Yesterday, I finally got a chance to try Hedvig, the not at all tall but very broad Swedish coldblooded horse. She looks pretty much all black, and she has a gorgeous mane and tail, as well as a very pretty head under all that hair. Quite a darling.
Last week fell by the wayside in more than one way. I needed to be done on time for once (we rarely are, both because the groups before us are delayed and because we too get delayed), and of course the group ahead of us was about 20 minutes late. So, I had to quit early. Argh. And Murphy felt pretty great, too, and we were doing more transitions while focusing on our seats. I tried to use the time we had efficiently, without being rushed, and I guess I did okay ... but it still felt unsatisfactory. Though, I did get some good pointers about my seat, such as the fact that I tend to keep the stirrup too far forward on the foot. I think the whole “don’t get your foot stuck” was drilled into me too firmly, and it has lead to some tension in my leg position. It will be interesting to see what sort of effects changing this will have. I bet it will feel weird.
Today, we had a theory lesson, discussing the six building blocks of the German training scale (though our instructor puts rhythm before relaxation). We managed to finish late once again, because we got a bit sidetracked discussing all sorts of things, like the Eurovision Song Contest and harness racing. Though we did get some useful discussions done too, in particular about how to work on motivating different horses in different ways.
No, I didn’t already have this Tuesday’s lesson. This is last week’s. ;P Depression and work has continued to distract me from actually getting things done.
It was, however, a pretty good jumping lesson for me and Murphy. The goal was to work on turns, and we had three jumps down the center line that we had to turn onto from a fairly tight angle from the short end. At first, we jumped just the first fence and were supposed to take the turn in such a way that the horses knew they weren’t supposed to continue on to the second. The second exercise was jumping the first and the third, and we were supposed to go to the right of the middle jump and then turn left after the last jump. We finished up by jumping the whole line.
I had another lesson I really enjoyed this last Tuesday. Rather than working on a specific element from the dressage program, it was all about basic obedience. We basically spent the lesson starting and stopping, and as always such simple, single-minded exercises get surprising results. It can really work very well to break things down into smaller, more bite-sized pieces.
Tuesday’s lesson was pretty great. We tackled the next part of the dressage program, which meant a corner, turning up onto the center line and a leg yield out to the side again.
Murphy was ... charged up. There’s definitely stuff going on in the herd, he was still rather feisty (got very close to taking a bite out of me on a few occasions, especially after the lesson when I saw teeth very close to my face :P), but he was also pretty eager to work. I got him fairly engaged from behind at an early stage, and the leg yields worked quite well at a walk. I think I did better this time at keeping my hands positioned right without getting too caught up in thinking about it.
Then we got to the trot, and it got a little trickier, partly because we were actually too many during the lesson due to a mix-up in booking reserves. Even though Murphy isn’t exactly a big mover, he does cover a fair bit of ground when he starts using his hindquarters and I can’t quite manage to collect all that extra drive to make it go more upwards instead of more forward. I got some nice lateral movement, but I also got a lot of little stops and starts as he just wasn’t able to fit in.
And at one point we had a close encounter with Hedvig’s behind. Hedvig is a new pony, and she apparently has a temper, because that behind flew up very high in the air. She’s gorgeous, though. A rather small representative of the North Swedish Horse, almost entirely black and with a stunning mane and tail. Apparently Murphy has a thing for her, heh. Fortunately, he mostly concentrated on work during the class, and I was pretty happy with the end result. But when I do manage to get him engaged from the start I need to get better at not letting the energy just rush on forward.
In terms of not procrastinating, the year is not off to an auspicious start. I don’t think there’s anything I haven’t put off so far.
We actually started our lessons two weeks ago come this Tuesday. The first was a theory lesson, however, in which we discussed which dressage program to train for during the semester. The second, last Tuesday, was all about some of the first obstacles in that program, namely riding a good circle in a corner and coming out of the circle and turning onto a diagonal.
There were lots of outsides floating way off to the side, not the least Murphys. But, I did have a clever idea partway in and started keeping him bent slightly the opposite way before coming into the circle, which helped me get his outside under control. At least once we started trotting, because at a walk he didn’t have enough forward drive for that work well. I was also less fiddly at the trot, I think, since at the walk I was thinking too much about that private lesson from before Christmas and all the realigning of my hands and arms that we did then. I need to try to start adjusting my hands without focusing too much on it.
On the whole, Murphy was a little so-so (but then again, so was I). He seemed to be either a little bloated or a wee bit overweight (given that he did not really feel lazy other than for the first few minutes, I am guessing the latter), and he had clearly had a bit of a fight with a few of the other horses. Not only was he missing a chunk of skin at his chest, but he refused to get near a few of the horses and was generally grumpy towards most of them. Hopefully things will settle down soon, and hopefully he’s not been kicked down too low in the rank, because that made him miserable last time.
It has been a while since the last Ringo update, mostly because I only manage to get myself to post after shows and there haven’t been any of those since September. We have, however, been training weekly up at the local working dog club, and some improvements have occurred. Though, some things have gotten worse, too, like Ringo’s attitude about other male dogs. Its definitely turning into a little bit of an issue, and I had my hands full at the MyDog show in Gothenburg on Monday and Tuesday of this week.
On the first day, Ringo was a little hellion. Not as bad as last year on the first day, but bad enough that the rather strict British judge gave us a 2 even though he also gave him a pretty good critique. Properly speaking, I don’t think it was quite proper to have him get a 2, since it seemed to be based rather heavily on the judge feeling he wasn’t handled well. However, it is pretty common to get a 2 for that even though the rules technically don’t leave room for it.
The critique was: Very well made square brindle. Well balanced in outline. Good mover. Head is typie, just a touch over done. Handler must learn to show and move him better for the judge.
On the second day, Ringo behaved a lot better overall, and especially in the ring. He posed nicely in the first lineup, ran well with the rest, ran well on his own and posed fairly well on his own too. We got a 1, and then we ended up placed 4th. Dogs 1 through 3 got CKs, and I think the judge may have considered Ringo for one as he gave him a close look before deciding the placements. Then again, he seemed pretty set on 1 through 3.
The critique this time was: Correct size. Typical head. Correct topline, deep chest, correct front angulation. Good coat. Good movement.
There won’t be any more shows for a while again, I expect (not until the outdoor ones start, most likely), but we are looking at signing up for a class to prepare for working dog competitions. Its not going to be easy to start with him at this age, but maybe we can manage to compete in a year or so and perhaps have his working dog merits by next summer. For now, though, he just needs more training to be less hyper-active.
This Tuesday we had our last regular lesson for this semester. We often do something a little unusual for those occasions, and this time we had a little contest. It consisted of several different parts; most canter strides between two points, most steps backing up, most lateral steps between two points, smallest circle at a trot, most trotting strides between two points and fewest trotting strides between two points.
We had all been assigned horses we hadn’t ridden for a while, so I was on Fleur. It was rather fun, actually, and it sure made me do very careful corners to get the most strides in when that mattered. ;) Fleur, having a very short stride, did well at those, and I also did pretty well backing her up. Lateral was okay, the circle was passable, but the final bit of trotting (fewest strides between two points) resulted in cantering since she was really charged up by then. I think I may have come in second or third (one of the other girls did amazingly well, and looked so focused it was kind of funny), but we ended up being very late so I had to leave before the results were handed out.
Yesterday, I finished up the semester with a private lesson. I didn’t ride for our unusual instructor, though, because she called in sick this morning. Instead, I rode for the head instructor. I haven’t ridden for her for some years, so it made me a bit nervous. Murphy, of course, was quite happy and eager to get started during the warm-up. He really loves being alone in the arena. However, once she showed up, it got a little trickier. I wasn’t quite sure what to ask her to focus on (I had planned to ask my regular instructor to work on whatever she felt I had had most issues with during the semester), but decided to ask for more work on my position.
Boy, did I get that. She worked me very hard about my hand position (particularly on the right, I tend to tilt my hand so the palm is more downwards, which comes from my elbow getting too straight, and I often open up my hands too much when I want to be soft), and she was pretty tough on my legs too. She did spot some good things that the regular instructor hasn’t nagged me about lately (a fresh eye is always good), but I did struggle a bit with the amount of instructions. I get a little tense and a wee bit stressed when constantly being reminded about something, so at first I started getting stiff and contorted. Eventually, however, I was able to take in the corrections more calmly, and there was a marked difference towards the end as I finally started to keep my elbow bent more naturally. But I may still have to try riding with a whip held across each hand and secured by my thumbs to keep from dropping one hand or pushing too much against the horse’s neck.
Because we focused so much on me, I did not get quite the result I would have wanted from Murphy, though she was very pleased with his trot towards the end. And he certainly got a work-out; when I gave him long reins as we finished up (after 50 minutes instead of 30, yikes), he just stopped right off. So, I got off and lead him for a bit before taking him up and putting a blanket on him. He was very soft and sweet. Good lesson, all in all, except for the incredibly soreness when I came home. I think I rode without stirrups for about 40 minutes, and I am bruised and chafed.
I got my Murphy back this week. Though initially, he came without a saddle. ;) He was in the lesson before ours as well, and the kids all rode bareback, which is a pretty common little fun thing for them to do towards the end of a semester. I wasn’t too keen on that, though, so I ran back up to the stable to fetch his saddle. He objected very little to having it put on.
We left the lateral work and focused instead on shoulder control. Most of the lesson was spent riding correct corners, with the inner shoulder kept well beneath the horse’s body. Any inwards leaning or movement through the corners was strictly forbidden. And, as so often is the case, focusing on a seemingly simple but very basic element made a hug difference. When you only ride once a week, it is difficult to get as thorough and as careful as someone who rides more regularly, but lessons like these serve as excellent reminders of how important it is to do the basics right. Paying attention to each and every corner really makes a difference, and concentrating on those sort of things as opposed to specifically working on getting the horse into the correct form often yields a better result with the form for me. You don’t try to do too much, so everything gets less forced.
I also rode Murphy without the help reins again, and was once more treated to how different the end result is compared to when I do use the help reins. I can get him into about as correct a form either way, but where he always remains a little tense with the help rein he comes out soft and slithery without it. The help rein produces a false sense of stability, and without it its clear that a relaxed Murphy is rather eel-like. But very happy to work, and lovely to work with.
I was eagerly looking forward to jumping Murphy this Tuesday, given how well the preparatory exercises went last week. But, alas, it was not to be. The farrier had been there during the day, and three of the horses were sore-footed, including Murphy. Bah, I say.
Gamir, of course, is a very good replacement, but I had already jumped him plenty this semester. Plus, he was in a foul mood in the stables, and it continued down in the arena with much bucking as soon as I started taking the reins. He was clearly rather stiff and unhappy. Fortunately, jumping is pretty much certain to eventually win him over, and its a good way to loosen him up and get him to start using his back and hindlegs without putting any pressure on him.
The exercise was similar to last week’s, in that we jumped a diagonal line. There was no actual lateral movement between the jumps, but we were supposed to ride for the correct canter either between the jumps or after the last jump. Of course ... Gamir does this more or less on his own, so it wasn’t exactly like I could apply much of what I did with Murphy. However, this meant I got to practice doing less and thinking less once again, which my instructor says resulted in some pretty uncomplicated, smooth jumping, where my knees stayed down (they crawl upwards whenever I concentrate on using my legs ;P).
So, in the spirit of that, no more analysing of this week’s lesson. I need to focus on feeling instead of thinking ... at least in some scenarios. I do need to think to outsmart Murphy and stay ahead of what he might try to do to avoid work, but I need to tense up less when I focus on something specific. That way lies nothing but bad leg placement and stiff shoulders.
Murphy turned out to be his usual charming self this Tuesday, so whatever it was that bothered him last week it was nothing major. Which is always a relief for a worrier like me. :) He was even perky enough to sink his teeth into my coat while I was getting him ready, so definitely his usual, feisty self. He did look slightly apologetic about that, though, but nothing like good old Sammy (now a happy retiree together with another former riding school horse), who would look downright ashamed if he ever managed to actually hit anyone when snapping with his teeth.
Other than not being able to go out and eat or anything such, having my birthday fall on a Tuesday is very nice, since I get to go riding. That’s always a fabulous birthday present, and even more so when I get to ride Murphy. Though, he did end up worrying me a little, as he seemed to have a bit of a problem (which I will have to cover before getting into the lesson talk).
It started with him having to pee a while after we started riding, and my instructor thought he was standing oddly while he was peeing. He also peed an awful lot. Then, he ended up dropping three small piles of poop during the lesson, in addition to the somewhat larger up in the stables. I noted this to the instructor, wondering if he was having some kind of constipation issue, and she said she’d give him something after the lesson. He was fine during it, no oddities. Then, up in the stables, she gave him the medicine and thought she noticed an odd bulge on one side of his neck ... except he seemed to have it on the other side too, and it was hard to tell if it was just the angle of the neck or an actual issue. However, since he was eating and seemed perky, she wasn’t too concerned ... but of course I am a bit of a worrier.
Almost time for another lesson, so I better write up a report on the last one. ;P Not very accomplishy of late.
It was actually a bit of a tricky lesson to talk about, though. I was on Murphy again, and we continued to work on lateral work. Lots of it, in fact. The idea was to cram in as many leg yields as possible per lap, and on as many different lines as possible. This works wonder for getting Murphy nicely together, but it also confuses me like crazy.
I just can’t seem to get a solid grasp of angles and lines for lateral work. If we do a single line several times, I can sort of work it out over time. But doing different ones all the time? That way lies madness. I just couldn’t figure out how much to lead in the front quarters, which way he should be moving to be on a specific line, and how I should be seated and where I should look. Its my left-and-right problems times ten.
So, I had a hard time getting into good riding because I was too preoccupied with figuring out how to do things. That said, actually thinking less about getting the horse to work in the right form and so on can make it better, because you fiddle too much when you think about it. So Murphy came together rather well and seemed to be enjoying himself. In fact, an additional problem was that he seemed to catch on to what to do faster than I…
I am not terribly efficient of late, but that should be rather evident. I don’t do well with deadlines these days, even small ones kind of sap my energy for everything else. However, the riding is the best therapy for just about everything that bothers me, and I think it helps my riding to do these write-ups, so I keep trying.
This week, I was back on Murphy. Much rejoicing. There was also an illegally cute new horse in the stables, that I am really hoping I will get a chance to try. 8-year-old Heddvig is a “North Swedish Horse” (I have no idea if Wikipedia is correct in this translation of “Nordsvensk”), a medium-heavy draft breed. She’s black, with a looooong curly mane and a thick, curly tail, and she’s about as broad as she is tall (she’s probably around 14 hands), with massive legs. Adorable, like a little troll.
But, for this lesson, it was all Murphy. We started a new theme, lateral work, and we started by stripping it down to as simple an exercise as possible: simply ask the horses to obey a lateral aid and don’t worry about how they do it, its just about having them do it. Of course, it didn’t turn out to be all that simple once we got started. Murphy would respond pretty well (almost too strongly) to the initial aid, and then he’d just stop moving laterally unless constantly reminded. And that was what she wanted us to get away from, the “nagging”.
Initially, when I tried hard not to “nag”, I did better about not pushing the horse sideways as I tend to end up doing. But once I tried to correct for his lack of movement after the initial burst, I was back to pushing again. It will definitely take some work to find the “just enough” spot for lateral aids. I think I managed to keep my legs a bit more relaxed, though, but it was mainly due to being able to ride without my stirrups for most of the class. I wish I dared to do that on more horses, even if I ended up sore here and there after the lesson. ;P
Last week of canter-work, and another week with Gamir. He gave away a little secret this time. He dislikes being saddled, and will often snap and kick when the girth is tightened. That is, if you do it in the stable or in the arena. But today we ended up waiting outside the arena for a bit, so I tightened the girth there. Gamir stayed still with his ears forward all the time. Its interesting how tied to specific situations and/or places that sort of behaviour can be.