Sunday, 28 August 2016

Connection

One major issue I have been trying to work through with Savvy this summer is consistency on the contact.


Proof good moments are in there, although it didn't feel like it while I was riding...

The connection issue has been a bit of an overwhelming challenge. She is so light and reactive it feels like any wrong move on my part has her high and hollow or curled in behind the vertical, but mostly bouncing back and forth between the two every step of the way.

I feel like I have tried everything. The best piece of advice I have picked up is that it is not about the head.

Not. about. the. head. ugh.

Furthermore, correct the movement and the head will follow. ugh.

Back in the good old days as a kid showing ponies, it was all about the head and pulling it in. False collection was where it was at, and no one new it was false. Easy peasy.

No more my friend. Now it has to be straighten the shoulder. Encourage the back up. Stay soft yet tall - think uphill. The horse will round. The poll becomes the highest point and your horse will be using their body to the fullest.

Or...we pogo-stick around the arena hollow-backed and nose out. sigh.


A well-deserved hack in the field is actually becoming a thing! (Not so scary for us anymore!)
Most rides feel like there is no improvement happening. The small details can get intensely frustrating but then something will happen and it reminds me of how far we have come. Like young Shiraz bolting suddenly and taking off bucking/galloping in the barnyard while I am working on canter departs on Savvy and she doesn't lose her mind. Or riding out to the field for a relaxing ride and it actually is because we are really starting to trust each other. 

Connection is going to happen. It already has in so many other more important ways.

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8 comments:

  1. TeresaA29 August 2016 at 03:07

    This. It's so very hard and so fundamental for everything. Keep it up- she's coming along.

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    1. LandofWOZ29 August 2016 at 06:44

      When all the pieces come together it feels pretty awesome! Consistency is just going to take time.

      Delete
  2. emma29 August 2016 at 04:33

    My mare loved baiting me into arguments about where she held her nose, and I would get distracted from actually riding the rest of her body. Devious ponies!

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    1. LandofWOZ29 August 2016 at 06:46

      Savvy is SO opinionated about everything! Convincing her to do things differently without an argement is a struggle. :)

      Delete
  3. Exploring Dressage Biomechanics29 August 2016 at 05:52

    It is all about the body and not about the head. If the horse is relaxed and you get them aligned on the figure, they will release into the contact. The hard part is you get their body aligned with your body NOT with your hands. Humans want to use their hands for everything but in really good riding the body aids are so much more important and the hands are there mostly for connection and feedback.

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    1. LandofWOZ29 August 2016 at 07:07

      My biggest struggle is getting her to relax. She is an over-thinker and loses relaxation in all her anticipating of what is coming next. But once I can help her relax, it is so much easier for her to 'hear' my body.

      Delete
  4. KateRose3 September 2016 at 18:08

    Connection is so flippin hard! When you figure it all out...teach it to me :P

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