Skip to main content

Kenny Clinic - May 9-10

Image
By
As usually Kenny's keen eye helps me fine tune my work with Gadget. I rode Gadget a bit more forward than I do with Kristin, but I felt that I kept the activity in the canter an kept him true in my hand. On video, the canter looked great. As usual, I am still holding too much on my left rein, and softening solves nearly every problem.

Things to work on:


  1. Left Halfpasses -- the quarters trail in both trot and canter halfpasses. Both Kristin and Kenny told me to ride Gadget with slight haunches in to the left. I especially need to do this (or think this) when going into halfpass. Otherwise, I lose the haunches through most of the movement.
  2. Very Collected Canter -- I rode 4-1 with Kenny and the circle with the very collected canter strides is tricky for me. I need to think of pushing his haunches in with my outside leg. If I try to get more bend from inside leg, I get a change.
  3. Left change - I need to soften leg reins and let him move that direction. (Changes in general need to drift right, however.) This change still needs to be ridden with some giddy-up and go to get a clean change.
  4. Tempi Changes -- these make me want to pull my hair out. The first change is sticky, so I need to get that sharper. I basically need to get all of these sharper and stop pulling back.
Overall, I was pleased to be able to work through 4-1 for the first time. Kenny said he thinks it's a good test for us and well within our capabilities. The plan is to try 3-3 and 4-1 at the Morven show in June. It's a large show, so hopefully we don't look ridiculous in comparison to the other 4th level horses! Onward!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

When old becomes new - update to my old Pikeur Diana!

By
Here is the finished product! It was a plain black jacket so I added white and light blue trim with RHINESTONES! It's very sparkly! Here's a closeup of the collar, which looks better than the pocket. Now I am going to try to add coordinating trim (minus the rhinestones) to the saddle pad.
Post a Comment
Read more

July 2013 Ryan Yap Clinic

By
Gadget had his first chiropractic appointment on the Thursday before the clinic while I was out of town for work. The chiropractor is a vet and his findings were very accurate to what I and every trainer has identified as points of tension. The one extra finding was the tension in Gadget's face from an old fracture. The chiropractor said he believes that Gadget probably gets headaches. This absolutely broke my heart. He recommended massage for that area of his head, which I now do religiously every day. My poor baby. Anyway, I rode the next day and had the most amazing ride. He felt soft and so steady in the contact. It was unreal. I can only think that the chiropractor must have made a great difference in how he felt. On Saturday, I loaded up and headed to the Ryan Yap clinic without my sidekick, Hani. Of course when I don't have the best videographer in the world, I have the best rides in the world. I may be exaggerating slightly, but I definitely had a soft and happy ho...
Post a Comment
Read more

May 1-2, 2015 Lessons with Kristin

By
Had another weekend of very insightful lessons. I rode Isaac Friday night briefly and he showed me how hard it is for me to keep my body aligned, because he quickly went crooked when I did. Big takeaways from lessons on Gadget: 1. "Keep your basket to the outside." Kristin tells me to pretend I am pushing or holding a basket on my hands. In my mind, my basket is squarish. She will often tell me to take my basket to the outside and it helps me take both hands one direction. I really ride with too much bend to the inside and I need to learn this new feeling of straightness that feels almost counter bent. 2. "Look at the outside ear." This keeps me from twisting my chest to the inside. It's actually shocking how well it worked. 3. "Go and whoa." This is how I have to ride the canter. Quiet seat. Left hand up, not holding. This keeps him off his left shoulder. Right hand maintains connection. I have to go from leg and quickly put him togeth...
Post a Comment
Read more