Now THAT’S my horse! June 23, 2008
Posted by kimayars Arena Work (Horse)
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I had an AWESOME ride on Tigger today. I think I’m finally getting the hang of working with him…
I started off by grooming him slowly and deliberately. I’m noticing that he really enjoys grooming when you use the curry and brush with long methodical strokes. Normally he’s alert and fidgety when we’re getting ready to go. Today he took a nap.
I lunged him without incident. He went well both ways. Even with the canter transition he was more relaxed. I’ve been giving him time to get into the canter (he still has to kind of run into it on the lunge line because I still don’t have him balanced).
Then came the mounting. This is where we have been having our problems with his tendancy to bolt. We narrowed the problem down to soreness in his back and have switched saddles, seen a chiropractor, and gotten a few massages. And you know what? Today was no big deal. He stood still like a statue while I got on. The best part was no one was holding him. It was bliss.
It continued to go well as my lesson started. We simply focused on bending and having a conversation with him about where he needs to be. I also got a reality check on how crooked I am. Going to the left Tigs and I had a good connection. I even sat the trot for a while, which I don’t do very often (probably because I suck at it). Eventually we had “moments of brilliance” where we had self-carraige. That truly is an amazing feeling.
Then we went to the right. Total train wreck.
Now, there is a very good reason why it was a train wreck. Well, actually two really good reasons: I collapse right and he’s stiff to the right. Couple that with the fact that it’s REALLY hard for me to ride with independent hands and it’s just really hard to put things together. Eventually I was able to at least get some of my body positioning sorted. It’s so cool, because when I get organized in the saddle there’s an immediate relaxation in Tigs. He’s the perfect barometer.
We finished the day with a little massage behind the poll (he’s been a little sore there) and some treats. He was an angel. It was a good day.
Comments
Way to go Kim. My mare is also the perfect barometer. The left side is hard for us. Self-carriage is truly a wonderful feeling. Sort of like a soft trampoline bounce. You don’t suck at the sitting trot–that comes with balance and self-carriage in the horse. You are going through everything I went through when starting dressage 5 years ago–novice horse, novice rider. Sad thing is, as you move through the levels and ask more questions for you and the horse to answer, you feel like novice horse, novice rider all over again!!!lol Dressage takes time, more time and still more time. Keep up the good work