*****Kate's ride starts here***********
Sitting here in my pajamas watching the snow continue to fall outside today, it's a darn good thing that Andrea and I got to get in a really solid ride yesterday. Pro's definitely getting an unscheduled vacation day today! Anyway, I think he knew something was up when he saw both of us show up. He started off being very irritated and not wanting to do anything. I even tapped him with the whip and he was furious - tried to play the "victim" card and tell Andrea that I was abusing him. We had the poles set up so that was the next task. He didn't settle quite as quickly and got REALLY mad when he stepped on a pole or tripped. Again, more rushing and trying to be pitiful and make me feel badly for him and quit. So we kept at it until he figured out that nothing would get him out of it - he was just going to have to pay attention to where his feet were going.
Once that was done we moved to a 20m circle at the walk, un-squooshing my legs from his sides and trying to let him plug in my seatbones (he did NOT want my seat secure while we were doing the poles). He eventually settled and gave me quite a nice walk and from there we moved to the trot which began to loosen up. Although he was trying to "fake" stretch" by just slightly meeting the end of the rein, I had to use the "come here" inside rein a bit, plus kicks with my inside leg, followed by giving of the inside rein, to get him to honestly stretch over his back. After a few transitions he felt loose enough to hand over to Andrea! :)
******Andrea's ride starts here***********
Once she'd worked out all the kinks I got on and gave the poles my best shot. I haven't had the best of luck with them in the past, but today went better. Kate pointed out that the key is keeping my seat bones plugged in (something I know I'm being too lazy about after the last week or two) and keeping him constantly going over poles.
Then we moved on to the trot, and again he was pretty good. After over an hour of being worked, he was finally really starting to reach across and over his back, no gimmicks needed. :) We were both pretty proud of him. I figured it was worth taking the next step and asked for a canter. He was really good and stretching through to the right
. Gave a great downward transition and change of directions before starting the dreaded anticipation. A couple downward transitions and back to the trot to distract him and then canter to the right. He didn't stretch as well in that direction, but I felt like I was leaning in and throwing him off balance. So I rebalanced myself and it got better. After another good downward transition we called it quits, nearly 2 hours after we got on. Some days, you really just need 2 people. :D
. Gave a great downward transition and change of directions before starting the dreaded anticipation. A couple downward transitions and back to the trot to distract him and then canter to the right. He didn't stretch as well in that direction, but I felt like I was leaning in and throwing him off balance. So I rebalanced myself and it got better. After another good downward transition we called it quits, nearly 2 hours after we got on. Some days, you really just need 2 people. :D
9 comments:
It sounds like 2 hours of work is exactly what Pro needed. The pics are GREAT!!
Do you guys think that sometimes Pro is bad b/c he wants to be worked more?
Well done, you two! The two of you and Prometeus look great.
I can't imagine riding for 2 hours - unless its a trail ride!
Hahahahaha ummmm...I think sometimes Pro is bad because he's like a little kid who whines about something until they just hush up and do it and then they have a great time and forget all about the whining. I think he usually has the cognitive capacity of a goldfish ;) so he can't remember that if he just RELAXES (and if Andrea and I manage to somehow get it all right), he has fun and enjoys himself.
If only Andrea and I had enough time to ride him for two hours six days a week...he'd be Grand Prix in a year! ;)
Good work ladies!! It sounds like you did a fantastic job.
I'm curious about the pole work -- I've never seen anyone ride over poles that are crossed in an "X" on the ground like that before. Would someone mind explaining it to me? Looks neat in the photos!
Good job you two! Give Pro a big pet for (finally) being a good boy!
Libby - glad you asked! I forgot that not everyone got to read the earlier blog where Gayle first introduced the poles.
It's a neat exercise because the horse has to REALLY pay attention to where his feet are at all times. Gayle used it when Pro was being a snot one day - to get him to focus on something and get involved in a mental puzzle. What works best with Pro is to keep him turning and rotating so that he's moving OFF my outside leg/aids and so that he spends as little time as possible not going over the poles...and the maximum amount of time figuring out the puzzle. It gets him to move his pelvis all around and his shoulders and his whole body in new and creative ways. If he jigs, he's forced to walk when he gets to the poles otherwise he trips and makes a mess of things - the poles force him to slow down and pay attention.
He also has to walk FORWARD to the poles, as his tendency (as with other timid horses) is to hesitantly walk up and chip in a few nervous strides before walking over. Nope, he has to boldly walk forward and stride right over.
Oh and I have to mention that yesterday Andrea said, "When I have a baby I'm going to make sure they do this to learn where their feet are!" and at first I thought she meant her OWN kid someday. ;) Thankfully she meant an equine baby!
Gayle said it's an excellent (and should be mandatory) exercise for will-be jumpers before they learn how to jump.
Haha. Yes, baby horses. Because a horse getting to be 16 or whatever Pro is without having a CLUE where there feet are is a disgrace.
Gayle pointed out that for jumpers, it makes your life a lot easier if you never let them chip in, not even over ground poles. Gayle just has all sorts of wisdom. ;)
It does sound like Pro needed this 2 hour tag team ride! The pics are great, too. I am glad you got good results! I need to try the crossed poles now that I have a horse I can ride! :)
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