Picked pencil up from trainer B. Had a short lesson on him before I left. He was definitly improved in a few areas. No more fight on closing the hand and downwards transitions - she must have really really got stuck into him however as he has hair missing from spur marks.. and he dropped a heap of condition in just 5 days.
We did a very short lesson, just w,t,c each rein then down a line of 6 bounces.
Got him home - can't get it. At all. Nothing I did could keep the straightness. Softness in transitions was fine... so feeling even more discouraged... I didn't ride much at all that week.
Booked a lesson in with trainer A, One to make me feel good, the other to keep trying.
Lesson with A happened first, one of the issues I do have, is I ride in a open space - not a 20 x 60 arena where both of them take lessons. So I had Julia meet me at the pony club grounds.
The lesson with A was long, and hard. I had to ride every single stride - she didn't get on, and just kept up with me and reminders on what to do/what not to do at the time, or just before I was doing it (I really appreciated her letting me work it out mostly myself). She noticed the improvement in transitions - and gave her opinion on the other trainer, which I do agree with. Going to the left, I got it pretty quickly with a bit of help - he started working over the back and coming through to the bridle. A few reminders to not use to much inside rein (when he resisted it was because I'd got to low/back with it), and to allow enough rein length - I was jamming him up in a attempt to keep my hands out in front, i was shortening the reins to much and he just couldn't go forwards to the contact by doing that. So she had me ride with longer reins and wider hands when needed - vast improvement. Advice that for now, until we are consistantly through and straight I should ride like that before thinking about bringing him up and using shorter reins - he is happier there. On the other rein... riding inside out, keep shifting the shoulders in. I was over compensating for to much inside rein by throwing it away to often, so longer inside rein with a wider hand again - takes the strength out of that arm, she noticed that I would lift the inside hand with the elbow tucked in, and at right angles giving me a lot more strength and pull to use (which I was), so by opening the rein going to the right, I can't have the same strength in it until again - we are consistantly working correct. and to ride holding the rein between my thumb/forefinger just to keep a feel and we get started before taking the rein back properly.
The open space (talking 10acre flat paddock), meant that we started at one end, and because of the drift through the outside shoulder going to the right, we finished at the other end of the paddock - nearly. I GOT IT, after about 1 1/4 hours worth of trying and about 20m left of the paddock to go LOL. I managed to keep Pencil straight and through on the 20m circle on the right rein consistantly, change bend both ways (in and outside of the circle) get transitions staying through. So it was a big thing for me to do myself, once he is there its not so much riding every stride. Julia feels I was getting frustrated by myself and gave up to early in the ride due to it to make the "break through" because it was. I can achieve the same thing at home alone, the last two rides at home have gone really well, pretty much starting off through to the bridle - we have gone back a step in that he does start rushing at times - but not such a issue because he doesn't resist when you close the hand and sit to slow things down again. Whats really nice about him being through, is that it gives me a chance to think about my seat, when there its just maintenance and he is giving me a back to sit on - last night I really felt a good difference in my leg, I had time to think about it (thinking that I have no lower leg and my nobby knee is pointing to the ground) open up the pelvis and really ride with more core/seat felt WAY looser/relaxed in my back/hips/thigh and it was a really nice feeling to get back - haven't felt that since pre-op.
So I canned the lesson with the other lady for another week. I need to get my confidence up a little bit. Both of them have told me he isn't a easy ride, and to remember he is young and will require riding every single stride until things settle into everyday riding (STRAIGHT). I also need to do more work on the circle now - I had been staying mostly large because we did have issues with forward, and we don't now. So 20m cirlces for the most part with heaps of changes of rein and transitions. And we can incorporate the beginings of lengthening the stride and SI into the workouts.
I've got two clips uploading - one is the ride after Pencil got home from the trainers and how all wrong it was going. The other is from todays ride. Not as fantastic as last night, but still better than the first.
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