Do you ever feel like you will never actually know what you are doing on a horses back?
Like every time you ride you discover or un-discover ways to ride?
OR do you ever have a lesson with your coach and you have a moment where you sit there with a totally blank face and your mouth hanging open like a Venus fly trap thinking 'how the fudge-cookie did I never think of that?...'
Well, I know I definitely said 'yes' to all of the above!
This last week has been chock full of minor discoveries that have been utterly mind blowing when it comes to the amount my rides have improved.
Who woulda' thunk a little dressage could help my everything!
The biggest improvement has been Paloma's way of going......
This is what Paloma looked like as a 4y/o with my dressage trainer.....
This is how I feel like Paloma looks like with me....
BUUUTT now that I have discovered that it was merely the serious lack of forward, I think we are edging on the look of the former photo here. Woot! I even heard mention of a little toe flick happening... say what!
We shall see how it transcends over to the short course this weekend.
My second most exciting revelation was stirrup length.
'Hello, my name is Kaila, I have a minor OCD issue....okay, a mediocre OCD issue.... No, no, I have OCD to the Ursa Major' *sigh* Now that is a nice to get that off my chest!
Moving on. I have always toyed with stirrup length. I used to hike them stirrups up to hole #12 or #13 for my hunter shows. I always felt I needed it. Then when dressage trainer moved me down to hole #10, I felt like that little kid in lead line that can't reach his/her stirrups so instead they sit their flailing..
That was two years ago.
Now, hole #10 is my comfortable flatting length....
Although, I never quite figured out my comfortable jumping length. I have been bobbling around hole #12 for eons it seems and I just does not feel secure. I feel perched, no real connection.
Hole #10... and I just cannot get out of the saddle enough and my lower leg tends to slide....hmmm
Yesterday, we schooled the same course I had schooled last week.
(Single 3' gated oxer on diagonal - long approach, three stride 2'9 line opposite diagonal - vertical to swedish oxer, and single 2'6 vertical on the quarter line)
I knew the course worked well with the hilly grass ring and Paloma knew her job, so I thought it to be a good mini course for schooling my issues - forward and stirrup length.
Suddenly, it clicked.
I am jacking up my stirrups to help myself feel more balanced/secure because I am riding the front end without forward but it only makes me jump ahead, DUH!
So, I popped up to hole #11 after my flat work, gathered up my forward, in front of the leg canter, checked for supple and proceeded with some over fences work.
For once I felt balanced in the saddle, I was able to wait with my upper body because Paloma was taking me to the fences and in turn her take off caused me to fold. OH! and I followed not just perched.
I swear I felt every fence in my hips. Simply glorious feeling!
I have read that the rule of thumb is two holes shorter for stadium, three for cross... but one hole seems to be my lucky number *knock on wood of course*. I can sit deep, pause, sit up.... it just works!
So ends another day at the academy of "Someday I Ride Good".
ugh stirrup length. it's like if you never think of it it's never a problem. but once you start thinking about it, it's neve quite right.... (and yet somehow still makes all the difference)
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