Things continue to be rather chaotic around here (I am not sure, for example, if I am doing 1, 2, 3 or maybe 0 classes this semester), so a lot is slipping through the too-wide cracks. Hence, just a few short lines about last week’s lesson before its Tuesday again.
Black pony (Heddvig) was exchanged for white pony (Nelson). Continued focus on good corners, but the main exercise was transitions. This is very good for Nelson who is very good at picking his own pace at any gait and barrelling along, putting a lot of weight in your hands. You really need to get him a bit off-balance in order to be able to affect how he moves and find a calmer, more balanced pace.
In the past, this has been a definitive issue for me as my own sense of rhythm is shaky. But something really does seem to have clicked over the summer and I was able to get Nelson to a stage where he carried himself quite well at the trot and even came down and forward with his head and up with his back. Considering the set of his neck (he’s got a very well-muscled underside and a very short neck), that’s a good accomplishment. We also managed some pretty decent canter.
Of course, I can’t put my finger on quite what I am doing differently now as opposed to before the summer…