June 21, 2024
As the time here in VA is winding down, I am soaking up every ounce of what I can with the team over at Chapel View Farm. School's out for summer, and we move July 10th, so I have some free time until then. As any good barn rat of any age knows, free time = barn time.
Last weekend I made myself a part of the cheering squad for CVF at Seneca HT, and I have started joining Jacqui in the mornings during the week to ride with her as well as to watch her ride in order to continue learning.
I am at a place in my riding career where I am confident that I can sit on most horses thrown my way and not die, but my ability to ride a horse in a way that allows them to use their bodies correctly and build good muscle will continue to need to be fine tuned. For a long time I have been allowed to ride backwards (from hand to leg) and Sophie lets me get away with that far too often. Over the last several months of training with both Jan and Jacqui, I have been slowly moving towards riding a horse from leg to hand instead (which like...DUH, we all know this, but it is so much easier said than done). Jacqui has done one hell of a job of helping me with that even after just a few days of riding with her in the mornings this past week!!
In riding these horses that Jacqui has been carefully training, as well as having her guidance as I work with them, I have learned very quickly that I am obsessed with holding the inside rein at all times. It's one of those habits that I know is wrong, but it is damn hard to shake. Sophie will let me hold that inside rein all day. We will fight about it constantly, and I often will get her to be crooked and forcibly put together in a way that might look the part enough, but she is never really moving through. Jacqui is teaching me that it is so much more about moving the shoulders up and that my hand needs to, essentially, go away. It's a concept that many people have explained to me in varying ways, and I understand and would say the same thing to any student I would teach, but talking theory is easier than putting it into practice. However, the way that Jacqui has been explaining it to me has really started to stick, and I think I am slowly getting there.
It also has made a MASSIVE difference to ride horses that are less tolerant of my mistakes. I rode one horse of hers that immediately braced against me in the canter and started to run away with me because I wanted to just grip onto the inside rein to hold the bend. Jacqui told me to soften and let go of the inside rein and continue supporting the outside shoulder with my leg and, like magic, the horse softened instantly and started to collect as soon as I allowed with that rein. Who knew that would work 😝
Another one of her horses, and a particularly fancy one at that, took full offense to me putting my leg on to ask for the canter while also clenching my inside rein as opposed to me simply shifting my inside hip bone upwards to allow for the canter to come up to me. Jacqui gave me the directions and, on the second attempt, once I had the horse straight and supported the outside of him while also keeping the bend with my inside leg, I allowed with my elbow and lifted my hip and ~voilà~ we were cantering.
Both horses provided me with physical feedback that was so immediate.
It is so rewarding to ride other horses and feel successful as a result, even if the success is simply picking up the canter nicely because I asked correctly and avoided falling into bad habits. Sure, I can get on Sophie and give a walk, trot, canter show and I can roughly make a 20 meter circle in just about any part of the ring...but can I do it while using only my inside leg to hold the bend whilst also using my outside aids to keep her shoulder straight and encourage her to push forward into the bridle? Easier. Said. Than. Done!!! Especially on a horse like her that is content in keeping her shoulders down and her neck inverted. It feels good to have homework!
The other day I was able to get a few steps of trot where she actually felt straight from nose to tail because I was able to find that feeling of holding her outside shoulder with my outside aids and not obsess with bending her neck to the inside. Just this morning I had a very productive flat ride where I focused on lifting her shoulders from my calf all the way up through my abs, and I could physically feel a difference in her suppleness as I engaged my thighs and core more effectively. It was kind of amazing.
Getting this feeling with Sophie consistently will take time and patience, and a lot of discipline on my part, but I am so excited to have been able to get a better feel for what she should be going like by riding these other horses. I've said this before, but for anyone who wants to continue to learn but maybe can't take the time or money to do consistent lessons, simply watching others ride can be so helpful. I am also fortunate that Jacqui is incredibly willing to share everything she's thinking and feeling as she rides her horses with me in the audience. I am even more fortunate that she trusts me enough to sit on all of her horses.
The next few weeks will likely consist of more watching and learning, as well as more riding. I feel lucky to be in this situation and I look forward to soaking up the knowledge while I can, and hopefully will take more skills with me to Sophie and I's next home. We have one more show before the move, and I will keep those interested posted :)
If you've gotten this far, I just want to share my thanks to you! It means so much to me that there are people who take interest in what I have to say and the experiences that I am having. My time spent with horses will shift slightly once I move and start my new job, but I hope to keep having experiences that are shareable and interesting. I appreciate your support ♥️ I am also hoping to build out this website more and eventually maybe even flesh out a logo and start putting it on things - we shall see.
Thanks for reading!
K
Comments