Riding notes
Jun. 14th, 2006 12:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dancinghorseWaving to all the inmates of the various Comments. (And waiting with bated breath for the Big News from ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
lynnesite.)
Been ramping up the riding so I'm ready for Dallas. That's getting pretty real: the ride slots are full, some of the association board are headed for Vienna next week and are taking schedule and notes on horses and riders to give the clinician, and we're lining up final details of various sorts. (Note to self: Send out interview questions for newsletter article.)
Next week I have to shoehorn in a lesson on keed--Teacher is absconding to Hawaii until shortly before the clinic, so it's then or never. He's the only horse I know who has as little barrel as the lovely but lightly framed Lipp I'll be borrowing for the clinic. (Other option is a young mare built low and round--more what I'm used to.) I'm trying to get a book done, work on freelancing, ride, keep an eye on da Pooklet, and a lot of other things, too. Also, have to find time to get new door handle installed on car. It broke off in my hand on Monday. I went online, found one, got it yesterday (!), but I have no idea how to install it. It's kind of important. It's the driver's-side door, and climbing in through the passenger side is a contortionist's nightmare, what with bucket seats and stick shift. (Duh. Yes. Could just lean across, open door, go around, get in. But still. Need a door handle. It's hosed the window, as well, which makes things like the drive-up ATM a challenge.)
Next weekend da Pooklet and his mom are moving to DHF. I have to babyproof the place (a fairly simple matter of replacing a tape gate and a broken fence panel). I'd better do that this weekend.
Anyway. Riding. I've decided for now to concentrate on seatbones and finding the spine. It seems to be key to everything else, and besides, it's fun. Also, minimal work for the horse, which is not a bad idea when it's pushing 100 degrees F. Capria really likes the concept. Pandora is a little more reserved about it as it means she has to go straight instead of chronically crooked. She also has to be more supple through the body--a gradual process for a horse of her age and size. I've been pleased that I can get her to a beginning of right bend and even counterbend just by squishing her hip over with a seatbone. And, the steering issue is less acute. Particular note paid to: Elbows. Stillness of midsection. Spine exactly between seatbones (she likes to push against the right one while maintaining her left-banana-tude).
Her canter on the longe is getting Really Nice. She's also getting more responsive; showed me her heels when I asked a bit strongly (but lightly in terms of earlier work) for a canter. I turned the volume down, she settled down, on she went.
Capria gave me the best schooling ride EVAH on Monday. Seatbones were plugged in. Tailbone sliding down nicely. Elbows bent. Canter actually balanced instead of flailing all over, and starting to get some roundness over the topline. With transition to quiet and balanced trot instead of Perpetual-Motion Machine. She's always been so hard for me to ride, and is getting very smooth and as easy as a sensitive Lipp can get. We are both pleased.
Camilla has had her innings, too. Rode her yesterday for the first time outside of a lesson. It wasn't much, was getting dark, but the drunken stagger was almost steady and she was Concentrating. Very. Hard. Her ears were horizontal. She was very very good, and while a bit dubious (it bothers her that this isn't as easy as it looks when the others do it--she watches them intently when I ride them), she's trying her best to make it work. If I keep working on my seat and balance and the overall precision of the aids, she'll get better and better, and someday fairly soon, she'll be a Real Horse instead of a Pea-Greenie.
And in a true concession to the cause, I've been getting up ohgodearly and riding or longeing da Pook--usually I work horses in the evenings, but with only 90 minutes of usable light between the heat of the day and dark, and having to clear the arena of Girlz which takes at least 20 minutes (if I'm riding one of them, I just leave the rest out and use them as an obstacle course/practice for warmup arena at shows--very good practice when Tia comes caroming through), evening rides aren't practicable. Mornings before breakfast are possible: he's in the arena all night, he's bored and ready to play, and he can eat a bit of breakfast while I tack him up.
This morning when I brought out the saddle, instead of his usual position on guard by the mares' stalls, I found him at the gate, impatient to get to work. I think he's about ready to dispense with the free longe before starting; he just moseys around now, though it is a good diagnostic of his mood and hormone levels.
Yes, I will get piccies of his boots. Patience, grasshoppers.
We worked this morning on the usual. I was having a Seat-Free Day(tm)--lost all my nice plugged-in feeling from the past few days--so we had to deal with that. Chiefly it was tension through the hips and lower back, resulting in disconnection from his back. Worked on lots of wiggly bits, relaxing the midsection without getting sloppy, and keeping the rest of the aids where they belonged. When I had his back, more or less, and could steer again without veering off into the rail, I asked for trot and got A Whole Lot of Bad Words. He was shaking his head from side to side and swearing. But his back didn't feel as if it had any bucks in it, so I just kept everything where it was and asked him to keep trotting on--instead of leaping off and telling him to get his bucks out without me.
I think he was swearing at himself. He does lock in the base of the neck on his own, and if he's getting more used to being soft and through, that would bother him. As long as I kept him moving and didn't tighten up or mess with the reins, he had a chance to work it out for himself. And he did. We ended up with some nice, long, fairly coherent trots in good rhythm without sudden stops or, after a few minutes, any more Bad Words. Still need to deal with the left-banana neck-pop at transition from trot to walk. That's next time. His halt, even with that, was square.
Funny how I want to ride so much more, now I have my Pooka back to work. Nothing wrong with the Ladies, they're wonderful and amazing and I love riding them, but da Pook is kind of the one it all revolves around. Capria and Pandora are my teachers, Camilla is my Karmic Challenge. Pook is my dressage partner. Everything fits when I ride him--even when we're dealing with cussing or crookeds or my body-stupids. It's all good, and it all has something to teach me.
lynnesite.)Been ramping up the riding so I'm ready for Dallas. That's getting pretty real: the ride slots are full, some of the association board are headed for Vienna next week and are taking schedule and notes on horses and riders to give the clinician, and we're lining up final details of various sorts. (Note to self: Send out interview questions for newsletter article.)
Next week I have to shoehorn in a lesson on keed--Teacher is absconding to Hawaii until shortly before the clinic, so it's then or never. He's the only horse I know who has as little barrel as the lovely but lightly framed Lipp I'll be borrowing for the clinic. (Other option is a young mare built low and round--more what I'm used to.) I'm trying to get a book done, work on freelancing, ride, keep an eye on da Pooklet, and a lot of other things, too. Also, have to find time to get new door handle installed on car. It broke off in my hand on Monday. I went online, found one, got it yesterday (!), but I have no idea how to install it. It's kind of important. It's the driver's-side door, and climbing in through the passenger side is a contortionist's nightmare, what with bucket seats and stick shift. (Duh. Yes. Could just lean across, open door, go around, get in. But still. Need a door handle. It's hosed the window, as well, which makes things like the drive-up ATM a challenge.)
Next weekend da Pooklet and his mom are moving to DHF. I have to babyproof the place (a fairly simple matter of replacing a tape gate and a broken fence panel). I'd better do that this weekend.
Anyway. Riding. I've decided for now to concentrate on seatbones and finding the spine. It seems to be key to everything else, and besides, it's fun. Also, minimal work for the horse, which is not a bad idea when it's pushing 100 degrees F. Capria really likes the concept. Pandora is a little more reserved about it as it means she has to go straight instead of chronically crooked. She also has to be more supple through the body--a gradual process for a horse of her age and size. I've been pleased that I can get her to a beginning of right bend and even counterbend just by squishing her hip over with a seatbone. And, the steering issue is less acute. Particular note paid to: Elbows. Stillness of midsection. Spine exactly between seatbones (she likes to push against the right one while maintaining her left-banana-tude).
Her canter on the longe is getting Really Nice. She's also getting more responsive; showed me her heels when I asked a bit strongly (but lightly in terms of earlier work) for a canter. I turned the volume down, she settled down, on she went.
Capria gave me the best schooling ride EVAH on Monday. Seatbones were plugged in. Tailbone sliding down nicely. Elbows bent. Canter actually balanced instead of flailing all over, and starting to get some roundness over the topline. With transition to quiet and balanced trot instead of Perpetual-Motion Machine. She's always been so hard for me to ride, and is getting very smooth and as easy as a sensitive Lipp can get. We are both pleased.
Camilla has had her innings, too. Rode her yesterday for the first time outside of a lesson. It wasn't much, was getting dark, but the drunken stagger was almost steady and she was Concentrating. Very. Hard. Her ears were horizontal. She was very very good, and while a bit dubious (it bothers her that this isn't as easy as it looks when the others do it--she watches them intently when I ride them), she's trying her best to make it work. If I keep working on my seat and balance and the overall precision of the aids, she'll get better and better, and someday fairly soon, she'll be a Real Horse instead of a Pea-Greenie.
And in a true concession to the cause, I've been getting up ohgodearly and riding or longeing da Pook--usually I work horses in the evenings, but with only 90 minutes of usable light between the heat of the day and dark, and having to clear the arena of Girlz which takes at least 20 minutes (if I'm riding one of them, I just leave the rest out and use them as an obstacle course/practice for warmup arena at shows--very good practice when Tia comes caroming through), evening rides aren't practicable. Mornings before breakfast are possible: he's in the arena all night, he's bored and ready to play, and he can eat a bit of breakfast while I tack him up.
This morning when I brought out the saddle, instead of his usual position on guard by the mares' stalls, I found him at the gate, impatient to get to work. I think he's about ready to dispense with the free longe before starting; he just moseys around now, though it is a good diagnostic of his mood and hormone levels.
Yes, I will get piccies of his boots. Patience, grasshoppers.
We worked this morning on the usual. I was having a Seat-Free Day(tm)--lost all my nice plugged-in feeling from the past few days--so we had to deal with that. Chiefly it was tension through the hips and lower back, resulting in disconnection from his back. Worked on lots of wiggly bits, relaxing the midsection without getting sloppy, and keeping the rest of the aids where they belonged. When I had his back, more or less, and could steer again without veering off into the rail, I asked for trot and got A Whole Lot of Bad Words. He was shaking his head from side to side and swearing. But his back didn't feel as if it had any bucks in it, so I just kept everything where it was and asked him to keep trotting on--instead of leaping off and telling him to get his bucks out without me.
I think he was swearing at himself. He does lock in the base of the neck on his own, and if he's getting more used to being soft and through, that would bother him. As long as I kept him moving and didn't tighten up or mess with the reins, he had a chance to work it out for himself. And he did. We ended up with some nice, long, fairly coherent trots in good rhythm without sudden stops or, after a few minutes, any more Bad Words. Still need to deal with the left-banana neck-pop at transition from trot to walk. That's next time. His halt, even with that, was square.
Funny how I want to ride so much more, now I have my Pooka back to work. Nothing wrong with the Ladies, they're wonderful and amazing and I love riding them, but da Pook is kind of the one it all revolves around. Capria and Pandora are my teachers, Camilla is my Karmic Challenge. Pook is my dressage partner. Everything fits when I ride him--even when we're dealing with cussing or crookeds or my body-stupids. It's all good, and it all has something to teach me.
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no subject
Date: 2006-06-14 08:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-14 08:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-15 05:13 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-15 10:13 am (UTC)Try a left-hand drive in Britain for things like Bridge tolls...
I love your reports and hope there will be plenty of pics and video from your clinic.
The two white ladies in Crumble's field are lovelier than ever. They'd adopt me in a heartbeat. And I then, now that they've stopped being nasty to him.
Heh...
Date: 2006-06-21 11:22 pm (UTC)