When a barn friend C. offered to let me use her 24 yr old Schoolmaster and tag along to a clinic this weekend with an eventing trainer she loves, Trainer V. - of course I said YES!
I got a mini-lesson on Friday night, partially cause I've only ridden The Schoolmaster for about 5 whole minutes in a jump saddle one time - and secondly, because he goes best in a treeless saddle - and no twist is just kinda weird and takes some getting used to! C. walked me thru where all his buttons were: this boy is super bendy, and also goes in a higher frame than I'm used to (both Porsche and Tesla are in the long n low phase: Porsche tends to move like a hunter: very flat, and Tesla tends to ball up, so I'm always encouraging her to reach down) He also likes a lot of support within the contact - so it was a bit like driving a car where you didn't exactly know where the gear shifts were yet...but C. talked me through it beautifully and by the end, I felt more prepared for my "catch ride" lesson :)
The Schoolmaster was by far the most trained dressage horse I've sat on. The joke is he rides you - whatever you are doing as a rider, he does his best to do it - even if you are very wrong lol :)
Trainer V. was awesome. First off we went over a bit of my riding background (western and polo) and I apparently did a stereotypical western move during the walk break in the lesson by taking both reins in my left hand and letting my right arm hang by my side LOL.
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| something like this |
She was actually super excited that I have mostly learned to ride by doing it..
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| If that was a buckskin paint, well then that totes could've been younger me :) |
Since I have quite a bit of riding experience, but not a lot of formal training, I loved how she asked me to feel for what was correct. Like - can you do a haunches in? and then just let me kinda figure it out until I got it, without putting complicated or limiting verbiage on it.
We did a lot of working on geometry and transitions.
Some interesting tidbits:
The outside rein is the "bra" to package up the horse the way you want. - we both laughed at this one, but I get what she was saying :D
Everything in dressage needs to come more from the torso, with the hips following: thats how the aids look invisible. It's a close dance like a waltz - so there needs to be contact with both partners at all times (versus everything else I've ever done where you ask then release).
The walk to canter transition cues were very different on The Schoolmaster. With Porsche, I can just kinda scoop her up with my outside seat bone/bringing my outside leg back - but with him I needed a combination of inside and outside leg. But we got it :)
For me specifically:
My Right leg wants to curl, and I had to remember not to pinch with my knees (I think the knee thing was related to the treeless - I don't notice that particular habit in my own saddles...) I do tend to want to sit with my right leg a bit more forward - I'll have to work on stretching out that right hip!
Overall impressions were that I am a capable rider now - but with some good instruction could get much more competitive. Also, apparently I'm a good student (no shocker there after umpteen years of secondary education LOL) and Trainer V. loved that if she mentioned something, I may not completely understand, but I don't make excuses, I just try.the.thing. (yup, I've always been that way lol)
Stay tuned for Day 2!
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