I was feeling a tad worried going into Fair Hill...I really only started digging in to prep about two and a half weeks out. I realized the week before, I had yet to ride my dressage test at all on Tillie let alone some of the movements...nor had I stadium jumped her.
Ummm unprepared much?
Attempting to prep for braiding all by myself!
But our jump prep felt great and our final dressage lesson the day before felt really good, relaxed and consistent even through the test.
I did it! Although not beautiful, I did not melt down
I got her all cleaned up and braided...which if any of you remember is a big deal for me lol. I am not a good braider and in the past would get about 3 braids in before losing it and calling someone for help. So was super proud I did it!
Tucked in and ready to go
Tillie the next morning was really offended I left her in all night...so lesson learned, we will try next time putting her in the smaller paddock with Kiss and hope she keeps her braids in. Because her angst lead to some major issues in our dressage test...like 44.5 points of issues to be exact.
Yea not great. Especially since our flatwork has greatly improved. You can see she just was persnickety and super tense....and it led to me getting flustered. The head flicking...well not ideal and I believe to know the cause and working towards fixing it:
I will say, I didnt feel horrible when I saw a few other riders in my open division with similar scores (I mean we were dead last, but at least we didnt canter out of the ring like that one time though). I had Ryan Wood, Jenny brannigan and similar quality riders in my division...OH and Icabod crane. You know Phillip Dutton's previous mount.
F- ME.
We could have used this relaxation in dressage
So new focus...dressage boot camp for a week (currently happening). I was feeling really frustrated and resolved to get this figured out because I KNOW we can do better and more than that we have to do better. I was however happier with her canter and trot lengthenings over previous tests...even if the score didnt reflect it.
But on to jumping!
Tillie warmed up amazingly well. Got all the distances, leads and was forward but would rebalance and jumping like a beast. I opted to go in early and felt ready. The course had a lot more combinations than I was expecting, which were a huge issue for us last season we competed. So I prayed our last jump lesson paid off and we would keep the rails up.
So jump one...we pull a rail. Not exactly how Id like to start...and left lead, not sure where that went?! But I will fess up to the first rail. I got too impatient and didnt keep her balanced...I dropped her before.
But all the hard stuff she nailed and was adjustable and responsive...through the second line however she felt pretty darn heavy. She did respond to be, but I had what felt like 25 lbs in both reins.
We pulled the last oxer's rail as well...as you can see in the video, she got low and I didnt hang out long enough in the turn to get her back so we basically came in low and hot.
But we survived and at this point still in the qualification for waredaca...so XC it is.
Out we went...I had the goal to get as close to time as possible knowing full well I tend to run her too slow.
She came out strong. Like way too strong. So I had to keep her in check more than i would have liked the first few fences.
You can see here her pulling my arms off down the hill...and i was thinking oh god if this is the whole course I might die. But knew after jump 4 we had a downhill to a good uphill stretch to let her have at it and get out that pent up energy.
It worked and rest of the jumps came nice and steady out of a good distance...without always adding!
So not exactly the first outing I had anticipated. BUT there was a lot to like despite the frustrating lows. At least coming out of this i know what we need work on. We at least got the qualification needed for waredaca so 3 more to go!
A few people recommended trying perfect prep or something before dressage...if anyone has suggestions on show day help for relaxation please let me know!
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.
Like all the other pros, Dom leaves every winter to go south and continue training. That means all winter without lessons which worked out for us since we took most of the winter off anyway. Last Saturday was our first lesson back with Dom since before he left and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't slightly nervous.
Tillie really helped me out by being caked in mud before the lesson
My fitness is not where it was at the end of the season. Tillie's fitness is not up to par either. We have just been back into work maybe a month. It is one of those things you want your trainer to be proud of you and be able to notice some improvement or change for the better after such a long time away right? Normally I am fine with things being a shit show because that is why my trainer is there: to fix it! But for whatever reason, I felt a bit apprehensive and worried we would be a disappointment.
She is so excited
I was pleasantly surprised at how Tillie felt. Dom gave us some pointers for warming up and said he liked what he was seeing. His goal for this warm up was to start installing soft buttons and be able to push Tillie around a little...bring the shoulders in then her haunches without it being a big deal.
Starting to be a bit more through in the bridle
Dom gave us this as homework since it worked well to keep Tillie waiting for me rather than try to take over herself. It also helped alleviate and unwanted weight or tension in the reins. The goal is to gently use leg and thigh to maneuver her and the reins simply supplement. The haunches in was asking for a bit more while shoulder fore was the relief part of the exercise and where the reins should feel lighter.
He also had us add in some counter flexion as well to really ensure the connection was confirmed and she could be pushed in and out of her "box" without too much resistance. He had us spiral in and out using the circle size to increase the difficulty.
After that he asked me what my goals were for this season and the question initially took me off guard. I honestly spent the last month getting on and enjoying my calm, quiet horse and having fun with her. I hadnt really thought much ahead to when our first show would be or even what we would be doing!
She is tracking up superbly well here! Ignore my poor position!
I answered that I hadnt thought too much about it but was hoping to really get confirmed at Training and figure out how to gallop and make time without the adjustability in the gallop /canter being such a huge issue for Tillie. Last season, any half halt once I let her out or gallop a bit would result in a meltdown or straight up zero response and her jaw locked so tight I feared we might never stop at times.
Miss fancy pants
So Dom laughed and said not to worry that starting out the season late April or even May is perfect for us since our season runs later into the fall. He said he would tell us what he thought after the lesson, but so far was much happier with her flat work. We both agreed her hock injections and time off really worked wonders for her and supplied us with a much more agreeable horse.
and quite the overachiever
Naturally, the next exercise he had us do was focused on adjustability in the canter. He set two ground poles 5 strides apart (Well what is a 5 stride 12ft canter). He said this is also homework for us so I can keep my "feel" and eye in check. It will also help me start developing that 12ft canter stride we will need when we compete again without it feeling so foreign.
I think we were both shocked at how well Tillie handled this exercise. Especially after we pushed for the 12ft stride then asked her to compress and go smaller. I even got a "I am impressed" from Dom when we were able to get 8 strides in there!
Workin that small canter
Dom also commented at this point he was happy with the saddle and how it helped my position, most particularly my lower leg. He said I wasnt nearly as defensive with it. Over fences, same thing. I am now able to stay up on landing and not getting so defensive on the landing side of fences.
So next Dom wanted to challenge Tillie and keep her thinking a bit with a trot pole to jump grid-like exercise.
I was really shocked at how well this made Tillie lift and use her own balance. Dom kept saying to not help her and let the poles do the work. Just stay patient with my body at the jump. We started with a low x then bumped it up to a vertical. Dom wanted to sharpen her front end so added a low vertical to the front and instructed me to do this on a few jumps when schooling at home. This would help prevent when we get deeper to a fence and Tillie dropping over her shoulder.
So we started doing it off the shorter right hand turn as well. Dom really pre-warned to ride the turn very tall and not to lean. He also kept repeating it was important to ensure I rode Tillie very straight through the exercise to make sure she was pushing off evenly.
Finally when she was going through to his satisfaction and stopping straight enough, he let us string the exercise together a bit asking us to think about our lead changes over the fences:
All in all it was a wonderfully education lesson for us both. I got some really great tools and homework and Tillie definitely got a tune up from it. Dom LOVED how she finished up and was excited to see my half halt releasing create a more soft reaction rather than a running reaction we used to get.
To my surprise Dom said he thought Prelim was a good goal to aim for late fall! I laughed and said maybe I would let him do it on her first...but I was happy hanging at Training and seeing where the season goes. If we get there to Prelim, cool. If not, maybe one day!
Work that booty!! Who'd thought trotting a 3ft fence would be so ok...and not die?!
I recently had a cross country lesson with Dom this past weekend. Overall, I walked away extremely excited but can't deny there were some hard moments that opened my eyes to how hard this sport can be. Dom reassured me that there cant be growth without pushing the limits and that I shouldn't stress about where we struggled and that the good news is, her reaction is very typical of a green horse at the level...I just need to put on my own big girl riding pants and learn how to help her better.
Like this happened...maybe the dap on horseback can be a new in thing?
Upper level riders certainly make riding through those tricky combinations so easy, but what we don't usually see, is all the training it took to get a horse to that point that they can skip through the questions so smoothly. So it was nice to have the reassurance of Dom telling me this is all par for the course and I will start getting better at reacting quicker the more we do them.
I realize I have been incredibly spoiled to not have ever had a stop or run out on this horse. So this lesson where we had not just one, but a few was mostly due to my lack of knowing how to ride it and just not reacting quickly enough. I thought for sure after the first one, it would throw me off a bit more...but I was so excited about the recent bit change that it didn't deter me one bit.
OMG an actual uphill canter
So onto the bit update: I was practicing galloping Tillie last week which resulted in some not so fun moments including Tillie bolting, getting her head low and bucking when I would try to half halt. It isn't the most warm and fuzzy feeling in the world, and this issue with her has been a recurring one.
It also has been nagging at me. With our move up to Training, going faster needs to be able to happen out on XC, without all the fighting. Its been something I have been talking to Dom about and other trainers, which resulted in the conversation about having her vetted in case it was a pain related issue.
Locking on!
After her vet evaluation, we know we would like to try injections, but it is so mild that it this isn't 100% physical and its the dreaded training issue. At least that's good-ish news right?!
So Dom schooled Tillie for me a few weeks back and had some discussions with Tillie about the half halt. It means NOW, not in five strides and not lean more on my hands...when I say balance or rate yourself it means do it now.
So we can avoid jumps like this
After our galloping incident, I had a horsey friend suggest trying a different bit. Not necessarily a harsher one, but one that applies pressure differently than the Pelham since the Pelham tends to promote lower the head when that's the last thing we need.
Most horses raise their heads when they get hot...mine likes to get down. So after some research and asking around, the gag bit was what came up. I did even more research and looked up some videos of Clayton Fredericks using one with his 4* mare Be My Guest. Low and behold the mare tends to gallop a bit like Tillie tries to and this bit allows him to let her gallop like her natural way of going and set her up before fences without needing to fight with her the whole time.
I read a bit more about it here: http://www.horsenation.com/2012/06/07/a-bit-of-advice-gag-bits/
Yea, no more of this....taken this time last year
Dom was kind enough to let me borrow his (which my inner fan girl almost died when he said it was the one he used on Boly - the horse he just got 6th on in the FHI 2*) and left it with me to play with for a few days leading up to our XC lesson.
Right away, as soon as I took a spin around the track and windurra, I knew it was exactly what we needed. Tillie didn't lean on it at all...and when she would try to test it, all she could do was slightly root, but would quickly come back up when she caught herself in the mouth.
I was able to let her gallop and bring her back...for the first time I felt comfortable keeping my leg on.
All smiles even when going really fast
Dom was quite excited about the change too and was pretty impressed with how quickly I could get her back again.
So now onto the actual XC lesson!!!
Dom had us warm up first in the field inside the track. It was a blistery cold, wet and windy day so we knew it would be a good test for the new bit...also since Tillie had a light two days prior (one day off, one day of 20 ish minutes stretching).
He reminded me to use my turns to get good lines to the jumps, look sooner at my jumps and to not mess with our canter....find a rhythm and stay there. So he had us do a figure 8 exercise to sort of establish where we needed to be.
Once we warmed up, we put a few of the jumps together...Tillie just got a bit funny to the one table resulting in my losing one rein, but we got it together to keep going:
And youll see we had our first run out at the skinny...and let me tell you, it surprised me how large it was as I approached it, so wasn't all that surprised Tillie wasn't sure. Especially since we haven't xc schooled in quite a while.
So we circled back to school the Skinny:
Not the prettiest, but we made it happen.
So next we moved on to a ditch and skinny log...which apparently Tillie doesn't care about ditches anymore and just runs through them:
This run out was totally my error...I was too busy chuckling about the ditch to properly present this skinny, also with brush and quite large. Dom gave me a bit of a talkin to on this one saying I needed to sit down in my tack, widen my hands and not allow her a way out.
So we do it again with some flair:
Clearly it still makes her a bit anxious so her response is to speed up. Dom explained that this is a normal thing and her being green to them and having this reaction is pretty standard so we need to keep skinnies in the forefront of our training. Build some small ones at home in the ring - especially with brush and just do them every so often to keep them fresh.
Next we schooled the corner which I did better and keeping her in front of me even with her anxiety with it:
The next portion of the lesson was definitely the hardest xc combo we both have ever seen...and it certainly gave us some trouble, but it was quite the learning experience for us.
First attempt could have gone better if I was more prepared and didn't lean at my jump:
Second attempt I had to really ride and be scrappy to get her through it...which she basically crawled over the second jump - but we got it done and Dom said that it was the kind of ride that needed to happen:
So he had us come through in reverse and I apparently forgot how to ride all together:
But after a good butt kicking from Dom we went through the whole thing one final time, nicely and in a good place:
WHEW! Shockingly I wasn't super nervous about doing these...even after the trouble we had. But looking back at the videos I cant help but think mayyybe I just turned my brain off because I HATE down hill anything and these are awfully steep downhill!
We moved on next to another line of jumps to a skinny combo around to a half coffin to which Dom basically warned me about the run out and told me to not allow it to happen:
We didn't have a run out!!! woo!! But we didn't quite get the right half halt to the second jump so Dom had us do it again:
Basically, I had the right idea, but I rated my canter a bit too much and needed to keep my leg on and find a more even distance there.
Finally we moved on to the water complex:
Apparently Tillie ignores down banks too! Luckily it didn't phase her from remaining being locked onto the jump in the water but Dom sent us out to try again:
Which resulted in her taking a funny leap into the water again...lol so one more time:
We ended after this with Dom saying he is quite pleased with the progression...I expressed some of my own ability frustrations as well as my excitement for the rideability I now have in the gag.
Dom lectured a bit, saying its all learning and there wont always be pretty moments...but as long as we both learn from them is what counts. So here's to progress! Even when it isn't linear!
That title sounds like something really bad happened...dont worry it wasnt THAT bad. I have been incredibly fortunate that Tillie and I have been really cookin and on a good streak for quite a while. This is by far the longest consecutive number of GOOD rides I have ever had with her so for that I am grateful.
Arrived at Windurra!
This lead in makes it sound like yesterdays ride was really bad...lol no it really wasnt! But comparing to our really really GOOD rides lately, it just didnt feel good. Ill elaborate more in a minute.
First off though, Windurra is really as beautiful and awesome as people say. It wasnt too bad of a drive, and pulling in I was excited to see many inviting jumps for all levels (not just giant upper level stuff). This makes sense since young horses have to start somewhere too right?
Alllll the jumps
I mentally noted this is definitely a place I want to come school more often because it has EVERYTHING including coffins and other combinations that will eliminate the guessing game of it Tillie is ok with things like that before we come across them in a show. Dom met us there and told us to meet him in the jump ring first to start. I will preface to say, we ran out of time to actually XC school which was disappointing, but we really worked on some coursework that was beneficial and needed.
Dom had told me last week to bring my pelham...but I did manage to ride her in the snaffle which I think was partially why things didnt feel as good.
kind of an odd shot, but you can see a bit more of the ring!
Tillie was fine hacking to the ring shockingly, but in the picture above you can see the entrance way to the ring is flanked by two sheds. Tillie did NOT like this one bit and spooked backwards a bit. Luckily my barn mate was there with her horse and he led us in. Tillie wasnt so sure about that area even warming up but did eventually get over it to some degree.
She was a bit jazzed and coiled and Dom commented that despite this, he could see why we do so well on the flat because she has really nice movement even when tense. So while thats nice to hear, It really isnt a pleasant feeling when she gets like this. While I know her well enough now that she isnt going to full blow up or be stupid, she just doesnt relax and braces and it just isnt comfortable for me riding, but also I do have to work harder lol. Nothing wrong with that, it just isnt pleasant. Dom said when he has a horse like that he does so many transitions...and within the gait transitions to help soften them. It helped slightly...but we didnt have a ton of time so we didnt really scratch the surface on that.
Totally loving my trailer!!!
Dom had us start by warming up over some cavaletti sprinkled throughout the ring and work on getting deep to them. He sent us through the curved bounce exercise similar to one of our recent lessons with him which he loved for Tillie to get her to back off.
Here is a video of after warm up, putting that exercise to use:
Couple things...you can see i get pitched forward on the oxer so finishing with the two stride was a bit hairy. Not to mention that 2 stride was LONG and set for higher heights and competition striding lol but we got it done. Dom complemented me and said he noticed I was doing much better staying tall and waiting for the fences, but the pitching forward is my not staying in my two point long enough and sitting up too soon. Which when she gets strong is a bad habit I do because I get defensive.
Dom was really positive despite me not feeling 100% and said he could see improvement in us, and this was GREAT practice because it sort of emulated what I have when being at a show. Granted the last few Tillie hasnt been like this (i think largely because if the pelham)...but regardless I need to learn to work through it especially with my goals of moving up. He said the bigger jumps will only get her more jazzed up so homework is to take her places often like this to get her to relax like she has been lately.
I never asked Dom to switch to the pelham and he never offered it, which on one hand is good because she was still rideable in the snaffle, it was just really hard and she can lean on it, which youll see in the later videos shes low and flat again because I cant get her off it.
Here is our first attempt at the course before he put them up:
Once again, lots to like and lots to go hmmm lol. How about the flying lead change around the jumps?! Then she had a very enthusiastic change after the 5-6 stride line.
She was really tough to get that left lead especially over that first vertical. I would have liked to work on that more, but Dom I think knew it was just her not getting off her right shoulder which wasnt going to change in that snaffle.
What I LIKED about this round was I put in a nice 6 in that outside line...I could have gone for the 5 which we did get when the jumps went up, but it was nice I still had adjustability in the snaffle. The final line was tough because I struggled getting her right to the first fence which Dom said think of riding it more like an oxer so you land long so that your horse doesnt have to reach sooo much for the next jump.
He had us come around and try again:
Not a whole lot better, but when they went up in height it did and we whoad right after it on the straightaway which Dom LOVED and suggested when we jump even when she isnt strong throw that in every 5-10 jumps so she starts anticipating that.
Tillie was huffing and puffing after our last round so Dom called it and said to come back the folling week just to xc school :) So hopefully we can then.
We did take a hack around afterwards, I did go down a bank at the walk because you all know my fears of those lol and we walked through the water.
I realize yesterdays ride and the bracing and just overall her being strong is a bit of a chicken or the egg syndrome. I know I can cause a lot of it when I start trying to hold her or micromanage she gets claustrophobic and it exacerbates her behavior. So im not sure really WHY I still do it...lol.
At last my mare is totally game and saves my butt
Im hoping it was a bit of that yesterday and I need to chill the fuck out and go back to less is more...find that balance of the accurate ride without being too much in Tillie's way. I do also think without that pelham I cant always get her to lay off the bit. She KNOWS the difference and its evident.
I talked to Dom a bit afterwards and he said not to fret, its a huge open ring and with a horse like her, quite normal. We talked about our upcoming novice events and he thought it sounded really solid and agreed that IF she was quiet and just as awesome at those as she was for our first one then he would talk to us about a move up (ehhhhh idk!?)...but as we all know horses training isnt linear and yesterdays ride is a prime example of what I dont want to happen if we move up before we are ready.
He reassured me that if that lesson was as strong as shes been in a while its promising and he is confident to give us that push if we can get that just a hair more refined, But he also said he agreed and didnt want us to move up if she would possibly get really excited about the bigger fences. I wholeheartedly agreed and stressed to him I dont want that to happen and go back to fighting her...things have been feeling soooo good.
He laughed at me and promised we will keep it that way and we have a solid plan ahead with options and thats a great place to be. While I didnt feel great about that ride, it did feel good to have an instructor talking to me about it and instill confidence in the work we are doing.
So fingers crossed for this weekend!!! And heres to hoping that this was just the kick in the butt ride we needed and NOT something starting to develop lol. Lets hang on to that good streak eh!?
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:
