off for a week. Stuff happened, including a foal death and lots of thunder too. So I went in this morning to ride. I could tell we'd both been off a week. It wasn't bad. Still trying to be very deliberate and plodding, while maybe asking for just a touch of lengthening occasionally? I've been reading Riding Through by Debbie McDonald and so had her ideas in mind too. I spent a lot of time at walk, transitioning from walk to shoulder fore to circle to stretch to walk to stop to walk etc. Then some of the same at trot. I'm still thinking her rear end isn't reaching across but just trailing behind in the lateral work at trot . . . but I don't know that. At trot I worked several times (not just at the end of the ride) to get her to stretch (this mostly came out of Debbie's book, the ideas for it -- shoulder fore to get her on the bit then ask for the stretch after she's securely on the bit) -- which she did some. Still some problems with the canter, particularly left lead. Today I think she cross-cantered that lead once. Dianne pulled in right as she was doing it and I asked her if she was bucking or cross-cantering because it felt downright weird. Very up and down like bucking and yet different. Except if she has an issue with the hind end, why would she do the correct lead behind and wrong up front? Am I so unbalanced asking for this? What is going on? So I asked Dianne, not really joking, can I please ride your horse one day, just so I can feel a different horse. Friesians are so . . . Friesian. They are not straightforward to ride. At all. There is not a more beautiful horse in the world than Rolinette but she's interesting. So anyway, I did several canter transitions in each direction, interspersed with more walk work. She felt very strong in the canter but not relaxed. Sigh.
Coming up on a horse show. I'll try T2 again I'm sure. I would hope to score a 60 but who the heck knows. Remember those coefficients. Ride accurately. Do our best. See what happens.
2 comments:
I was very used to horse canter, and now I ride a wee diddy pony...the canter is short and choppy. her little legs.......
going wrong leads front or back is vey unseating and difficult to work out from on the horse, it helps to have somebody who understands watching, or tape yourself and watch it later. its a balance, strength and sometimes an education thing...that the horse does not understand what its meant to do with its legs. time and patience.
Rolinette is a 1st premium Friesian mare (I think that is the correct "thing") who is retired from being a brood mare (after who knows how many foals), 21, and basically green. So she's an interesting ride. I think because she isn't young, it is easy to forget that she is green, to expect more of her than she knows. I think the walking her up and down the hills will end up improving her ability to do what we're asking more than anything else. But this week I'll be riding that test's movements mostly!
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