But a long exhausting day! Poor Flecky... First we had a dressage lesson with Cindy where we worked our butts off. It was great though. He really tried for me. As usual. :) We were working on straightness and throughness WITH power! Cindy loved his submission and suppleness but wanted more power. And we were getting it. But man oh man was it hard. We worked on the upwards into the canter. We needed STRAIGHT and on the haunches. So I had to think that I could reinback, turn on the haunches, or shoulder in before I asked for the canter. Then... if he felt "right" enough that I could accomplish that, I could ask for the canter. And it worked!! Only I needed to trust it. And not throw myself at him. Also, when ever I felt the urge to correct him by using the left leg (like when he was throwing his left shoulder and ribs into me), I needed to set my elbow at my side first. Firm it up! And then when he broke to the trot... I shouldn't react and pony club kick (oops), but instead ask him to reinback. And when he shifted back onto his haunches (not necessarily completed the whole rein back but THOUGHT rein back), then ask for the canter again. It worked :)
It was funny too because he was cantering down the long side on the right lead and he was haunches in. Cindy has me thinking travers (or renvers...whatever haunches out is)and shoulder in. And when I was thinking that and attempting to push his shoulders in... he gave me a beautiful flying change... to the counter canter... and continued on in this lovely straight canter. Doh! :)
And then I had to giggle... Poor poor Cindy. She's figured out that I'm directionally challenged so today she asked me to do a shoulder in to a renver (or traver.. I still can't keep them straight). She said to do "the SI to the Renver (or traver) which is shoulders in, then bend around the OUTSIDE leg and push his haunches OUT"... hee hee.. I still did it wrong. She was like "Haunches out"... and I went more haunches in... egads!! I don't know why I do that!
But anyways... he was great :) And we had what felt like some pretty awesome lengthenings across the diagonal. :) And when I did my half passes, I remembered to open my rein and not cross his neck. Yay!
So we finally finished up and he got to hang out and watch Sunny and then graze a bit. Then we hauled to Ashland and grazed a bit and then tacked up for our jump lesson. Beth had me ride without stirrups. Egads... She actually took them off!! But it was GREAT!!! We did a gymnastics and it was really low so I was able to work on myself. Beth said that I needed to keep my shoulders up, my legs in front of me (ie, my landing gear), and I had to grab my grab strap! No more throwing him away or "rowing" with my hands, or sucking back. It was time to grow up and make George Morris proud! Ha! Maybe we'll start with much less mortified. It was hard, but I was able to get better with my hand. I didn't quite like the whole grabbing the grab strap thing, so I asked Beth about going back to "Hugging Fleck". It was something we did awhile ago and I'm not sure why we quit. It's basically the automatic release.. Which, perhaps I'm not quite qualified to do, but... it was easier than the crest release for me. I like hugging Fleck. ;) But really... it was just me doing an automatic release without dropping my shoulders, without throwing him away and without pulling back. Hey, it works, so.. yay! So then we jumped some bigger stuff and... doh!! Fleck was a saint but did a litle porpoising. I stayed on, but we realized that I needed better landing gear. Beth showed me how if my leg stayed in the right place over a jump, it automatically tipped me forward and I fell onto his neck. But if I put my feet slightly in front of me (ie, put out my landing gear, or flashlight feet), I would stay more upright up top. Tada!! No falling off :) So I did manage to get it right a few times. Then I got my stirrups back. Ugh... then it got hard again! And Fleck said he was mad at me by bucking and porpoising hard!! Hard enough that I thought if I didn't have my stirrups, he would have got me off. But that big ol' goober knew that I didn't have my stirrups earlier and did know. So I managed to do it right a few times and then it all went to pieces again. He got behind my leg and I was trying to make my turns too square. Argh.. poor Beth. I take things so literal for some reason..... She says "don't hold" and I throw him away. She says "don't throw him away" and I hang on for dear life. She says "Don't do anything" and I literally don't do anything!! So, when she said to bring his shoulder around and ride a square turn... I tried to do a 90 degree turn, which in effect, had me overshoot it. So she told me to ride it more bending or arced and stood in the corner so I wouldn't make it so "square". Lo and behold.. it worked. Ha ha.. She always says she's always right. So yeah.... as we passed her, she said she realized that we were drifting left and that was why I couldn't "see" my spot and felt frantic. He had the right spot, but drifted left and that ruined the spot. So then she stool on the left side of the jump... and holy crud I think we almost squashed her. But we didn't drift nearly as much! ha ha... I told her that Fleck really did like her because he didn't crush her like a bug.
So yep.. it was a good day. I think we fixed some things. I just have to remember to hug my pony, put out my landing gear, and not be so darn literal! ;)
So yep.. FUN day, but long exhausting day. I'm sure I'll be unable to walk tomorrow after the no stirrup work, but darn... I need to do that more often. It was so helpful. :)
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