Quadrille practice night -
got there early enough to get a in a good ride
I am borrowing Lea's Custom Wolfgang Omni - similar to Icon Coda. I like how the seat locks me in quite a bit.
We started with lots of walk work to warm up. Moved him off my leg both ways and also worked on not bracing/poking nose out or diving left or right when I pick up the picking up reins
nose to wall leg yeilds, stay straight. turn on forehand.
close legs and send forward with hands together.
really awesome canter work to right. canter lengthens and on 20m while staying round and bent.
Left canter is more challenging to balance.
Wednesday, February 15, 2017
Monday, February 13, 2017
Fight Night
After 3 days off -
I get insistent - non sympathetic rider... I am braced and stiff and that is what he gives back.
Move off leg turn on the fore, nose to wall leg yields. free walk to medium walk transitions w/o falling in or jigging
I finally got some okay work and called it a night.
I dont like being grumpy or frustrated with this big sweet, giving horse. I get mad at myself.. he always forgives...
I get insistent - non sympathetic rider... I am braced and stiff and that is what he gives back.
Move off leg turn on the fore, nose to wall leg yields. free walk to medium walk transitions w/o falling in or jigging
I finally got some okay work and called it a night.
I dont like being grumpy or frustrated with this big sweet, giving horse. I get mad at myself.. he always forgives...
Thursday, February 9, 2017
Bouncy, bouncy, bouncy
Lea and I had a jump lesson with Anne tonight and the focus was grids.
As typical with grids, we started with a small, straight forward exercise with a cross rail bounce followed by some ground rails. Anne had also put in some ground pole rail road tracks to help keep straightens down the line (a constant effort for Deuce who tends to get a little crooked to make the distance) Then she added to the exercise until we were jumping series of 5 low bounces. A bounce set of fences does not not have non-jumping strides in between them - the horse lands with his front feet over one fence but then has to pick up to take off for the second fence, just as his hind feet touch the ground, having negotiated the first fence. Bounces are an exercise of quickness on feet and athleticism for the horse and helps the rider learn how to keep and maintain momentum through a combination of jumps.
Deuce is quite cleaver with his feet and pretty good at the exercises, I had to encourage him to stay lighter through the corner and to the base of the fist fence so he would hit the ground lighter after each jump. I also ended up needing to use my voice to rate his speed half way through the exercise, so he would not speed up too fast. We wanted him to work through it, as opposed to throwing himself through.
Another component we worked on was the right hand turn to the jumps. I had to keep a better bend (and prevent a falling to the inside) by pushing out with my inside leg and keeping my hand up off his neck.
So after we worked through the low 5 bounces, Anne stepped it up a bit and made 2 ones strides to a 3'+ oxer. After going through a few times with placing rails, Anne added v rails on the oxer to encourage Deuce to round over the top - I had to maintain lots of leg and remember to land in my heels. but man o man, he flew! Lots of power!
Pineapple express weather - wet and warm!
As typical with grids, we started with a small, straight forward exercise with a cross rail bounce followed by some ground rails. Anne had also put in some ground pole rail road tracks to help keep straightens down the line (a constant effort for Deuce who tends to get a little crooked to make the distance) Then she added to the exercise until we were jumping series of 5 low bounces. A bounce set of fences does not not have non-jumping strides in between them - the horse lands with his front feet over one fence but then has to pick up to take off for the second fence, just as his hind feet touch the ground, having negotiated the first fence. Bounces are an exercise of quickness on feet and athleticism for the horse and helps the rider learn how to keep and maintain momentum through a combination of jumps.
Deuce is quite cleaver with his feet and pretty good at the exercises, I had to encourage him to stay lighter through the corner and to the base of the fist fence so he would hit the ground lighter after each jump. I also ended up needing to use my voice to rate his speed half way through the exercise, so he would not speed up too fast. We wanted him to work through it, as opposed to throwing himself through.
Another component we worked on was the right hand turn to the jumps. I had to keep a better bend (and prevent a falling to the inside) by pushing out with my inside leg and keeping my hand up off his neck.
So after we worked through the low 5 bounces, Anne stepped it up a bit and made 2 ones strides to a 3'+ oxer. After going through a few times with placing rails, Anne added v rails on the oxer to encourage Deuce to round over the top - I had to maintain lots of leg and remember to land in my heels. but man o man, he flew! Lots of power!
Pineapple express weather - wet and warm!
Wednesday, February 8, 2017
Quadrille Team
Julie, Lynette, Amanda and I decided to put together a Qaudrille team with plans to compete at Summerfield Farm's dressage schooling show in June and July.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Our horses could not be any different in color, shape and size; but that does not matter.
The focus of Quadrille is rhythm, harmony, and equal spacing.
That all takes practice.
USDA has created a Quadrille Training level test. All we need to do is perfect it and put it to music.
We have started practicing on Wed nights; for the first few practices, we are just riding together and getting our horses used to being near each other and working out spacing.
Here is the inspiration:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)