare, coming 7, competing at BN currently feeling a bit stuck and not adjustable in the frame.
Ill refer to the clinician as "P"
P had us start at the walk and said go ahead and start doing your thing and Ill speak up as I see things...well it didnt take long for her to speak up lol. Initially it was all good things about the walk. She really raved at how great Tillie's walk was and complimented how it was deliberate, clean and would score well.
Then we pushed up into trot and P immediately picked up on my crooked issues but amazingly pinpointed what to do to resolve it:
Basically look over her outside ear and think outside hip to outside ear since I tend to twist my torso. She also commented that by doing this I can use my seat and hip to make the turn rather then my lower leg. I really took this to heart and am glad to have something to really start working on to fix it! I was even more thrilled when P just kept swooning (ok maybe im exaggerating here) over Tillie.
But in all seriousness she did keep remarking at just how lovely she was and loved her build and bone. She said she had 3 really nice clean gaits but seemed to be the most impressed with her walk.
Next, we discussed the adjust ability of Tillie's neck and how to stay ahead of her getting "stuck" and getting braced or stagnant in a certain frame. Of course the first thing to do - more inside leg. AHHH the more inside leg fix! Who woulda thought...Its so silly how clear and simple that is. To build on that P described it as getting her bending more off the leg. She also emphasized playing with the bit more and keeping her mind active...counter flexion without changing anything with the reins, all from the leg and just keeping the bit moving.
It was nice since she has us go large around the ring quite a lot...which is a bit out of my comfort / familiar zone of staying on a circle. I really didnt think too much of it, but it forced me to test the bend I had more since the circle naturally tends to help achieve it easier. I was please to find Tillie was pretty consistent either way.
Unfortunately our first canter attempt didnt get filmed, but it involved some leaping through the air which is unlike Tillie lately...although P had us canter pretty quickly into the lesson which we normally do not canter for quite some time in our rides or other dressage lessons. I also think the crowd being there mimicked a show atmosphere which has led to some resistance to the canter aid and bucking in past tests.
Getting that bigger stride!
P gave me a few tips:
Canter sooner in the ride and make it not a big deal. Do it often so its routine.
Sit on her in the transition (P said Tillie has trained me to get off her back in the transition with her sass and she is capable of handling me sitting on her back...in fact she said she gets more confident the more I do and rely changes into a more relaxed horse when I can use my seat).
This will also prevent her getting croup high in the transition
WIDE hands...She complimented the height I carry my hands, they need to be wider though in the canter to promote using both hips not hands.
I was a bit nervous clearly and horror of horrors got the wrong lead at one point...but P didnt mind because it was a better more correct answer through the tension. We spent way more time in canter then I normally do in general and I am excited that it is moving towards one of my monthly goals in getting her canter more rideable and adjustable. We cantered the long side, circles etc and for the first time didnt feel like I had a freight train of a horse.
When we changed direction, we discussed the left bend since I clearly know this is our harder side and want to over bend her. P on the other hand told me no...and in the clip below can hear her coaching me on a more accurate ride. When we rolled into left lead canter, I had a much better balanced left lead then usual (i believe you can hear her remark how improved it looked even from right lead).
I am hoping someone got footage after this I can share of working on our trot lengthenings and stretchy trot...P was right in line with what C said that the key to getting Tillie to do a stretchy trot is the lengthenings...it will get her stretching out her back and spine, trusting her balance which will lead to trusting the stretch.
P also kept telling me to ride mini leg yields with a stronger right leg aid since she could tell thats the side she hangs on which is the left bend issue i feel...its the outside right muscles making it harder and heavier. She reassured ALL horses have one rein like this and its just something you have to know and ride accordingly. Describing the weight difference she also said it was good it wasnt THAT extreme and riding the bigger trot this was would help even more to even it out.
fancy pants canter
so in line with C's homework is riding tillie larger and asking for lengtehings not just on the diagonals but around the entire arena. We had two brief breaks and each time I picked Tillie back up P really raved over her walk and at one point gave us tips to get the higher scores that would make us "unbeatable at the level we are riding" :)
Dont be afraid to ride the walk forward. Tillie stays soft through it so ask for it.
Rein length discussion (she was impressed i brought this up). The level we are at it is perfectly acceptable to ride one length at the walk and another in trot.
Much nicer trot after canter...one more reason to canter sooner
P also really worked on getting me to keep my elbows at my body. That has been an ongoing struggle for me to learn giving at my elbow only straightens them out...and that doesnt help me or Tillie.
I really enjoyed P's teaching style and she couldnt have been more complimentary of Tillie. She so loved her shoulder movement (especially at the walk) and asked her bloodlines and then asked how well she jumped to which I sorta said, erm well she sorta jumps over her shoulder but its getting better...P said that shocked her and after further discussion reassured me she has the ability in there and it will come because you can see it in her flatwork.
It was so fast that it barely felt like an hour and it was really a marathon lesson with few breaks. Which is fine by me because we were able to cover SOOOO MUCH.
Tillie on the other hand wanted nothing to do with me after she was back on the trailer and just wanted to be alone with her hay:
Continuing on my recap from the weekend...it also includes my Sunday dressage lesson. I dont normally do lessons on Sundays other then teaching my own lessons, but with it being overcast and a bit drizzly I jumped at the shot to slip in an opening that C had right after Emma had her lesson.
So we hitched a ride with Emma and I am thankful she got Tillie loaded up for me while I finished up with my last few lessons. After a bit of rushing around, it turned out C was running really late so I made it long before Emma got on and was able to watch hers! She'll be recapping her own lesson on her blog I am sure soon - here.
An indication of how our lesson went...a tired and itchy Tillie
I mentioned in my Part 1 recap from Saturday's lesson that lately I have felt Tillie falling back into the old habit of wanting to put herself in a safe zone and not being all that agreeable when I ask to change that. She'll happily go around straight, bent to the inside, high or low but once I put her there, that is where she wants to stay. She is quite smart and only recently did I figure out this is what she was doing rather then just being stiff or harder one way vs another etc.
C pointed this out right away and said that while its a much better place shes putting herself in, we still need to be able to adjust her more readily and have more give at any time. So we went right to work and I can summarize all I can hear in my brain after the warm up:
Push her around the inside leg even more - SO much freakin inside leg
Watch out for a stiff right hand, but open and close to have more bend in both elbows especially the left (nice to know I have issues on both sides)
My left shoulder creeps forward making me crooked/twisted in my torso
Dont be afraid to take the rain until she softens BUT I must soften and follow her back
Tillie had a few moments of "No I dont think so" before she settled into a nice rhythm and really started to dig into work. She was so into it, her vibe was contagious and I felt a bit like the little engine that could as if she were thinking "I think I can" over and over.
C had us going on a 20 M circle spiraling into a smaller circle focusing on really getting her to give and wrap around my inside leg before using a fairly quick leg yield to push her out without losing the shoulders. Here is where we talked about leg use and keeping it longer when applying it since I have the old habit of lifting my heel and my leg then shrinks about 6". Ok maybe not THAT short, but its a bad habit among many others I need to break.
Here is a video of warm up...notice Tillie really starting to dig it by the end of the clip:
After the warm up we continued trotting but started asking for leg yields, but really quick lateral ones to promote getting her out of her comfort zone. Tillie was all business.
It felt really good and still amazes me how well she is progressing despite not riding at all during the week with our ring still frozen. After a bit of a break which had a lot less rude pulling and rooting then usual, C had me start back up said, "ok, now sit your trot"
Lol I made a face apparently because she laughed and said everyone makes that face!
Being fairly new to sitting a trot where my horse is actually going...it is not the most pleasant thing in the world. Ill admit, I feel as though I am riding it ok, until I watch the videos. The amount of discomfort that I am emulating is so apparent I was uncomfortable just watching it:
At this point, Emma started filming since my phone died. C prompted for me to canter (I love how we will be going along and rides as you go and gives us commands a few strides before she wants it). Sadly we missed capturing on video the first and most wonderful right lead canter transition. It took both Tillie and myself by surprise that C even laughed and said it was all over my face.
C had us move onto leg yielding in canter to get her more mobile and rideable in canter. At this point its been all about the basics of balancing her and keep her from diving on the forehand...so it felt really good to receive a command that required taking our canter to the next step - which as you can tell in this clip Tillie wasnt quite prepared for:
What I have loved about the sitting trot despite how uncomfortable it is, is how much it has helped me get a better feel in the canter. I can only describe it as me feeling more balanced and stuck in the saddle which allows me to use my seat to better help Tillie. The leg yields in the canter were quite fun! Tillie gained a bit of speed through them, but it didnt feel too bad with how soft she was.
So we moved on the left lead canter which is our harder and weaker lead. C guided me on how to use a better timed half halt to get her more balanced and using herself better without me grabbing and bracing on her.
It produced quite a nice canter and we were able to do some of the maneuvering from this lead as well. At the end C had us try some lengethings in the trot across our diagonals to promote testing the boundaries of balance which Tillie tends to err on the side of caution. You can see in the clips she gets a bit unsettled and really doesnt let go of her shoulder just yet in them...but C reassured me it would take some time for her to trust herself to just ride very straight, weight even and both elbows stay at my body.
The lots of homework part includes:
Taking Tillie big around the entire ring to test try to get her trusting lengthenings more
Sitting trot there is no head wag which means rising trot happens from tension on my arms
Bring my left shoulder back/straighter
MORE inside leg and MORE bend to get her out of the safety zone
Sitting trot practice rocking back more and letting my "crotch bounce"
Stretchy trot (which we did a few circles of here)
Poor Tillie was so tired after trying so hard she was ready to go to sleep:
