Casey76
Well-Known Member
I know all I seem to do is whinge these days, so I've got a happy thread for a change 
I had a lesson on Saturday (I've had my instructor for about 10 years and she knows all about T, so I wasn't worried about being pushed too hard).
Step one was I lengthened my stirrups a hole (2 days later my hips still aren't talking to me!). I love my saddle, but it's a fairly forward cut event saddle, and consequently not ideal for doing dressage in... but it is very comfy (and it is very difficult to get a "modern" dressage saddle when you are a short@rse with very short thighs).
First of all Tartines walk feels amazing. On a long rein she has a really long forward stride, when you pick up the contact you can feel everything just come together, compress and really feel her hind legs step up and under.
We spent some time making sure that we had correct mobilization of both the front and hind quarters and that she was stepping through correctly, not weighting one 1/4 of her body more than the others. So that meant lots of circles, voltes, serpentines and figures of 8. Moving on to shoulder in and counter SI on a 15m circle before going off in SI or counter SI along the 3/4 line so not to lean on the fence.
The right rein has always been easier than the left, but now it feels positively amazing... very light in the hand, only a suggestion needed: getting very close to the holy grail of self carriage!
We moved up into trot and dropped the complexity of the exercise. Some nice 20m circles with true and counter bend, then spirals in and out. Trotting with my newly elongated stirrups was rather interesting, had to resist going onto my toes in the rise, and to remember to only rise as much as the trot allowed rather than overdoing it. Also remembered to stop looking at T's poll and to look UP and OUT, taking my shoulders with my nose. I felt a little stiff at first, but managed to relax after a little while - that is going to be a big habit to break though, so am prepared for a million reminders in the future!
Ended the lesson with a quick canter check... After 3 failed transitions where I nearly ended up on the floor, I gave in and put my stirrups back up a hole lol. OMG a true canter, with a really big step up into the gait. No hollowing. No speeding up and remaining soft and round even when on a long rein. Canter/trot/canter transitions on a whisper of an aid. Canter to trot without hollowing and speeding up! We only did about 3 very big circles on each rein to check the gait before coming back to walk and doing some walk/halt/rein back/walk exercises.
An immensely satisfying 30 mins, spent in the beautiful sunshine. It makes me hopeful that we may have some sort of dressaging ahead of us, despite the ongoing muscle issues.
Sorry for the over use of "amazing" but T really, really was. Love my pony for trying so hard <3
I had a lesson on Saturday (I've had my instructor for about 10 years and she knows all about T, so I wasn't worried about being pushed too hard).
Step one was I lengthened my stirrups a hole (2 days later my hips still aren't talking to me!). I love my saddle, but it's a fairly forward cut event saddle, and consequently not ideal for doing dressage in... but it is very comfy (and it is very difficult to get a "modern" dressage saddle when you are a short@rse with very short thighs).
First of all Tartines walk feels amazing. On a long rein she has a really long forward stride, when you pick up the contact you can feel everything just come together, compress and really feel her hind legs step up and under.
We spent some time making sure that we had correct mobilization of both the front and hind quarters and that she was stepping through correctly, not weighting one 1/4 of her body more than the others. So that meant lots of circles, voltes, serpentines and figures of 8. Moving on to shoulder in and counter SI on a 15m circle before going off in SI or counter SI along the 3/4 line so not to lean on the fence.
The right rein has always been easier than the left, but now it feels positively amazing... very light in the hand, only a suggestion needed: getting very close to the holy grail of self carriage!
We moved up into trot and dropped the complexity of the exercise. Some nice 20m circles with true and counter bend, then spirals in and out. Trotting with my newly elongated stirrups was rather interesting, had to resist going onto my toes in the rise, and to remember to only rise as much as the trot allowed rather than overdoing it. Also remembered to stop looking at T's poll and to look UP and OUT, taking my shoulders with my nose. I felt a little stiff at first, but managed to relax after a little while - that is going to be a big habit to break though, so am prepared for a million reminders in the future!
Ended the lesson with a quick canter check... After 3 failed transitions where I nearly ended up on the floor, I gave in and put my stirrups back up a hole lol. OMG a true canter, with a really big step up into the gait. No hollowing. No speeding up and remaining soft and round even when on a long rein. Canter/trot/canter transitions on a whisper of an aid. Canter to trot without hollowing and speeding up! We only did about 3 very big circles on each rein to check the gait before coming back to walk and doing some walk/halt/rein back/walk exercises.
An immensely satisfying 30 mins, spent in the beautiful sunshine. It makes me hopeful that we may have some sort of dressaging ahead of us, despite the ongoing muscle issues.
Sorry for the over use of "amazing" but T really, really was. Love my pony for trying so hard <3
