Friday, December 7, 2012

Going Straight

I have just completed 4 regular group lessons.  It's been 5 months since I was in regular lessons.  I admit that initially I was nervous!  Yes, I have had some private lessons over the last couple of months, but for some reason I was a bit shy about riding in front of my two classmates, particularly nervous classmate.  I worried about how my performance would be judged by these two riders.  Had I improved over the last few months?  Could they see how Gem has improved since his boot camp?  Am I doing the hard work LA put into Gem's boot camp justice?  And, to be honest, I was also a little apprehensive about loping.  I hadn't really done any loping for months!  Yikes! 

I still need to work on his flexibility, but heck I need to work on mine, too!  What I really need to work back up is my endurance - after 5 months of no regular lessons, it sucks!  :-)   Our transitions have been pretty smooth; walk, jog, posting trot, changing diagonal.  I know that we are doing well by the look on nervous classmate's face (pinched) and her lack of eye contact with me.  :-)   LA's encouraging comments have been a bonus.   Posting trot over poles last week?  No problemo!  LA said that Gem and I got a "gold star" for our efforts.  Loping?..... It wasn't perfect, but it felt sooooo much better than pre-boot camp! 

You know what has been one of the biggest challenges for me?  Walking a straight line....and I don't mean after I've had a couple of vodka sodas!  :-)   Now some of you out there might think that walking a straight line isn't really that difficult.  Well, I beg to differ.  When you and your trusty steed are moseying along the perimeter of a field, you think you are walking a straight line.  In fact, the path in front of you looks straight, so you must be walking straight, right?  It isn't until you are in a confined area, picking a letter on the wall to walk towards that you realize that you aren't walking a straight line.   You sway, you drift, you sway, you drift a bit more.  You want to start nudging the bit a little or use your legs to keep your horse straight.....

LA wants me to walk a straight line with my hands and legs in neutral!   This exercise is to build trust and promote communication;  Gem has to learn to wait for me to make the decisions.  He is not allowed to decide where we are going because that's my job.  So, unless I tell him otherwise, he should walk straight ahead until I tell him to stop.  I guess this is how cowboys were able to sleep in the saddle while their horses continued moving forward - point and go.  :-)

Little drifts are not bad as long as he comes back to "centre" and ends up at the designated spot or letter.  A BIG mistake is when he drifts way off course, in affect making the decision on where the two of us are going.   When he makes a BIG mistake, I have to correct by turning him in a small circle a couple of times in the opposite direction of where he was going and start again. 

It is really hard for me to let him make a BIG mistake.   I have a tendency to micro-manage Gem; I fiddle with the reins or my legs to keep him straight.  I start to see him drift and I immediately want to correct it by putting my leg on.   It takes everything out of me to be in neutral and not correct!  It feels like when you are talking to a complete stranger and they have a piece of lint on their sweater and you have this uncontrollable urge to reach out and just pick it off! 

We have been practicing and I am happy to report that our straight lines are much, much better.  In fact, more often than not, Gem will walk to the designated letter and continue walking until his forehead is touching the wall.  :-)  During this week's lesson, he was a little bit of a brat.  However, when it came to walking or jogging a straight line from one end of the arena to the other, he was great.   In fact, it was probably the best example to-date of our straightness.  What an easy way to build confidence and promote communication. Next:  Incorporating nice sharp neck-reining turns with walking straight lines.  :-)

 Enjoy your horses and have a great weekend, everybody!






24 comments:

  1. I'm glad things are going well for you and Gem.

    Actually walking in a straight line is one of the things Socks and I are working on. I'm with you, it's much harder than it should be.

    I love the new picture, Gem is such a pretty guy.

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    1. Thanks, Cjay! I think Gem's pretty, too. :-)

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  2. Good job getting back into your group lessons!

    Straight is very hard. So is not micromanaging, but mistakes are opportunities in disguise. ;D (I find straightness much easier at the trot than the walk)

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    1. I didn't realize how I fiddled until I started doing this exercise! :-)

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  3. I know exactly what you mean! I still remember my first dressage test - I remember squiggling down the centerline, thinking "this isn't going so well", lol!

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    1. I couldn't believe how much we were drifting!

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  4. well done about getting back in to your group lessons :)

    I know what you mean about walking straight in my mind i think i am but i always know that I am drifting from side to side, or gatsby has decided to go a different way. Its something i too have to work on with my boy

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    1. I think this is one of those things that Gem and I will always have to practice. He regularly thinks he's smarter than I am . :-)

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  5. I know what you mean about walking in a straight line! I spend so much time when schooling riding on the inside track and trying to keep him straight! I miss group lessons, I used to find them really fun!

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    1. I do like the social aspect of group classes and most times they are really fun. Lessons also push me a little outside of my comfort zone.

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  6. Love the new pictures of Gem and you. Something must be wrong with the photographer they keep cutting off your head. The headless horsewoman? ;)

    I think it's great you are in group lessons again. I always found them to be fun. It's hard not to let your mind wander about what others are thinking but don't bother about that. Just do the best you can and keep your mind on your exercises. Who cares what anybody thinks but you and your trainer anyway.

    It sounds like you and Gem are doing great! Walking in a straight line without any input from you is hard to do. Dusty used to walk like a drunken sailor but we've finally got to a point now where she will walk straight with very little correction from me. I mostly try to ride with my seat and direct her that way. You and Gem are a great team making good progress every time you ride. My face isn't "pinched" right now I've got a big smile on my face. Have a great weekend.

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    1. LOL!! Yes, I am from Sleepy Hollow! I never in a million years would have thought that walking a straight line would be difficult. Now that we are sort of getting it, I am feeling quite a sense of accomplishment. Thanks for the smile! :-)

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  7. I completely agree. Walking in a straight line can be very difficult on some horses!!
    Sounds like you and Gem are doing really really well together. :)

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    1. Thanks, Ruffles. Looking forward to reading about your adventures with your new guy. ;-)

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  8. I'm going to give this a try with Lily. I've always read about the challenge of walking a line, but never had an exercise I could work on.

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    1. It such an easy exercise that you can do any where, any time. Pick a target and walk towards it. Good luck!!

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  9. So true walking in line really a discomfort thing for a horse and for the rider as well. But then that's part of good horsemanship. Anyway you're not alone with your experience. It reminded me of own riding lesson in Saltriver. It was really hard but I enjoy them so much.

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    1. Hi Kimberly! Thanks for stopping by. I am glad to see that I am not alone in my experience. :-)

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  10. I'm pretty sure anything that I don't get to micromanage or *make* happen is hard, including straight lines. I like to fiddle and shift and shove with my seat. I'm an overachiever which leads to crooked lines and crabby ponies. I'm sure Tessa must wonder what the heck I'm doing up there while she's trying to walk a straight line. Glad to hear your lessons went well!!

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    1. I can almost see the frown on Gem's face sometimes - "When the heck is she going to stop fidgeting?" :-)

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  11. Gem is such a handsome guy! I think the group lessons are a good idea, but please don't worry about the other people in the group - I remember that things can get pretty catty if it becomes competitive and the only thing that matters is what goes on between you and Gem. Going in a straight line is not easy. The other thing that I like to work on with my girls is backing up. It tells me a lot about how we're communicating. Keep on riding, that's what really matters!

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    1. It's hard sometimes not to focus on the negativity, but most times I am pretty positive and enjoy myself. Backing up is difficult. Gem backs up fine, but it's keeping him straight that is the challenge....it's next on the list! :-)

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  12. Awesomely done! Any positive forward strides are admirable. It's difficult not to micro-manage (especially when it comes to picking lint off of someone's shirt. lol!), but we just have to sometimes ignore some of the behavior we don't want and trust the horse to make a few mistakes so the horse can turn to us for guidance.

    I'm glad you're enjoying the group lessons. I actually prefer group lessons over individual private lessons. Probably has something to do with me growing up as an only-child and always having all the attention on me. lol! Sometimes I get even more from watching other's than I do from having an instructor pointing out everything I should be doing.

    ~Lisa

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    1. I like that - "...so the horse can turn to us for guidance." :-)

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