Baydale
Well-Known Member
Just in case you missed Kerilli's post about useful stuff to take from this day at Weston Lawns, here's my version:
First session with Kenneth Clawson (KC, or should that be JC as he can do miracles
): HumungaHorse needs no excuse to get over-excited and so the cold weather, spooky fences and other horses cheered him up no end. There was much squeaking, bucking, random leg-changing - sometimes successfully and sometimes not - throughout the session. KC asked us all to think of things we were going to concentrate on as we jumped, mine were my arms, lower leg and upper body, so pretty much any part of my body that acts randomly in the wrong way
(I'm thinking of patenting a remote controlled event rider, as surely that would solve my problems?
) After the first round which was a bit of a yee-ha, my heart stopped pounding and the pair of us settled into a half decent rhythm. HH tried to ruin it by going disunited 3 strides before a double, but I didn't panic (yay, some progress!),softened my arms and kicked him off a longer one and he left it up - that would never have happened last year. The next time I used my upper body and my brain (psychic messages are the new aid for this season, sweetie
) and got a much better spot. So, all good in HumungaHorse Land, much improvement and a rider that's starting to replace the "uh-oh" feeling with a "yes we can" feeling.
Second session with Tracie Robinson: Hector is, I feel, having a mid-life crisis. He's 10 this time and I've spent a lot of time in a state of angst about whether I'm trying to push a square peg in a round hole (that was my Saying of the Day, apologies to K and TS if they're reading this
) So, I've hunted him a bit over the winter, which he loved, in the hope that he'll be all I think he can be this coming season. So now I've got Hector the Hunter, and polite dressage Hector has gone. Rude Hector, in a very subtle way, spent 40mins sticking two fingers up at me and my pathetic attempts to make him "do dressage".
We did lots of stretching, changing flexion, and trying to get him to soften through his rib cage and let go, then cantering a 20m circle in counter canter and flexing strongly either way until he'd take the rein down. Tracie has the patience of a saint, but then she wasn't the one getting hotter and hotter and more frustrated (I'm talking about me, not H - he was cool as a cucumber and could have done another 40min session of the same I reckon!) We did get some ok-ish work eventually, but I've got lots more to do at home before it's established. Oh well, it'll save me buying an exercise bike.
Quick change of tack and on to jumping with KC: I didn't overdo the warm-up as there was only 20mins between H's sessions, but once we started jumping I wished I'd done more; H was all over the place, not concentrating, firing into fences, falling out, falling over nearly at one where he was busy looking at something else. I was a bit embarrassed but thankfully KC decided to take the mickey out of me for being old so that took my mind off H being an a**e.
There's not much more I can say about it really, as H was tight and not showing himself off particularly well. One suggestion from KC to do a related distance on 7 instead of 8 resulted in a launch to the oxer - almost a hailing a cab moment - but he did admit that that hadn't worked so I'd to go back to doing it on 8, which saved me from any more cringe-worthy incidents.
Another quick change, ably assisted by K and TS, who stopped me hurling something heavy at H when he was behaving like at lovesick teenager with HH back at the lorry
, and onto HH for dressage. I swear he was yawning as we rode over to the arena but, after apologies to TR for KC making us late, we managed to get away with just 20mins of showing her just how rubbery and loose-moving HH can be. The Shetland in the field next to arena tried to scare him a couple of times with its antics and strange noises, but he was pretty good. As with everything to do with HH, Tracie said once he's stronger and more mature it will be lovely, so I'm happy that we're on the right track and am more inclined to go and have a look at the 09 tests to see what we need to be doing now I know that.
So, big thanks to Kerilli and TarrSteps for their help, advice and for stopping me throttling Hector (I think
), and if you're driving through Lincolnshire in the next few weeks and see a huge cloud of steam, that'll be Hector and I having a "conversation" - as Tracie so sweetly put it - about dressage.
It must be time for wine and kettle chips if you've made it this far - enjoy!
First session with Kenneth Clawson (KC, or should that be JC as he can do miracles
Second session with Tracie Robinson: Hector is, I feel, having a mid-life crisis. He's 10 this time and I've spent a lot of time in a state of angst about whether I'm trying to push a square peg in a round hole (that was my Saying of the Day, apologies to K and TS if they're reading this
Quick change of tack and on to jumping with KC: I didn't overdo the warm-up as there was only 20mins between H's sessions, but once we started jumping I wished I'd done more; H was all over the place, not concentrating, firing into fences, falling out, falling over nearly at one where he was busy looking at something else. I was a bit embarrassed but thankfully KC decided to take the mickey out of me for being old so that took my mind off H being an a**e.
Another quick change, ably assisted by K and TS, who stopped me hurling something heavy at H when he was behaving like at lovesick teenager with HH back at the lorry
So, big thanks to Kerilli and TarrSteps for their help, advice and for stopping me throttling Hector (I think
It must be time for wine and kettle chips if you've made it this far - enjoy!
