So the embarassment just keeps coming.... Sigh, one of these days I'll get my act together. My poor horse...
So, we had a lesson with Julie today at Jumping Branch. We started out decently and warm up was good. I need to remember to wait my face and keep my leg on. Squeeze with my calves. Also remember the flat work. Inside leg and even knee and thigh to outside rein. Keep my inside hand up with thumbs up and keep my outside hand low. Watch that devil left hand for holding... And... it's soft elbows, not soft hands. Don't go dropping the reins, but keep that connection. And give with my elbows over the fences. Give forward, not chickening out to the side! Slow my post rather than posting faster than he trots. Sit on BOTH seat bones... inside one too ;)
So then we moved on to the jumps in the field. Yeah... the first fence was fine... the second fence, a simple novice bench, ate me. Fleck got there on a half stride I guess and I just... didn't do... anything! I thought "go for the long one" and then "no, ask for the wait" and... did NOTHING. So poor Fleck... did both I guess... or neither. He basically climbed it, but fell to his knees and dropped his head. And I think I waited then flung myself so I went over his head and basically slip and slid down his neck, landed on my hands and somersaulted over the fence. He was fine.. just scraped his knee. I was fine.. Just mortified. But.... What was it that Jimmy said? Something about mistakes being an opportunity to learn. So I tried. We came back and jumped the first jump fine, then jumped a bigger table fine, then came back to the bench, and I clucked, squeezed, and may have even pony club kicked, but we did it. Then we went to the prelim mulch table and I felt Fleck back off a bit, BUT.... I manned up! I closed my legs, squeezed, kept the connection and he moved up to the slighly long spot. It was great :) Yay.. .redemption! At least for the time being.
So then we moved on and Fleck was fine and I was okay. We had some issues doing the half coffin. It was a gallop through the woods and over a roll top. I think Fleck was pissed at me by this point. He was ready to go and do it already. So we jumped the roll top and then made the tight turn to downhill to the coffin. Well... he was on the wrong lead and I didn't get his shoulder moved around and so we resorted back to spazzyness. Think octopus legs again. Sigh.. so of course, he stopped. Well duh.. he can't jump it like that. So.. we did the water just fine, then went back and did the whole mini course again. It was fine. We got over the coffin but it wasn't much better. But I bucked up and RODE the water line again. We finished with the water line again, doing it beautifully in four and five and then the short spot and then the long spot to the log.
And.. Julie mentioned that I'm much better at riding him rather than perching, but that my lower leg is weak. It's swinging. So.... that is related to my core too. So... sitting two point trot sets!! And crunches and leg swirly thingys. Lots of them....every night. So.... did my first set tonight and will do another set in a bit.
Maybe I can turn this funk around!
God... I hope so!
So, we had a lesson with Julie today at Jumping Branch. We started out decently and warm up was good. I need to remember to wait my face and keep my leg on. Squeeze with my calves. Also remember the flat work. Inside leg and even knee and thigh to outside rein. Keep my inside hand up with thumbs up and keep my outside hand low. Watch that devil left hand for holding... And... it's soft elbows, not soft hands. Don't go dropping the reins, but keep that connection. And give with my elbows over the fences. Give forward, not chickening out to the side! Slow my post rather than posting faster than he trots. Sit on BOTH seat bones... inside one too ;)
So then we moved on to the jumps in the field. Yeah... the first fence was fine... the second fence, a simple novice bench, ate me. Fleck got there on a half stride I guess and I just... didn't do... anything! I thought "go for the long one" and then "no, ask for the wait" and... did NOTHING. So poor Fleck... did both I guess... or neither. He basically climbed it, but fell to his knees and dropped his head. And I think I waited then flung myself so I went over his head and basically slip and slid down his neck, landed on my hands and somersaulted over the fence. He was fine.. just scraped his knee. I was fine.. Just mortified. But.... What was it that Jimmy said? Something about mistakes being an opportunity to learn. So I tried. We came back and jumped the first jump fine, then jumped a bigger table fine, then came back to the bench, and I clucked, squeezed, and may have even pony club kicked, but we did it. Then we went to the prelim mulch table and I felt Fleck back off a bit, BUT.... I manned up! I closed my legs, squeezed, kept the connection and he moved up to the slighly long spot. It was great :) Yay.. .redemption! At least for the time being.
So then we moved on and Fleck was fine and I was okay. We had some issues doing the half coffin. It was a gallop through the woods and over a roll top. I think Fleck was pissed at me by this point. He was ready to go and do it already. So we jumped the roll top and then made the tight turn to downhill to the coffin. Well... he was on the wrong lead and I didn't get his shoulder moved around and so we resorted back to spazzyness. Think octopus legs again. Sigh.. so of course, he stopped. Well duh.. he can't jump it like that. So.. we did the water just fine, then went back and did the whole mini course again. It was fine. We got over the coffin but it wasn't much better. But I bucked up and RODE the water line again. We finished with the water line again, doing it beautifully in four and five and then the short spot and then the long spot to the log.
And.. Julie mentioned that I'm much better at riding him rather than perching, but that my lower leg is weak. It's swinging. So.... that is related to my core too. So... sitting two point trot sets!! And crunches and leg swirly thingys. Lots of them....every night. So.... did my first set tonight and will do another set in a bit.
Maybe I can turn this funk around!
God... I hope so!
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