Today we worked on two things, changing lead over a ground pole and then the same grid but in a different set up.
The lead change was encouraging, in the sense that it isn't me (for once), but Charlie genuinely appears to have no idea what I'm asking him to do, so when I was working on it at home, I wasn't totally out to lunch.
John set up a ground pole, and had me canter on a right lead circle, go over the pole and change direction and ask for the left lead. Charlie pretty much did it twice in 15 minutes. The two pieces I have a hard time with are having him enough forward, so that he has enough impulsion to change in the air, and then with enough aids enough ahead of time - this includes whip and leg a few strides out. If he doesn't change, instead of changing through the trot, make him counter canter (with his neck bent to the left lead) so that it is harder work for him not to change the lead than to change it. John tried throwing his hat at Charlie and also putting out a second pole, but it seemed to be more dumb luck - with Charlie leaping huge through the air for a change - than him catching on. Sometimes he'd change just the front or just the back, but then he'd flip back to the right lead next chance he got.
So we can continue to work on that on our own - I was not on the wrong track, and the tips were super helpful. John noted that Shannon found that Charlie did just fine going around on the wrong lead, so I think he never learned, and he's got 12 years of it not mattering under his belt that I'll need to get through. He's really good on the flat with the simple changes, so I think it's just a question of helping him have the light bulb go off.
Then we did the grid, with a trot to a small cross rail, two ground poles (one canter stride - I stepped it but it was a weird distance, like 9' to the first one, but then 4 1/2' to the second?) and then, depending on what John yelled, either 5 or 6 strides to a vertical, which ended at about 3'6". Charlie jumped it like a freaking champ, regardless of whether we were doing 5 or 6 strides, and because he was rocking back and lifting up, it was easier for me to keep my legs down and centered. It was great.
John gave me a course to work on at home - he says that when I'm alone I really need to work on "flow", so having three fences that I can turn easily into a 7 jump course (vertical at E, angle to a vertical on center line, then vertical at M, then go down longside back to E and change direction over center line, then do M to center line to E, etc.). He said also that I don't need to jump more than 3' at home.
Love the lessons with John!!
Charlie with the long sought after cooler
Spring NWEC 2013 Novice
Sunday, November 30, 2014
Sitting trot eureka
After enduring snow flurries and extra-cautious driving on the completely clear roads, we arrived late for a pilates session and lesson with Beth.
The pilates session was great - Beth had to go back a bit because I've been struggling at home with engaging the core muscles - something I can do with her but immediately forget as soon as I leave. She gave me some simpler exercises to work on at home.
Then our lesson was amazing. We worked on even weight (I sit heavy on the left - I can feel it under my left thigh), so trying to think about the weight being in the right. When my left hand crosses over the top of Charlie's neck, that means I'm sitting off to the left and need to shift my weight right. It's an easy indicator. I also need to turn my shoulders (but not my head) left most of the time.
Beth spent some time showing me how when I sit off to the side, it makes Charlie's ribs unable to bend, which is why he's reluctant to bend left but it is so easy for him to bend right. I told her that I was having trouble with lead changes over fences (from right to left) and also that when we're going left, I put my right hand forward. She said he actually needs a bit of release to the right.
We worked on 10 meter circles and transitions, and the first thing she had me do was sit the trot and then focus on having the right hip move like the left hip. The first miracle was that I could feel Charlie's hind legs, so I could time the aids. Then, I have to think forward and up with the right hip, but as soon as I do, Charlie's back evens out underneath me and he gets more balanced.
He did all of his lead changes (simple changes, through the trot) perfectly, so he didn't give Beth much to work on there.
But then we took the right hip moving and added keeping my upper body still for the request for the transition. It was much harder to do on the down transitions, but on the up transitions, if I consciously thought about keeping my upper body still (it tends to lurch forward briefly, just as we do the transition), Charlie lifts up into the new gait instead of lunging down and forward. Beth said that he mimics what I do, so if I lurch forward, he lurches forward, and if I am crooked to the left, he is crooked to the left.
Following the still upper body and the hip, we suddenly got exactly the right balanced sitting trot, and I just went around and around and around grinning like a fool because it was so EASY to sit. I didn't have to give him any aids, we just went around smooth and connected. It was a total delight. I can't wait to work on that more.
He had a bit of a hard time on canter circles that were smaller than 15 meters, but I think his back was sore because I overjumped him a couple days ago in my attempt to work on three things at once to save time.
I have been feeling down and like a lousy rider, lurching all around and just horrible in general, and I think that is actually a good sign. I think that it means that we're working on the next layer of the onion, and once this starts to feel good, then we'll have to go back to horrible while we work on the next layer. But overall, I think this is good - I think this is much better riding than last year, and Charlie is so sweet and generous, just waiting for me to allow him to move freely and then rewarding me by changing as soon as I get it right.
The pilates session was great - Beth had to go back a bit because I've been struggling at home with engaging the core muscles - something I can do with her but immediately forget as soon as I leave. She gave me some simpler exercises to work on at home.
Then our lesson was amazing. We worked on even weight (I sit heavy on the left - I can feel it under my left thigh), so trying to think about the weight being in the right. When my left hand crosses over the top of Charlie's neck, that means I'm sitting off to the left and need to shift my weight right. It's an easy indicator. I also need to turn my shoulders (but not my head) left most of the time.
Beth spent some time showing me how when I sit off to the side, it makes Charlie's ribs unable to bend, which is why he's reluctant to bend left but it is so easy for him to bend right. I told her that I was having trouble with lead changes over fences (from right to left) and also that when we're going left, I put my right hand forward. She said he actually needs a bit of release to the right.
We worked on 10 meter circles and transitions, and the first thing she had me do was sit the trot and then focus on having the right hip move like the left hip. The first miracle was that I could feel Charlie's hind legs, so I could time the aids. Then, I have to think forward and up with the right hip, but as soon as I do, Charlie's back evens out underneath me and he gets more balanced.
He did all of his lead changes (simple changes, through the trot) perfectly, so he didn't give Beth much to work on there.
But then we took the right hip moving and added keeping my upper body still for the request for the transition. It was much harder to do on the down transitions, but on the up transitions, if I consciously thought about keeping my upper body still (it tends to lurch forward briefly, just as we do the transition), Charlie lifts up into the new gait instead of lunging down and forward. Beth said that he mimics what I do, so if I lurch forward, he lurches forward, and if I am crooked to the left, he is crooked to the left.
Following the still upper body and the hip, we suddenly got exactly the right balanced sitting trot, and I just went around and around and around grinning like a fool because it was so EASY to sit. I didn't have to give him any aids, we just went around smooth and connected. It was a total delight. I can't wait to work on that more.
He had a bit of a hard time on canter circles that were smaller than 15 meters, but I think his back was sore because I overjumped him a couple days ago in my attempt to work on three things at once to save time.
I have been feeling down and like a lousy rider, lurching all around and just horrible in general, and I think that is actually a good sign. I think that it means that we're working on the next layer of the onion, and once this starts to feel good, then we'll have to go back to horrible while we work on the next layer. But overall, I think this is good - I think this is much better riding than last year, and Charlie is so sweet and generous, just waiting for me to allow him to move freely and then rewarding me by changing as soon as I get it right.
Sunday, November 16, 2014
Grid plus one with John
This week's grid was the same as last weeks, with a fourth fence, a vertical, at the end. John made the vertical 3'11", which I think was a few inches shorter than the oxer last week. It still popped me out of the tack pretty much every time, though.
We started with an excellent exercise over a ground pole. John made me half halt as we approached it, and even when we hit the wrong spot, Charlie would add a stride, and he would round up over the top of the pole. John said that a lot of times practicing ground poles, you just puke over them, which defeats the purpose of the exercise. I have definitely been doing that, so this was a great exercise that was another "click" like last week's.
John also said he could tell that I had really worked on the half halt after last week - he said he could see a difference, and I could definitely feel one making the turn to come down the line. Charlie didn't have to canter and we were much more "round" and could go in bouncy which saved everything.
The other thing the grid showed was how badly we are drifting to the left. Even though we start straight in the center, we'd end up close to the left standard by the fourth fence. John said to look right - at first he had it really exaggerated - he stood off to the side and told me to look at him, then he stood closer, then he had me look at the right standard, and then finally just to the right of the centerline of the pole. Amazingly enough, that was all it took to get us through the grid straight. What it did though - adding another thing onto the plate - was make it hard for me to remember to snap my head up and look out the exit, so I kept missing my leads.
Also, I had to really kick Charlie to get over the oxer (not that big, maybe 3'6"?) and then over the vertical (which felt huge, but was less big than the oxer last week), and that was good too, to have to kick in the middle.
It was really great to feel the progress from last week and that what I was doing made a difference, and the ground pole exercise was really timely since I've been working with them. I told John I'm having trouble with lead changes, and he asked flying? I said no, Charlie could only do them one way and he said, probably left to right but not right to left. So next lesson (Thanksgiving week) I'm going to try those.
It was another great lesson. John is really good at building things up and building confidence but helping get the lesson through my thick skull. It was also a gorgeous, cold day.
We started with an excellent exercise over a ground pole. John made me half halt as we approached it, and even when we hit the wrong spot, Charlie would add a stride, and he would round up over the top of the pole. John said that a lot of times practicing ground poles, you just puke over them, which defeats the purpose of the exercise. I have definitely been doing that, so this was a great exercise that was another "click" like last week's.
John also said he could tell that I had really worked on the half halt after last week - he said he could see a difference, and I could definitely feel one making the turn to come down the line. Charlie didn't have to canter and we were much more "round" and could go in bouncy which saved everything.
The other thing the grid showed was how badly we are drifting to the left. Even though we start straight in the center, we'd end up close to the left standard by the fourth fence. John said to look right - at first he had it really exaggerated - he stood off to the side and told me to look at him, then he stood closer, then he had me look at the right standard, and then finally just to the right of the centerline of the pole. Amazingly enough, that was all it took to get us through the grid straight. What it did though - adding another thing onto the plate - was make it hard for me to remember to snap my head up and look out the exit, so I kept missing my leads.
Also, I had to really kick Charlie to get over the oxer (not that big, maybe 3'6"?) and then over the vertical (which felt huge, but was less big than the oxer last week), and that was good too, to have to kick in the middle.
It was really great to feel the progress from last week and that what I was doing made a difference, and the ground pole exercise was really timely since I've been working with them. I told John I'm having trouble with lead changes, and he asked flying? I said no, Charlie could only do them one way and he said, probably left to right but not right to left. So next lesson (Thanksgiving week) I'm going to try those.
It was another great lesson. John is really good at building things up and building confidence but helping get the lesson through my thick skull. It was also a gorgeous, cold day.
Sunday, November 09, 2014
Grid with John
Today we started with some flat work and then jumped a grid.
The grid started with ground poles, and ended with a cross rail, vertical, and 3'9" - 4' oxer, which is (I had to look it up), Intermediate (3'9") to Advanced (3'11").
I had trouble with the grid when it was poles, and then I had trouble with it again when it was huge - I kept popping out of the tack in the air. John says I need a more secure lower leg (and about 10 other things, but he said since I can only listen to a few things at a time, for now to just focus on the secure lower leg and we'll do the others once that is fixed).
It was a "classic" John lesson - starting with the ground poles and working up to a fence so freaking humongous when I was done I had to walk over and measure it (my armpit). He is a master at gradually building until you are doing more than you would ever have thought.
What I could not get - no matter how big the fence was, was the turn in the corner to the fence. We would just puke down and then have to lunge forward. The good part was how grossly obvious it was that there was a huge difference turning right and left - I could do the right turns meh, but the left turns Charlie would break into a pukey canter (and there wasn't room for me to fix it) instead of just freaking engaging his hind end. John made us do some 8-10 meter circles to get Charlie to bend to the left and afterwards he showed me how it is "easier" for Charlie to puke canter instead of just bend.
He said we can practice small circles but we need to make sure to practice them correctly.
Charlie jumped it like a freaking rock star - he would round his back up and actually try and we were in the air for SO LONG. But it was also a good slice of humble pie because I was thinking I was a freaking genius who was going to go prelim next year (2016), and I just kept making the same mistake and then getting popped out of the saddle. I couldn't keep my form most of the fences even though I knew it was coming. We got a couple just right, which just felt divine.
John said Shannon never wanted to jump height, but that Charlie jumps much better when he tries - which is why when he slams a fence, then he respects them again for a while - and that now 3'3" will feel like a cake walk. I like the height - with John.
We started on the flat with some bending. The thing I'm not doing is asking him to bend with inside rein, and then using outside rein to make him round. I need to get the proper bend, which uses inside rein and inside leg, then ask him to connect with outside rein, THEN ask him to go forward with both legs without throwing away the contact.
It was much harder to do going left (huh, interesting - see above on the turn to the fence), because my right elbow would drift forward and not stay next to my hip. Charlie has a harder time bending to the left, and apparently I am compensating by throwing him away.
Our transitions were pretty pukey, and while I would prefer to ride perfectly any time I am doing anything, even if it is something I have never done before, I felt a little "ah-ha" moment when John went through it step by step. When he connected with the outside rein, I could feel his shoulders lighten - I could FEEL it, which is good.
So I can work on that before next week, and then once I have that down, go back and work on the transitions, which were a little out of my league for today. I knew they weren't exactly right, but I couldn't feel the mistakes as well as I did on just the connection exercise.
I also need to drape my legs (my stirrups are not too long, I asked John to check) and not suck them up and nag when I'm trying to get Charlie to work harder.
The grid started with ground poles, and ended with a cross rail, vertical, and 3'9" - 4' oxer, which is (I had to look it up), Intermediate (3'9") to Advanced (3'11").
I had trouble with the grid when it was poles, and then I had trouble with it again when it was huge - I kept popping out of the tack in the air. John says I need a more secure lower leg (and about 10 other things, but he said since I can only listen to a few things at a time, for now to just focus on the secure lower leg and we'll do the others once that is fixed).
It was a "classic" John lesson - starting with the ground poles and working up to a fence so freaking humongous when I was done I had to walk over and measure it (my armpit). He is a master at gradually building until you are doing more than you would ever have thought.
What I could not get - no matter how big the fence was, was the turn in the corner to the fence. We would just puke down and then have to lunge forward. The good part was how grossly obvious it was that there was a huge difference turning right and left - I could do the right turns meh, but the left turns Charlie would break into a pukey canter (and there wasn't room for me to fix it) instead of just freaking engaging his hind end. John made us do some 8-10 meter circles to get Charlie to bend to the left and afterwards he showed me how it is "easier" for Charlie to puke canter instead of just bend.
He said we can practice small circles but we need to make sure to practice them correctly.
Charlie jumped it like a freaking rock star - he would round his back up and actually try and we were in the air for SO LONG. But it was also a good slice of humble pie because I was thinking I was a freaking genius who was going to go prelim next year (2016), and I just kept making the same mistake and then getting popped out of the saddle. I couldn't keep my form most of the fences even though I knew it was coming. We got a couple just right, which just felt divine.
John said Shannon never wanted to jump height, but that Charlie jumps much better when he tries - which is why when he slams a fence, then he respects them again for a while - and that now 3'3" will feel like a cake walk. I like the height - with John.
We started on the flat with some bending. The thing I'm not doing is asking him to bend with inside rein, and then using outside rein to make him round. I need to get the proper bend, which uses inside rein and inside leg, then ask him to connect with outside rein, THEN ask him to go forward with both legs without throwing away the contact.
It was much harder to do going left (huh, interesting - see above on the turn to the fence), because my right elbow would drift forward and not stay next to my hip. Charlie has a harder time bending to the left, and apparently I am compensating by throwing him away.
Our transitions were pretty pukey, and while I would prefer to ride perfectly any time I am doing anything, even if it is something I have never done before, I felt a little "ah-ha" moment when John went through it step by step. When he connected with the outside rein, I could feel his shoulders lighten - I could FEEL it, which is good.
So I can work on that before next week, and then once I have that down, go back and work on the transitions, which were a little out of my league for today. I knew they weren't exactly right, but I couldn't feel the mistakes as well as I did on just the connection exercise.
I also need to drape my legs (my stirrups are not too long, I asked John to check) and not suck them up and nag when I'm trying to get Charlie to work harder.
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