Freestyle

Freestyle

Learning lessons in our lessons

Posted on July 17, 2013 by horsegirlonajourney

“So, your homework is, the 4 phases of the go, the 5 phases of the halt, the 9-step backup, stretching those inner thigh muscles, Stick to Me on-line in zone 2, and practicing your deep seat.”

Lucky for me, this instruction was for Scott and Rocky, at the end of our two-hour lesson with Erin on Saturday. My own homework with River was similar: Stick to Me on-line in zone 2, and riding Point to Point. For riding, my goals are to activate my thighs instead of riding from my stirrups, and use the reins only to support my focus and my body language rather than as a steering wheel.

The lesson was more like a clinic, which was awesome practice for me mentally, as my goal is to attend clinics next year. There were the two of us with the two horses, plus another student and her horse who came into the arena for the last half hour or so, to warm up for her own lesson after ours. Sometimes we did the exercise at the same time, and other times one pair would go practice at one end of the arena while Erin focused her instruction on the other.

One of the most powerful segments was the simulation of Stick to Me. Erin put Scott at her right shoulder and me at her left shoulder and then … walked. She didn’t even have to walk fast or turn suddenly for it to be challenging to stay right with her. I did pretty well, considering — I guess those 5 years of marching band weren’t wasted after all, if I could stick to Erin as well as I did without a drum major out in front.

Stick to Me
A game in which the horse has to keep a zone of his body within a specified distance of a zone of your body, no matter where you go or what you do. You start on-line in zone 1 and practice your way up to all gaits at liberty. Think of it as ballroom dancing, where if you drop the lead, your partner can wander off to the snack table without saying goodbye. And where you stay utterly tuned in to your partner so you can sense their suggestions and guide the dance that way so they have more fun.

But the exercise gave us a wonderful insight into what Stick to Me is like for the horse. Erin explained about giving the horse clear direction so that he doesn’t feel left behind, and giving him time and space to do his part, before we go up the phases. I thought of chorus lines and how experienced dancers become at sticking to each other in the right zone for the maneuver.

Another effective simulation was our attempt to walk at different speeds while slapping the ground with our stick and string in a steady, intense rhythm. This was to help us feel the normal human habit of confusing “intensity” with “speed.” We can get more intense without getting faster. It all comes down to rhythm. In my head, I played a half-speed version of the Imperial March (BUM BUM BUM bum BAH dummmm bum BAH dumm) and matched my stick to it, then adjusted my stride to however many steps were necessary for each beat at any given speed.

Here’s a herd of alpacas advancing to the Imperial March and demonstrating that intensity is rhythmic, not spastic.

When I started my Point to Point pattern with River, Erin coached me to smile, which had the usual effect of lightening my whole aura as well as my body. “River is serious enough for everyone,” she said. “Riding is fun! Be fun! and light! smile!” Sure enough, when I focused on my destination and smiled, River’s walk became much more free. Before that, my intense concentration was probably molding my face into a really good driving face — except that I was projecting that intense, concentrated, serious energy forward, which made a barrier that River wasn’t sure about walking through.

Let’s just take a moment to shiver delightedly at the fact that our horses can see us up there in the saddle, including our faces and thus our facial expressions, with only the slightest tip of their nose to the left or right. In fact, I’m not even sure they have to tilt….

Categories: Freestyle, Lessons | Tags: horseback riding, parelli natural horsemanship, penn valley | 1 Comment

In which Horsegirl finds the Holy Grail

Posted on July 10, 2013 by horsegirlonajourney

Saddles That Fit was on the ranch today to fit a saddle for another Equine Partners, Inc. student, who has a Tennessee Walker mare named Sunni, or possibly Sunnie, or even Suni. When I heard they were coming, I scheduled a saddle evaluation for River. My friend Barbara is selling her Specialized trail saddle and while we knew that it didn’t fit Rockstar, we thought it might work for River. It was more than a whim, but less than a plan.

River was wonderful.

I played with her on the ground for about 90 minutes before it was our turn to be evaluated. We spent time grazing, played Touch-It, went over and around and through obstacles in the arena, and stood peacefully together watching the other mare’s fitting experience. When Susan came over to put the saddle on, River probably thought that it was time to go back to her pen. Instead, her adventure was just beginning.

Another 90 minutes of riding, shimming, riding, adjusting the shims, turning the saddle upside down to move the fenders behind the screw of the seat plates (huh?), and riding and adjusting and more riding, we had a saddle fit that River can wear from day to evening and back again.

River stood calmly every time Susan and David adjusted the saddle, shims, or cinch. Maddy and Erin both evaluated the various configurations at walk, trot, and canter. I rode at walk and trot with Erin at the helm so I could just concentrate on feel. River was patient and held up well for what might be the longest riding session she’s ever done. Even when she got obsessed with Sunni’s hay bag and became bracey, she continued to do her job for Maddy and Erin.

The one time I rode on my own, I tried to ride across the arena to Erin, where she was talking with the other student. Unfortunately to ride “straight” to Erin I would have had to walk right through Sunni. When I asked River to make an arc around Sunni’s spot, River target-locked on Sunni and the hay bag, and I wasn’t quick enough at figuring out how to guide us onto a safer path. Maddy came over and took the rein to help me move River further from Sunni’s bubble.

Lesson learned: I should have gone to the water tub first, opposite of Sunni. River and I had successfully gone there on-line several times earlier in the morning, and I would have had fewer distractions for my own focus. I hadn’t intended to show off, but I had intended to challenge myself. That I wasn’t up to the challenge — couldn’t think of a strategy fast enough, then was ineffective at implementing the strategy I did pick (leg AND rein AND energy AND body AND phases!) — just means I have something specific to work on next time.

How long has it been since I was last self-conscious and embarrassed about things like this? I’m not even sure. I know that at one point, I would have felt humiliated, showing six people that I wasn’t able to exert enough leadership to keep my horse from veering into a confrontation. Today I just laughed and made wry humorous comments and thanked Maddy for the rescue. I am where I am and where I am is good enough. Wherever it is. Whenever it is there.

When I (finally) took the saddle off for the last time today, Sunni had gone home with her owners. I took River to the hay bag and she munched contentedly while I rubbed her back. I then went inside for water and a snack and gave River an hour of alone time with the hay.

Given that Rockstar’s saddle is under construction and expected to arrive the first week of August or so, we are not very far away from two of us being able to ride, comfortably, in saddles, at the same time. At which point if anyone tries to sell us a holy grail, we can say in our best Monty Python French accents, “We’ve already got one! It’s verra naihce!”