Charlie with the long sought after cooler

Charlie with the long sought after cooler
Spring NWEC 2013 Novice

Sunday, January 20, 2013

I am not an ambi-turner

I am not sure what is going on, but I've started having a lot of trouble turning to the right. We worked on this last lesson with a lot of different exercises. First, Shannon made a circle and I rode around it to the left, trying to be aware of what every part of my body was doing. Then I rode around it to the right, trying to feel what was different. As best I can tell, I twist my upper body to the right (to the inside), and then I either lift my lift hip (so my butt isn't touching as solidly as on the right) or I bear down on the right which forces the left up (can't tell which), and then open my right hand out wide. I have no idea why, and have very little control to squish it back all into place like it does when going to the left. We tried bridging the reins, and riding with them bridged and my hands pressed into his neck to try to keep the right hand from opening, which worked, but felt horribly awkward. I'm a few days late in posting this - the rest of the lesson was great but this was the focus area. It's weird - at the start of last year (not quite a year ago), we noticed how Charlie was always bent to the right, but then I could still turn right. In the course of improving everything else, somehow it has brought this issue to the forefront. We also worked on kicking my legs forward. I lift my heel for the aids, and I'm trying to keep my legs off of him except for the aid, and then to do it like a squeezing pincher instead of squeezing back onto his side. This, like all other body position changes, feels weird, like I'm sitting in a rocking chair, but then looks correct in the mirror instead of my way. The great news is that the things we've been working on the last few months, instead of just doing what Shannon says, I can actually feel it! So when Charlie is a bit uneven in the contact or is hanging on the reins, now I can feel he is doing it and know the correction!!!

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