Every now and again, I get this silly little idea in my head. "Lets try dressage!" Because when dressage queens do dressage, it looks fancy and fun and actually enjoyable.
And sometimes we can actually look like we halfway know what we are doing. These moments give me a very false sense of "we can dressage". Those moments lie. When we pull it together and do dressage. I actually enjoy it. Kind of. I have gotten significantly more comfortable in a dressage saddle with those evil long stirrups, that reach straight into hell, than I ever thought I would be. And now when my horse throws silly fits such as this:
I actually can sit them fairly well. Although I would still take my nice jump saddle, and its wonderful short stirrups and security, over this ridiculous long stirrup debacle.
So anyways last night, I decided to use dressage tack. After my horse had a week off. And we have taken a dressage hiatus for the last like 2 months. Yeah I don't always make stellar decisions. Don't remind me.
Well despite the fact that he was very fresh and kept wanting to hump up and throw some wild man bucks or crowhops or just gallop around, he kept his cool and I kept mine too. At first. We got some decent leg yields, but he was too amped up and hates lateral work when he is that excited. So I didn't push the issue. We got a nice, controlled but forward walk, trot and canter.
Sometimes he actually uses himself and lifts his withers and looks all fancy.
Other times we just haul around with a flat, on the forehand canter.
Its pretty hit or miss which canter I get honestly.
Anyways, after a few canters each direction around the arena, which were nothing spectacular but he was paying pretty good attention. I asked for a right lead 20m circle. Bad decision. We did one decent circle and then he decided when he hit the middle of the arena: "I want to do the left lead now!" and did a flying change and jetted off. But he came back fairly quietly and I made him work on the left lead for a bit so he realized that being on the left lead didn't mean any less work. Then I made him go back and work the right lead a little bit so he didn't get away with that either. He fought me a lot more than I would like, but he eventually cantered a nice, balanced, right lead canter. However grudgingly he gave it to me.
He is definitely an opinionated guy. And can definitely be stubborn too. But un-luckily for him, he happened upon an equally opinionated and quite possibly more stubborn owner and rider.
Oh yeah, and in other news he has the fuzziest and sweatiest winter coat ever and I'm over having to take like an hour to cool him down and him soaking my cooler, sooo he is getting shaved. Very soon.
He will probably have the same style of clip I did on him last year. But I'm going to attempt a design on his booty this year, so wish me luck!
And sometimes we can actually look like we halfway know what we are doing. These moments give me a very false sense of "we can dressage". Those moments lie. When we pull it together and do dressage. I actually enjoy it. Kind of. I have gotten significantly more comfortable in a dressage saddle with those evil long stirrups, that reach straight into hell, than I ever thought I would be. And now when my horse throws silly fits such as this:
I actually can sit them fairly well. Although I would still take my nice jump saddle, and its wonderful short stirrups and security, over this ridiculous long stirrup debacle.
So anyways last night, I decided to use dressage tack. After my horse had a week off. And we have taken a dressage hiatus for the last like 2 months. Yeah I don't always make stellar decisions. Don't remind me.
Well despite the fact that he was very fresh and kept wanting to hump up and throw some wild man bucks or crowhops or just gallop around, he kept his cool and I kept mine too. At first. We got some decent leg yields, but he was too amped up and hates lateral work when he is that excited. So I didn't push the issue. We got a nice, controlled but forward walk, trot and canter.
Sometimes he actually uses himself and lifts his withers and looks all fancy.
Other times we just haul around with a flat, on the forehand canter.
Its pretty hit or miss which canter I get honestly.
Anyways, after a few canters each direction around the arena, which were nothing spectacular but he was paying pretty good attention. I asked for a right lead 20m circle. Bad decision. We did one decent circle and then he decided when he hit the middle of the arena: "I want to do the left lead now!" and did a flying change and jetted off. But he came back fairly quietly and I made him work on the left lead for a bit so he realized that being on the left lead didn't mean any less work. Then I made him go back and work the right lead a little bit so he didn't get away with that either. He fought me a lot more than I would like, but he eventually cantered a nice, balanced, right lead canter. However grudgingly he gave it to me.
He is definitely an opinionated guy. And can definitely be stubborn too. But un-luckily for him, he happened upon an equally opinionated and quite possibly more stubborn owner and rider.
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