Rain rain rain rain
As if it wasn't wet enough already. Still, the good news is that the event that I would have done this weekend if I hadn't had to go to a family wedding that I don't remotely want to go to has been cancelled. I'm sorry for all the other competitors, but it's made my own weekend much more of an interesting prospect.
Surprise, since it was chucking it down, I rode the two boys indoors today. I am increasingly aware how tight a space it is for them to work in. I think that working in that tight space too young is probably quite a large part of the reason that Tetley's hocks gave him trouble. Even if they cope physically, I'm now concerned at cramping their huge paces by doing too much in there.
So, a request for all you commenters and lurkers - please make suggestions as to what I can do in a space 12 yards by 30 yards all the coming winter without trotting or cantering circles, serpentines or circuits. I'm looking for variety for them and me, and for exercises that will improve the paces when we do get out into a bigger space.
Bearing the lack of space in mind, I took Jazz indoors, and I gave him a consistent contact to work to. He has surprised and pleased me how settled he now is in his head (in comparison to a few weeks ago, though he does still attempt to flick his mouth forwards every few seconds) and how wonderfully he moved in both walk and trot. After eight months, with a lot of that focussed on his slowness learning to jump and his appallingly nappy behaviour on a hack, I had lost sight of the fact that I paid an awful lot of money for a newly broken horse who knew almost nothing. So of course he has great potential - it's what I bought him for!!
Anyway, the trot was huge and powerful and I could feel him really lift his shoulder and take a big step up from behind as I touched him with my leg -a truly superb response. And the walk into the contact was swinging wonderfully. I'm looking forward to doing another dressage test on him so that I can see if I can get some of this work inside an arena now he is accepting my hands so much better. We ended on a marvellous long rein trampoline trot, and he seemed terribly pleased with himself when we finished :-)
Then I rode Zip, and he was having a much harder time in the small area than he was outdoors yesterday. I concentrated in keeping him in front of my leg, which Herr Hess said is the only thing to worry about with a three year old. He was very good. He was also very bent at one point, and to straighten him up I asked him for shoulder fore (a slight turn in of the head) and I got a stride or two of shoulder in. Pretty extraordinary for a three year old who was backed two months, eh? I finished today by teaching him turn on the forehand. Well, what I mean is that I stopped him, touched his side with my leg, and over he went. He did a 180 degree turn easily in each direction. A circuit of trot on a long rein (superb!) and we stopped with him also looking mighty happy with himself.
The house-sitter now has them for the weekend while I'm off to the family wedding tomorrow. I can hardly wait to start again on Monday.
C
posted by cptrayes @ 6:42 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
There is a book: "101 Dressage Exercises for Horse & Rider" by Jed Aristotle Ballou that has 101 arena exercises, some of which you could adapt to a small space.
You can also do all kinds of pole exercises. Some of which can be found here:
http://www.tellingtonttouch.com/playgroundtteam.shtml
I worked once with Linda Tellington Jones and found the exercises interesting. I think much of her stuff is very commercialized, however. Much of it is simply her fancy way of explaining good horse handling. However, if you search through the website you can probably find many exercises you can adapt to keep your horses interested when stuck inside.
Yes, the whole contact issue creates controversy, but I am now with a trainer who advocates: "Hold till it hurts." When I rode with Lockie Richards, he told me he rode some of the German horses with top trainers and even he was just barely strong enough to hold them. The idea is to create a lighter feel by getting the hind end under so the front end lifts. It really does work.
And never forget the outside rein. It is all-important.
Glad to hear Jazz likes holding your hand with his mouth. The steady feel on your part probably gives him confidence.
Jean - "hold until it hurts" LOL If my mare does not halt, Gigi says " staccale i denti" which can be translated as "pull her teeth out". As I learn he does NOT mean it ... But he would say resist until she pulls, then when she yields, release.
Okay this is only translation taken OUT of the context. But he is also obsessed with the outside rein ... so must be good somewhere ;-)
One of my instructor was an eventer at European level. He told me the story that he went to a German dressage farm, there he rode a horse, took a contact, legs .. nothing, more legs, spurs, Nothing ??? the horse did not bulge ??? The German trainer then told him to take MORE contact ... a LOT MORE and the horse started moving in frame. My instructor told me that he could not go around a X-C with so much contact :-O!!!
Gosh I am glad I have left EE-LaLa-land, at least we are speaking of what happens in REAL horse world, that you like it or not some horses are trained to have a very strong contact.
In French and in Italian, we describe contact with two different terms le contact/conattato, and l'appui/ l'apoggio.
The rider offers the contact and the horse takes l'appui with his impulsion.
Unfortunately appui can only be translated by "leaning" which is not correct ;-(
Jean maybe you know a correct way of translating.
Caroline referring to your other comment, I find very weird that a trainer will concentrate only on the horse, but also only on the rider.
That is what I like from my present trainer, he is able to tell me, that it is *ME* or *HER*, but not just me or not just her.
Well you know me mate...lots of sideways stuff! What about also long reining...not sure if you are into that, but a small space wouldn't be a problem with that.
long reining/inhand work.
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