Odin's Diary

heat wave!

2009-07-29T15:14:00.000-07:00

These last days, the Pacific Northwest have been having a pretty hot weather for the area, hitting close to a 100 degrees (Fake degrees, real degrees: 38-ish). The barn has been feeling like a sauna, everything is so hot.

Monday I did not have lesson, and when I came to the barn I decided it was too hot to ride. I wouldn't get anything useful done. Odin, I think, fully agreed with me. He was wet with sweat under his fly sheet, both is croup and chest were wet. I gave him a bath and took him grazing in the shade, nice and relaxing. No more fly sheet, have to deal with the flies.

Last night, Tuesday, I had a lesson. Odin was still a bit damp on the chest just standing around, yuck. We really need a good thunderstorm to get the humidity out of the air (but this is no Florida, but the heat is so unusual. Not like there are fans in the barns!). My whole lesson was in walk, we did turn on the haunches. Very interesting to work a whole lesson on medium-free walk transitions, collected walk and the turns. Took him a bit to be marching forward to the bit, but we got there. By the end L. said he had a foot overstep in the free walk. Nice feeling!

This morning, it was a bit cooler due to the time, so we could work on some more things, I was still sweating like crazy though.
I worked on getting his hind legs to track up and under and his back to come up, for Odin to be truly on the bit. Since we have been working on getting more forward without getting longer, L. called out that when I take my reins in one hand (to use my whip effectively - otherwise I end up nagging a lot), he gets above the bit, and pulls me forward. She then used this as an illustration of even if I have his neck curled up in front of me, both of us a leaning so much on the bit/reins, so he is not really together at all.
I then went on to have no stirrups, and a lot of forward, give hands forward, take reins in one hand, where Odin should stay on the bit and not rush forward and go downhill, and I should not balance on the reins and hunch forward as soon as I gave on them. Hard! But I did get a nice feeling of his back being up under me, more than I have had before. Nice to know what I am looking for. It helped doing it with no stirrups so my butt stayed in the saddle too...
It is a bit hard to get to that point, for now to make it happen I have to get Odin fired up a bit. He really doesn't want to do it, and usually I need a bit of an Odin tantrum before it gets there (kicking out, jumping up in canter or out in trot, jigging along...). Part of it is that we still need to figure out the communication, he needs to know what I want, then he can relax, I need to know how to ask for it. Part of it is just his personality, I am sure... Some times he acts like a 5 year old who doesn't want to go to bed when his parents tell him to!

happy to get some riding in, L. is training him the next two days, with what she can do in the heat.
At least I now Odin is drinking lots, and S. keeps filling their buckets. (Yay for having 100% confidence in the barn management!).

Shows...

2009-07-20T15:11:00.000-07:00

Since my last update we have been to 3 (!) shows. A one day show in May, and 2 3 day shows in June and July.

Last weekend we went to Dressage @ DevonWood, which is a huge show, with very experienced judges. DevonWood is just south of Portland, OR, and it is a very, very pretty facility. I was very impressed, the footing was impeccable too.

The shows were all fun, but we didn't get a lot of high scores. I did First level tests, which means I have to sit the trot, and this is really still a huge problem for me. When I have Odin forward enough (which is starting to happen), I just can't follow is trot. Lots of lunge lessons and no stirrup work to come, I suspect.

Just before this last show I had a lunge lessons where L. told me to feel like I am posting with my abs, even when sitting. Another thing she said was to feel like my body was dribbling basket ball. Both these things really help me to understand what I need to be doing, but it is really hard for me to do when trying to ride Odin too! I used to think if I just could relax my seat I would be good, but it is more than that.

I also need more experience for the whole showing thing, how to warm up, how to not be too nervous and tense. The first day I ride too stiff and braced usually, I don't dare to ride forward.

as always we are a work in progress!

This year, USDF removed the citizen requirement for the Regional finals, but we didn't manage to qualify. Still happy the requirement is gone. Maybe next year!

Half halts and balance

2009-05-12T22:39:00.001-07:00

A few musings on the half halt from tonight's lesson.

We worked on my tests, and on balancing to do the movements. I realized I needed to do the following continuously:

Balance, forward, collect, forward, repeat.

Then I realized that this is the ‘balancing half-halt’ and the ‘collecting half-halt’. But it makes no sense trying to think of it as a half-halt. I have always thought, oh, I need to do a half-halt, and ended up just slowing Odin down, or tensing up my body. Tonight I didn’t think half-halt, I just thought, ‘I need to balance him and them push him forward’, or' ‘I need to collect before starting the stretchy circle’. I thought about what result I wanted from the half-halt, instead of just doing a half-halt.

It made me think that maybe the half-halt is a bad name? It feels more like ‘all the little things we do to make the horse do actual dressage’.

Or maybe it just is me that needs to think about it this way, but I now know I need to focus on the result of my actions; how do I want Odin to go? How do I get there?

Balance & showing

2009-05-12T08:30:00.001-07:00

We are going the the first show of the year next weekend, a one-day show on Sunday. We are doing First level 1 and 2, it will be interesting to see how that goes. Since the schooling shows earlier got cancelled, this is the first show since I showed in August, so I am pretty excited/nervous.

First level means lengthenings, legyields, 12 m circles in canter, a halt, and of course sitting the trot. The last part is such a general problem for me, I still feel like I am bouncing around like crazy, or tightening up my whole body to keep my butt in the saddle. L. did tell me that she though Odin had a relatively big trot, and if I learn to sit that, I will be able to sit most horses trot. Not sure that makes me feel better…

Otherwise we have been training a lot of balance. Keeping Odin forward and balanced has been the idea, usually I can get one or the other. Every time he goes forward he wants to go on the forehand and pull me out of the saddle (see, the sitting thing is connected). We have been working on training him to this being unacceptable, but it is hard for me, since I have to stay in balance and help him being balanced, so that I don’t give the reins away either and let him stay on the forehand. I had a bad canter-trot transition where Odin slipped and feel to his knees (no one got hurt), so it really drove the point home about balance, so we have been working on this quite a bit.

When I get him balanced, the lengthenings and legyields are so much better, and actually possible. I did a nice canter lengthening in my lesson yesterday, where I really could feel him push from behind. The trick was to keep him balanced and together, then he could do it.

We have also been working on straightness, but mostly forward & straight, without thinking that much about balance. Doing all these things at once is hard, but they are all so connected.

What is new?

2009-05-05T15:09:00.000-07:00

I got kindly reminded that I don't really update here anymore, and I should.
If nothing else, then to keep track of our progress for my own sake.

Well, March held 2 cancelled schooling shows due to snow (one of them we actually got up, loaded the horses, drove down there, turned around and went back. Not fun, but Odin got some trailer training - he rushes out of them, dangerous).

We have been working on forward and on the aids. Lately on shoulder-in and renvers, about how to get him between the aids, outside rein, inside leg. Usually it is either-or. I can get him forward, but he falls out. I pick up the outside rein, he stops moving. Sigh. I find it quite complicated, and Odin finds it hard.

Also, bits. I use a Myler bit on him, and I like it, Odin is not fuzzy about it, but it still doesn't give him a lot of opportunity to hang on it. However, they have squarish edges instead of round, and he had been getting a little rub from it on the side of his mouth. I changed back to regular 3-part snaffle, and it doesn't rub him, but he will totally ignore the bit. I think I might try some bit guards.

A whole new horse!

2009-01-28T14:47:00.000-08:00

We put Odin back to work Monday, and the difference is amazing. He is much more willing to step under, to bend, to go forward. I feel bad we didn't do this 6 months ago! I think it is hard to pin point these things which progressively gets worse, you keep thinking that maybe he is just not ridden supple enough, maybe he is getting old, maybe, maybe, maybe! It was good to see him flexed and see that there was a problem, and we can now feel this is much better. I still have to keep an eye on the back to see if it still is sore (I find it hard to poke hard enough to see the soreness, though). L. also suggested that I should have him flexed a year from now, just too see if he might need another injection, as this sneaked up on us.

Another great thing, last night L. told me to not let him hang on the reins and not hold him together by force. She explained it in a new way, half-halt, forward, let go. Keep doing this until he stays forward and up in the half halts, without me holding him there. This really helped! He felt so much lighter last night and today when I did this. I think I hadn't gotten a good feel for a light contact while he stayed in balance before. The 'let go' is the important part to remember for me, but I need to also remember than he can't stay up if he isn't forward.
That is another thing, he needs to be more forward than I am used to when I do this. I think it is a better speed overall, but I really need to get used to it. I instinctively want to slow down :).

I think between the injection and the oats, I have a whole lot more horse, yay!

Injection

2009-01-22T14:46:00.000-08:00

The vet was there yesterday, and she flexed Odin's stifle, hock and fetlock. IT was clear that he was not 100% OK on the right, he wasn't limping on 3 legs, but not a clean flex.
NH (the vet) said that she would call the hock a '3', the fetlock a '1-2' and the stifle a '2'. She said he was 100% clean on the right.

She thought that the back pain and possibly the fetlock pain were secondary to the hock, the stifle might be too. She recommended that he got injected in the stifle and hock on the right, and I agreed to that. She did that last morning (I didn't stay to watch the sedation and needles - work & chicken), so now Odin has 5 days off. There is a small risk of infection (and joint infection would BAD), but she is a really experiences vet and has never seen complications doing the procedure.

We talked about doing the left as well, but as he looked clean, it might be better to try this first and then if we then see issues to the left, then we can consider it. In that way it is easier to pinpoint how effective the different things are (all it will cost is the farm call and sedation - and 5 days off).

he got injected in both hocks 1 1/2 years ago, and it was a big difference, so I am hoping for similar results.

It was interesting to see the flex test, and how she did the different joints. Odin was being really patient through the whole thing.

Oats = good, soreness = not good

2009-01-20T21:56:00.000-08:00

So, the oat experiment seems to be going well. Odin gets 1/2 scoop oats with 1 scoop pellets AM & PM, and I have a lot more horse suddenly. He doesn't get tired during my lesson, and is a lot easier to get to go forward. Now, I have to get used to it, he runs a little bit through my hands forward (evading that way instead of slowing to a crawl, I think its progress), but I just think I have to get used to it. Now I suddenly have more power, I need to contain it.

Now the other thing which has come up, some soreness/stiffness. Here the last week or 2 Odin has been a lot more reluctant to canter on the right lead, especially while being straight (or at least a little less crooked). As soon as I try to straighten or do a half-halt he is swapping leads. I can get him a little more supple on the right and it helps, but it is clear that he is uncomfortable cantering to the right.

L. and I talked about it yesterday and today. He doesn't look uneven or stiff/jerky in the trot at all, clear 2 beat trot. In the canter to the right he keeps stiffening his hind legs and swapping leads, especially when first cantering without suppleling. L. ride him today in the first part of my lesson to make sure he felt like that as well for her, she could feel he did the same with her as with me.
L. also poked his back, he was quite sore in his back, in the hind end.

So, what is it?
1) cold weather stiffness? Well he didn't do it in the end of December where it was very cold too
2) the oats? This started at the same time as the oats, and he was on a high-protein feed earlier. The pellets didn't seem to have any difference, but the oats are probably more starchy/sugar?
3) general stiffness. Well he is trained the same, and it does get better with riding, but the sore back indicates that it might be more than that.
4) Hocks. He had his hocks injected about 1 1/2 years ago, and he swapped leads then. It really helped with the stepping the right leg under himself. L. thinks the sore back points to a hock problem. (The saddle fits well)
5) bad riding. We don't ride him that deep/out/over his back, but he is not ridden hollow either, and he doesn't have any glaring conformation issues. I don't think he is ridden perfectly, but I think issues like this would have come up earlier, and I don't think the way he goes when I see L. ride him looks bad.

So, tomorrow the vet was NH coming by the barn anyway, so we will have her look at him, and probably flex him and see if she can see anything. So maybe an injection.

The other thing we can do is put him off the oats, and back on the Purina Ultium, but keep the pellets so he still has more energy. If NH doesn't think there is anything with the hocks we might try that.

He is getting a shot of Legend (HA) every month. I tried Adequan (Glucosamine) this summer and it made no difference, but I might try again, since this is new.

It might also be a combination of all the points, of course...

Well, he is almost 17 years old, and have been during dressage his whole life, so there probably is some wear and tear on the joints, and it is not so that he can't/wont do it, but that doesn't mean he should be uncomfortable being asked to canter right.
Hopefully it will get better.

The great oat experiment

2009-01-08T17:49:00.000-08:00

When I got Odin, he was on the Ultima feed from Purina, a high protein/fat performance feed. When the prices rose the summer, L. and I discusses putting him on alfalfa pellets and see how he did (alfalfa & oats are included in board price). So we tried, and we didn't see any change. Saving cost and bother for barn manager (who had been so kind and pick up my special feed when he went to feed store).

So, the only difference was that Odin ate his pellets a lot slower than the Ultima, he always eats his hay first, but it is not as if he doesn't eat, its just clearly not his favorite stuff.

However, recently we talked about his energy level, and it seems very low. He has never been an energetic horse, but he feels so tired after 30-40 min work with me, and 20 min work with L.
So she suggested we try and feed him oats, just 1/2 scoop on top of the pellets. We will be trying the whole of this week, and evaluate Saturday.

I don't think he will get 'hot', but it will be interesting to see if his energy level is higher. He is also lazy, but L. reminded me that it is a training issue, you can have a hot and lazy horse. His whole 'I'm done, just end it' attitude (he runs and hangs on the bit (more) in the last part of my lessons) might be lack of energy, though.

I don't know if the Ultima fed him more calories, or were better for him and it just took a while to really discover, or if I work him a bit harder now, or if it is cold (for this area) and he has been worked little the 2 weeks prior and doesn't move around when there is lots of snow outside and thus got out of training ( I know I can feel 2 weeks not going to the gym!).

lots of things to consider, but it will be interesting to see how he feels on the oats. I know some of my TB owning barn mates feed oats in winter.

On another note, I had a few awesome downwards transitions in my lesson yesterday, from canter to trot and canter to walk. Both I think because I really tried to make him not hang on bit, do a decent forward half-halt before, and then align my seat bones and legs correctly in the downward transition. I had problems communicating the difference between a half-halt and a transition, but that last part with alignment helped.

I also got one nice upward transition into canter, where I could really feel the push behind. It is great to feel how it always should be!

Odin & Me at Whidbey Show

2008-12-18T14:21:00.001-08:00

Odin & Me at Whidbey Show, originally uploaded by IdaWW.

Finally got the pictures I wanted from the pro photographer ordered. Here is one of the them. I really like the way Odin looks at the camera, and you can see the awesome braids M. made for me (yeah, I still need practice. Mine came out in the first test).

I look a little concened, and yes, I am hunched a little forward (but, really, you should have seen the other pics :P).

I do ride in jods, yes, I didn't own tlal boots, and it is actually legal. Now it is legal to ride in halfchaps through First Level, which I think is great. I have brought boots though, still waiting to break them in.

btw, we scored between 59 and 62%, and got some second and forth places, I was happy.

Riding from the inside leg to the outside rein

2008-12-15T11:35:00.000-08:00

I saw that jesterjigger commented on my previous post, about releasing the inside rein while half halting the outside rein, while doing a transitions.

My last couple of lessons we have been focusing on driving Odin to the outside rein. He tends to fall out (or in) when I do a half halt, instead of coming together. L. had me tap his inside shoulder while half halting his outside rein, to make him have better balance. My problem is that I don't always feel him falling in, and I feel I have quite a bit of weight in both my hands (since Odin is usually heavy on the bit), so it hard to feel that I don't have enough on my outside rein.

This does require quite a bit of coordination, especially since I have to try and keep a consistent contact on the inside rein (I can't ride him together/balanced enough for me to have slack on the inside rein, yet). However, if I do manage this feat, I can see in the mirrors how much more balanced he is. It is harder for me to feel it, though, which is annoying, I need to feel if my corrections are effective.

Last lesson I did some counter-canter while doing this, and it felt a lot more balanced/straight that usual, when Odin is together he has a really awesome canter, it puts a smile on my face :D.

All this has really make me think about the title of this, you always read you should ride from the inside leg to the outside rein, now I understand a little of what that is about.

Timing

2008-12-09T13:42:00.000-08:00

After being on vacation for 2 weeks, I have now been back for a week, and it feels good to ride again.

Yesterday we focused on timing in transitions, and it was a really good lesson. L. made me aware of my timing when doing a half halt to re-balance, it needs to be collect/contract - then forward immediately, which I knew, but not really concentrated on applying all the time. In transitions we did the same, collect, then immediately do the transition. I use to do a half halt, think about if it worked, then do the transition. Doing the half halt almost at the same time as doing the transition made them so much better, Odin was able to be a lot more balanced. Yay! It is really hard for me to remember to do, though, as with anything that is not a habit.

we also did a bit of lenghtenings in trot, here I could also feel how much I had to support him with half halts too keep his balance and collection in the lenghtenings. I don't think we entirely succeeded, but I could feel what needed to be done much better.

Great ride and being sick

2008-11-06T11:28:00.000-08:00

Saturday I had a fantastic ride. We were outside, since a clinic was going on at the barn, and it actually wasn't raining. Odin started off with being silly, since a horse out side started galloping around in her paddock, bucking and kicking the gate - unfortunately I couldn't ride him through and keep him focused, but after that it got better.

I really was focusing on keeping him forward, and sitting back and deep, so he couldn't pull me forward and go on the forehand. The ride felt really good, but it was hard, and required a lot of concentration. Unfortunately I couldn't quite keep him as straight as I wanted when I did this; when he couldn't slow down or go on his forehand he tries to throw his shoulders in or out. However, I was pleased that I was able to feel this. We worked a little on that in the end of the lesson, and all in all it felt really good.

Monday, however I was sick. This is the 3rd time I have been sick in this last month or so, and I am getting very tired of it. My doctor said I kept getting reinfected with the same virus, I have had sore throat all times. So now I am trying to get really rid of it. The worst part is that I haven't been riding much in Oct/Nov, and in a week we are going on vacation for 14 days. So little riding :(.

Recap

2008-10-20T12:52:00.000-07:00

so, I havn't updated in a while, which I should.

In August, the big thing was that we went to a recognized show. We did training level, just to try out showing without having to do anything difficult, and it went great. Got 5 out of 6 scores abobe 60%, and 2 second placings. A lot of feedback about the same things we work on at home, my seat, rein contact, forwardness, balance of rider (and badly influencing the horse). Lots of encouragements and comments about having a great horse to learn on.
And yes, Odin was a STAR. He is such a cool guy to learn on. He came, he was 'ok, this is a show. I know this stuff. Let me do my nice trot'. He really helped me get my nervousness out. Of course he should be more forward, more uphill, the stretchy circle and free walk need a LOT of work, but overall that wasn't the important things (though ribbons were nice), but that I am not nervous about showing him at all now, he is such a levelheaded horse.

I will try and see if I can find some pictures where I don't lean forward too much :P.

After the show we worked in the free walk and the stretchy circle a bit, and how to get an elastic feeling on the rein.

Recently we worked on straightness. We did some shoulder-in to renvers, which were really helpful in getting Odin more supple and straight. We practiced doing trot-canter transitions while straight, that is hard! I think two important things came from this: I try to make Odin less stiff and crooked, since it has been getting worse, and is shouldn't be, that leads to frustration. I think it is a bit better now. I also developed a much better 'feel' for when he is straight or not, and some skills to straighten him. I got the difference between when he falls out or in on a circle or long side, or when he stays straight or correctly bend. The 'feel' is the hardest part of riding, it is what you need master, but I now think it can be learned. And I do have the rest of my life for it :)

Lastly, the last week we worked on forward, half-halts, and expectations. I have been trying to expect more from him, to not allow him to come out of collection when I go forward, or slow down when I collect. It is hard, because now it has become a habit, Odin expects to slow down when I collect, so we need to do a bit of retraining. L. told me the other lesson, if you have to use your legs in a half-halt to prevent him to slow down, he is not in front of you legs. You collect and allow, not push. Hmm... we're not quite there yet, but I did have a bit of that feeling the last lesson.

these last lessons I have been riding with drawreins, which are not my favorite thing. I have a hard time organizing 2 sets of reins, I am terrified of using them too much. They do help me with not letting Odin lean on my hands, and also I don't lean on the reins either, because I have to be more careful with the drawreins. L. is good at making sure they are not used to make Odin curl his neck up and that they are loose enough. I am still sceptical whether this is ultimately the right thing to do, but now I try.

One more thing I have to remind myself, I could really feel a difference after the Legend shot in the start of Oct. The end of September he quite stiff in the right hind, but it really changed with the Legend. I tried an Adequan shot this summer, didn't seem to change anything, but I will definitely keep going with the Legend.

Communication

2008-07-28T21:32:00.001-07:00

My lessons Wednesday and Saturday was more work with no stirrups, and all about communication.

The great thing was that in Saturday's lesson, L. asked me to canter across the diagonal, trot at X and then pick up the other lead canter. I was very concerned by doing this, he usually think I want a change and does one, I was afraid of sitting that with no stirrups! The diagonal is very long too, sometimes Odin anticipates a canter lengthening! This made me tense up, of course, so he did pop a change. And I stayed sitting, no problem. My confidence is rising :D.

As for communication, we did some downward transitions. They are not so good, they are not precise, and they are not forward. Canter-trot I tend to just take my driving aids off, and he goes into trot, but I have been able to improve this a bit. They are especially better when I ride with no stirrups, I know if his trot is crappy after the transition, I might not be able to sit it.

The trot-walk ones are really frustrating. I try to keep him moving forward into the transition, and making the transition by 'stopping my seat'. When Odin doesn't react, I get desperate and tense up more and more of my body, thighs, butt, back, pushing myself out of the saddle. I keep thinking that it is because I don't use my seat correctly for the downward transition, which is part of the problem, but not all of it. L. pointed out that Odin ignores me, because I let him. I need to correct him when he doesn't listen to me, and he is not a young horse who might be confused as to what I want, he should already know this, and probably also know when he can blow trough my aids. We did some work where I corrected him if he didn't halt at a light aid, and like magic he suddenly understood what I wanted.

I am not the type of person who blames the horse, or the trainer, or the weather (ok, maybe the weather), I know I have lot to learn, but sometimes I need to remember that part of learning is also how to train the horse to respond to me, and that Odin is an experienced guy who is not too bad at trying to do things the easy way. I need to higher my expectations to his reactions to my aids. Always, consistently.

saddle fitting

2008-07-28T12:59:00.000-07:00

Friday the saddler came by the barn to look at 4 of the horses. Most of us have Schleese saddles, and have brought from this guy, who is the local fitter for Schleese (and also competes locally in eventing). It has been 10 months since I got my saddle, so a fitting was due.

Odin had already worked earlier in the day, it was hot, and I couldn't get him to go forward at all, not even one little nice trot circle! So the fitter had to see s at our worst, I really can't collect him when he doesn't go forward.

He took the saddle up in front, I could feel that immediately. IT seems like Odin's muscles behind the withers have changed a bit. He also did a bit of adjusting to the sides, he ended up being 95% happy. Odin is really unequal on his two sides, mostly due to me not being able to bend him well enough. The saddler even noticed that my right and left leg rests against Odin quite differently. It is funny how you never notice these things yourself.

I think it was very useful to have the saddle adjusted, and I just have to work on making his right side as strong as his left side.

Cantering, now without stirrups

2008-07-22T22:27:00.001-07:00

In today's lesson we continued what we have been doing recently, namely balance/seat and transitions. After some trotting, L. asked me to canter. It has been a long while since I have cantered with no stirrups. I must say I have been a bit afraid of it, but it was easy. I follow Odin so much better without the stirrups, no way to push my seat out of the saddle! I also make my downward transitions a lot better, since I know if he gets into a bad, stung out trot, I might not be able to sit it...

In the canter and canter transitions we worked on straightness. I sit to the right, but when I sit in the middle, I feel like I sit to the left. I also find it hard to keep him straight though the neck and bend around my inside leg, especially the right. I feel like I loose control if I I don't keep his neck to the right. I probably don't use my inside aids. Use of legs, and keep my balance. More to learn!

I did the entire lesson with no stirrups, and now I am sore, but I feel accomplished :)

transitions with suppleness

2008-07-22T12:23:00.000-07:00

Besides starting out with a lot of forward (Odin was lazy after a weekend off), we did the usual no stirrups thing in the lesson. Getting better all the time!

Then we went on to transitions. Which were supposed to happen forward, and result in a more upright, collected horse. Which really wasn't what was happening, more like a strung out falling on his forehand horse.

L. then had me leg yield him into the transition, and drive him forward during it. The leg yielding should keep him more supple, and not let him hand on the bit, together with the forward.
It was hard for me to do this. I had to steer and leg yield, and wrap my head around what the end result should be. I tended to let go of my outside aids too much, so he became crooked instead of bending. In the end I think we got one nice transition from canter to trot, where the trot was forward and Odin was in a nice frame. But more practice needed!

On the fungus side of things, it seems to be almost gone. Only his skin is still full of bare patches, so waiting for that to heal. There were some flaky stuff still, but it looked like it might be the mikrotek stuff, it looked like a film of inorganic material and not like fungus crust. Hmm. We will see.

Ouch, my seatbone(s)!

2008-07-16T13:43:00.000-07:00

Tuesday and Wednesday I had lessons, more stirrup less riding.

Tuesday we started off with a bunch of trot-canter-trot transitions, to get Odin a bit more round. We practiced the correct canter aid again, not just running into it. It is quite hard for me, and a bit frustrating. I ended up getting one or two good one, and he did get rounder.

Then I did lots of trot with no stirrups, as I did Monday. L. was noticing that I was working too hard, Odin needs to go more on his own. I think part of it is that I get mentally exhausted from sitting with no stirrups, it wears me out. I have a hard time concentrating on riding, using my aids, and stay upright in the saddle.

Wednesday we started out with an aid sensitivity exercise. I would very, very lightly tap Odin with me legs, and if he didn't immediately scoot forward, a BIG correction would follow. Rinse, repeat. In the beginning L. would ask me to say now when I used my legs, and then she would correct so I could see how quickly she timed it. She then asked me to do it, and it was OK, but I had to practice not pulling back when using the whip, deliberately letting go.
It actually didn't take that many corrections before Odin got it, he moved off nicely from a light aid. Added benefit: When he is in front of my legs, he is a lot lighter in my hand. Just like the theory tells!

The problem is of course that I need to be 100% consistent to make this work. After a minute of going forward promptly, he gets more and more sluggish again. I, of course, don't notice since it gradual (he still moved forward), and I am concentrating on whatever else I am doing. Then we go back to using bigger and bigger aids, and then it goes back to nagging every stride...

Something to continue to work on. The whole concept of having enough mental surplus to train the horse 100% of the time you ride is hard, it does take a lot of effort just to sit up.

It was a very useful exercise, a step on the way.

Then we did trotting with no stirrups again, this time also 10m circles and more serpentines and leg yields. This prompted the seatbone soreness! My right seatbone especially was sore - and one of the things we worked on was me sitting straight, L. said I was not sitting in the middle of the saddle, and collapsing the right hip. Well, I guess the soreness proves it - it was also way harder for me to do 10 m circles to left, even if this is Odin's 'good' side. So we worked on sitting in the middle of the saddle.

Riding without stirrups is getting so much easier, I feel a lot more confident, so while there seem to be an endless list of corrections to make, I do feel a lot of progress.

Also: stupid fungus, I can't get rid of it. Every day there is lot of scabbing to scrub off. I took away his flymask, my theory was that he was sweating under it aggravating it. I also made sure to disinfect his halter with an alcohol wipe, and make sure all the sweat is off his face after we ride. Hopefully there will be less fungus soon!

Lessons again

2008-07-15T16:57:00.000-07:00

L. was back about one and a half week ago, and I am happy to be back in full training. I must admit that I find it hard to motivate my self and be consistent, and not just jog around.
I would love to blame it on the hot weather, but the truth is that cold or wet weather doesn't make my any more motivated :P.

What was really nice was that even though I might not be 100% consistent, I could feel an improvement in our downward transitions, which I had been working on. It felt like we were communicating a little better. It was nice to feel that I could get a bit progress on my own, I not regress while I am riding on my own, as it sometimes feels like.

Most of our lessons have been partly without stirrups. The lessons yesterday I actually felt OK with it, not panicking, and relaxing a bit. L. makes me ride him and do leg yields and serpentines, the hardest part is not to hang on the reins, and the next thing is not to clamp.

Next step will be to not stand in the stirrups when I take them back, I relax more when I have the stirrups, but I sit worse.

We also worked on transitions, as I said they feel better, but there is still much work to make them forward, both up and down. Again I need to not hang on the reins, and stop clamping.

Yesterday we worked on canter transitions, it was frustrating, since Odin basically ignored me until I ran him forward while leaning forward and letting go of him mouth. One strung out crappy canter follows that, of course. L. had me correcting him when he didn't respond to my light canter aid, but it is hard for me to think about, instead of just 'doing what works'- aka running. I also need to sit to give the aid with my seat bones.

We did manage one nice trot-canter and one nice canter-trot, but it was tough. L.'s comment was that if I just sit and give the correct aid and keeps hims on the bit it looks great! Do that every time! hmm...

Fungus :(

2008-07-07T10:17:00.000-07:00

Tuesday last week, I noticed some crusty little bumps on Odin's head, and when I started currying it, bits of his fur came off. Ja. told me it was probably fungus, so off I went to the tack store to get shampoo, spray and so forth...

Friday, being a day off, I ended up washing him with EQYSS Micro-tek shampoo (stuff invented by NASA! how can I not by that!) and also using their Micro-tek spray. Odin was not too happy about the bath thing, but i think it was a good thing. I also disinfected all my brushes, washed his fly mask, and ended up cleaning up my locker and everything. I got lots of stuff done!

I keep spraying his fungus (or spray my hand and splash it on his face, spraying the face is a big no-no), and I think it it still looks pretty bad, but it doesn't look as crusty any more, just some bare patches of skin.

Of course, I was sure all his coat was going to fall out, and I would end up with a naked horse, but it doesn't seem to be quite that bad... Still sucks though!

forward on our own.

2008-06-30T16:48:00.000-07:00

With L. out of town I have been trying to keep everything in mind while riding.

I have ridden a lot forward, with very little rein, and it feels good. Probably not as much forward as we could go, but still a lot more movement. I think Odin really enjoys it, and he seems to be easier have forward now he has gotten into the habit of doing it. In fact, he now expects us to rush down the long side, and he does in almost on his own! Maybe I am dreaming, but I feel I need to apply less driving aids, and while he may not be more in front of my legs or on my aids, he does feel like he is more forward from the legs.

we have also done a lot of transitions where I try to use my seat and not my hands. It is still hard for me, but I feel our communication has become better.

Oh, and another thing. When we canter around the arena and attempt to speed, we just canter across the diagonal and does a change in the middle, like a jumper ^_^. Very fun, big changes.

Forward!

2008-06-24T10:32:00.000-07:00

This Saturday and yesterday I had lessons, which both had the same focus: Forward.

L. had thought about how hard it is for me to collect and bend Odin, and decided to try something different, namely getting him going first.

So we started the lesson by L. asking me to trot and canter on the rail, especially canter, and canter forward! "Gallop, not lope! make him go!" So I tried to make him go, and I really have to get used to Odin moving with a bit of speed. It feels terrible fast to me, but it is probably just the speed I should want him to go in, also when he is put more together. L. told me to focus on the forward, and not worry about his frame as much, just giving steady contact and pushing. The lesson last night I noticed the difference when he used his hind legs to push more forward, regardless of the contact, that was the feeling I should be looking for.

It was a little scary, a little fun. I really wish I could go trail riding now, I think it would be good for Odin, me and forward.
Part of this was also to get me used to him moving and not crawling, and I think that it is really important for me to get used to this movement. The trot we also did while focusing only on forward felt huge. I had to shorten my stirrups, they have been stretching but I havn't felt until Saturday, I couldn't follow him in rising trot, hehe.

After going forward for some time, L. started to ask me to put him together and bend him a bit, while still going forward. It was easier to make him bend, even if it is still hard to keep the forward while putting him together. Also, I cannot sit his faster trot at all!

We also did legyields and transitions all while focusing more on tempo.

Yesterday I did a lot of transistions, trying to making him listen to my seat and not slowing down while making a downward transition. Very hard! I have a tendency to pull on the reins when I want to do a downward transition, which makes Odin lean on the bit and get long and sluggish. We did a 'communication' exercise, trot-walk from the seat. If he didn't react immidiatly to my seat, turn him a bit into the wall (instead of just pulling back). After a few tries, he got it, and the transitions came much easier.
The canter-trot transitions we did a little differently. I kept him really bend (a bit overbend in the neck even) and made the transition, this helped me to not pull back.
It is hard though, one of those things where both me and Odin want to agree to do it badly...

Then, after forward transitions, I was starting to have a half-halt I could try to get him to go forward out of.

I felt the progressions in these lessons where very nice, forward -> transitions -> half halts. Nice change instead of trying to collect him in the slow, slow gaits (not that all that hasn't been useful).

L. reminded me that I should always use the forward to something after I had got it, and not just continue to ride him around in a long, downhill frame.

This is definitely something I can practice on my own, and L. is going out of town the next to weeks, so we will see if I can be true to my intentions and do it. Most important thing is to be consistent in those downwards transitions. No pulling!

the forward stuff was fun, just cantering down the long side, and I think Odin thought it was a bit fun too. We were both a bit sweaty after that, though!

More balance

2008-06-19T13:38:00.000-07:00

Wednesday morning I had another lesson. We started out doing the same thing, forward and bending. After a little while with me continuing to push myslef out of the saddle, pinch my thighs and stading up in the stirrups, L. had me drop my stirrups.

I was trotting a lot I think without the stirrups, trying to really bend and collect him a bit while doing it. It helped my seat, but I keep being a bit afraid of going without the stirrups. Silly, since I know I can sit, and I can always make Odin slow down anyway.

We practiced using the reins without falling forwards, using my legs without pulling on the reins, lots of coordination issues.

In the end it felt better, and I got a better feeling for him being bend without falling to the outside with his haunches or going in, which was the original problem. Keeping him bend requires so much riding no rest.

I really should go without stirrups more often, but I am so reluctant to, too afraid.

Out of balance?

2008-06-17T21:26:00.000-07:00

This evening I had a lesson, and I was struggling getting my body to do anything. I couldn't get my shoulders back, I couldn't find my balance, I kept being pulled forward, and I was pinching like crazy with my thighs. I just really felt off.
I couldn't even say I had trouble getting Odin to do this or that, since I felt I had no influence at all being out of the saddle. Very annoying. But I guess there are good days and bad days, I felt off since my morning workout, I couldn't control my body for my strength training either.

Other than that, L. asked me to wear my spurs again (of course I couldn't keep my toes in either...) and we did some forward, collect, forward, collect exercises in both canter and trot which were marginally successful. He actually stepped nicely forward, so that was a good feeling. Also, in the end of the lesson I manage to sit up a bit more straight (strong core, elbows at sides, relaxed legs, head up) and the canter felt pretty nice. Practice, practice, practice, some days more progress than others, but there is progress.

I don't know if he had the same resistance in the hind legs as he had Saturday, since I did not collect him very much.

Vacation, of sorts

2008-06-17T14:21:00.001-07:00

these past two weeks have been vacation time, but I have been in town, since we were the ones who had visitors.
It did mean a little less riding time, and a chance for Barokko's mom to ride Odin. She did excellent, of course, schooling changes, half-pass and extensions.

I have been working more on the same, forward, with bend and on the bit.

The thing I have been thinking about is that I have to keep him a little bit bend to have him straight, and otherwise he will fall apart for me, due to his tendency to be on his forehand.
It is a little frustrating still, because I feel my skills are not there to do it, but I did have some really nice forward and uphill canter the other day.

Speaking of the canter, he was switching leads a lot in one of me recent lessons. I am trying to figure out if this was because he had been schooling them, and my half-halt on the outside rein was not executed with my inside seat bone forward enough, or maybe he has some soreness in his back or hocks. Or maybe a combination...

He does seem a bit more reluctant to collect on the right lead, showing discomfort maybe in his right hock? Odin gets a Legend shot every month, and there is a difference in how he is going right after and 14 days out, I think more than previously. I had his hocks injected last September, and was thinking that he might need it again?
I could also have become better at detecting the changes in how he goes, chasing that elusive 'feel'.

I talked with L. about it, and I think I might try an Adequan shot if the vet comes out soon, I don't want to do it on top of a Legend one so I can really feel the effect. From what I read, Adequan seems more long term in enhancing the joint fluid, whereas Legend is more short and direct. I would like to see if the effect is better or enhances the Legend, L. suggested to do it halfway between two Legend shots. I also want to do it while L. is in town, she is leaving in vacation soon, and I still need some help feeling everything.

On other fronts, I am considering going to a show this August, if the date works. Exciting! Terrifying! and I need clothes!

forward, bending, on the bit

2008-05-28T15:23:00.000-07:00

but that's 3 things at once!

and really what we have been struggeling with the last month or so. I can get Odin bend, and on the bit and then we slow to crawl. Or he goes forward and goes above the bit. Or he rushes through my hands and stiffens and straightens out.

Sigh. It is a little bit frustrating, but I have had lessions which were really good, where it felt like his hind legs came up under him, or as L. put it: "His back needs to carry your seat forward and up".

the core of the issue is that Odin in general is not in front of my legs, especially the right leg.
This results in the sluggish-ness and the unbending and him feeling heavy in my hands.

After the schooling show I had rubbed him a bit with my spurs, because I nag, nag, nag, like you really shouldn't do. So off went the spurs, and we have sessions of small aid -> big correction. A lot of this has to do with getting my timing right, and expecting a big reaction from the smallest aid. I have to be constantly aware of this, so I don't go back to the nagging, and in the end this will be what we need for a harmonious ride. But doing it while I try to sit correctly, keep him bend, and then think in a micro second: did he respond correctly? that is hard.
Of course, this is also why riding is fun to me, it is the challenge of mental and physical work, of coordination...

Still doesn't make it less frustration when I feel I know what I should do, I just can't. argh!

We do have some good lessons, I get him responsive, forward and bending, and then he doesn't feel heavy in my hands which is a great feeling. However, we do have to go through some arguments to get there, Odin really wants to slack off, and gets a bit pissed when I insist that he works. L. tells me I need to learn with time how to get over that hump so I can get him working and him relaxing into the work. I think the main issue is that I am not always good at consistently asking for the same level of work and reactions, so he will try to skip out if he can.
But I think: More practice.

Oh, and the other day I got him nice and forward and collected in the canter, and we did a flying change or two (on purpose!) at the end of the lesson. And he felt really great. His trot also improves a lot after the collected canter, it just takes me too long to get him there.

chipping away at all those things...

Sitting back

2008-05-27T10:28:00.000-07:00

So I have neglected to write since the schooling show, and I really should make note of all the stuff we have done since then, so I can remember.

On of the things we working on is my position. L. said she was afraid that if Odin would slip and stumble (the arena was a little slippery in one corner) I would fall over his head!

We did a lesson where L. told me to lean back. more. more! and I felt I was sitting with a 45 degree angle back. Going by the mirrors, I was just sitting upright... hmm. So I try to keep that feeling.

The other thing we did was longe lessons, and lessons where I was on the longe for the first half, and then riding afterwards. That was very helpful too, it helped me transfer the feeling I get for me seat on the longe to riding. Even having a lesson the next day is not the same. I can recommend this approach to anyone.

Speaking of which, longing worked a lot better, I think I had two things which helped.
One was letting go of my fear. I have still some fear of longing or going without stirrups, like all fear pretty irrational (it is not like Odin is suddenly going to buck and run off just because I drop the stirrups...).
I really tried to let go of it, in a visual way too. I imagined my fear leaving me, and flying out of the arena and away over the valley. In my mind I saw this ugly, black thing leave and drift away. Weird? Maybe, I guess I got the idea from an article I read on visualization, and it works for me, helps to relax me down into my seat.

The last thing which helped my seat a lot, both on and off the longe, is that L. started doing this thing where she went next to me on Odin, and pulled on my arm. She told me to stay upright, but not use my legs. So I had to use my core strength. I have never really realized how much you can use your core when you ride! Thinking of engaging those muscles instead of my legs and thinking of that 'feeling' helped me a lot, that is what keeps me in the saddle.
It also helps that I am working out with a personal trainer in a gym, and she helps me to strengthen my core and teach me how to use it.
Learning to apply that to riding has been a huge light bulb moment, and also helps me to let go of my fear.

So, some great progress on that front I think. I haven't video taped myself since though, but hopefully it will stick!

The Schooling Show!

2008-04-15T13:39:00.000-07:00

So, I have been really lazy about posting, so I need to note down everything I want to from the past weeks - first the schooling show on April 6th. I already posted some pictures, but here is a bit fuller report.

The show was arranged by Equestrian's Institute, and hosted at my barn, so conveniently I did not have any travel.

That did not leave me any less nervous. Or terrified as L. called it!
I was pretty much frozen, though I am not sure why - I mean I had just done the test in the very same arena the day before? Well, rational thought went out the window, I guess.

Odin, however, was awesome. He was a bit concerned, because I clearly was ultra tense, but otherwise he conducted himself as a gentleman. The first time went to to the outdoor ring (through the other end of the indoor arena), he was nervous, but very relieved once L. grabbed the reins. There was a horse in a trailer nearby who was really dissatisfied and whinnied a lot, in my first test Odin answered him. L. pointed out it was because he was confused and feeling alone, since I was just tense on his back and not being a leader for him.

I think was a great point for me to think about. I can also feel it when we take a walk outside, I think Odin doesn't trust me 100% to not lead him into danger. I am not sure exactly how to work on this...

That didn't prevent Odin for doing his job, and doing the best he could. He totally helped me trough it, I was so happy with him. I really have no reason to be nervous, since he is so seasoned, and doesn't spook easily.
I, however, was standing in the stirrups, leaning forward, clamping my thighs on, etc... All documented in the videos below.

Between the two tests, L. coached me, and told me countless times to SIT BACK! Not that it helped that much, but a little bit. I already tend to sit too much forward, and being tense I do it even more. Bad habits go worse, good habits go away, that is what I learned!

I rode Level 1, test 1 and got 59.67% and Level 2, test 2 and got 58.89%.

A couple of notes from the tests:

The trot lengthenings were hard. Odin knew exactly what I wanted going across the diagonal and putting my legs on, but because he was on the forehand, he just became longer and longer and harder to ride. I need to be able to collect him much more so the push comes from behind and doesn't just consist of Odin running away in the front. He did really try to do what I asked.

In test 2, in addition to trot lengthenings is has canter lengthenings too, and leg yields.

The leg yields went pretty well, and the judge commented they were parallel. I was pretty proud of that, since we worked a lot on that.

One of the canter movements, I turned on a circle too late, and got me and Odin crooked. Odin thought I wanted a change, so I changed him back. Then down the long side, we were supposed to do canter lengthenings, but Odin was clearly riding another test, since he kept doing changes! I can only laugh about it, it was so clear he was really trying to do what I asked him to do.

I only got 3s for the canter movements, but generally my scores in the second test were higher, however, the total was still better for the first one.

Very telling was that I got a 5 for rider in the first, an 6 in the second. 8 for gaits, which shows that Odin is way better than me, hehe!

I got some comments to use less rein, which I will certainly try to keep in mind. I think part of it was that since I was so out of the saddle I had no seat, so I used the rein more. It all comes back to the seat....

Now, the videos:

In the end, I think the judges comment was very appropriate:

"Rider needs to help horse maintain better balance with stronger seat and leg and less use of rein aids"

Yup, horse was helping rider in this case! It really highlighted how much of star Odin is :)

After the show I was so, so tired, amazing how draining it can be. In the end it was great to try, and now I have all these goals I can work towards, I love that. it really gives me reason to work harder, how can I ever ride a nice test if my seat is out of the saddle so I can't do a proper half-halt?

Video from my Lesson March 1st.

2008-04-08T06:57:00.000-07:00

Finally got this uploaded:

(link if this doesn't work)

This was a fun lesson with L. telling me to sit like Kyra - which I really don't do.

I have so much work to do on my seat, when I watch myself it is somewhat frustrating.
I think I not only have some lack of strength in my core, but I somehow have some wrong muscle movements imprinted in my brain. Every time I go to do anything; transition, half-halt, what ever, I tense up, tilt forward, clamp my legs on, draw them up and backwards. Stand in the stirrups.

I have some nice books I really need to read more of, Balance in Movement and Centered Riding, but they are a bit dry I must admit. I never was a huge fan of biology, so bio mechanics... *yawn*. But it is useful information.

And then more longing. I did one or two lessons where we longed for half of them after this, and it especially improved my seat in the canter, I could suddenly follow him with my seat a lot better. If I remember to relax. At least I hope that shows it is not an impossible mission.

Pic

2008-04-07T22:40:00.000-07:00

Picture from after the schooling show. I am quite relieved!

More pictures from the show at flickr

where have I been?

2008-04-07T16:45:00.000-07:00

busy, sick, too lazy to write...

The last couple of weeks have consisted of trying to get ready to the schooling show yesterday, where we rode First Level Test 1 and First Level Test 2. More about that in a separate post!

This meant that we did quite a bit of leg-yielding down the center line, concentrated on precise figures (15 m circles are a bit annoying) and maybe even trying to get me to sit better.

This really have pin pointed how little Odin actually listens to me, it takes me a lot of time to do a halt, for instance.

I really like training with a test in mind, it gives you a lot of focus and reason to do things better, and help find (even more) flaws in you riding.

It was also fun to try and do some lengthening. Odin quickly figured out that we were doing test movements, and legs on on the diagonal means flying away - I'm am sure he thought I wanted extensions, which I cannot ride him collected enough for. The result was him running away and on his forehand! So it will be good to work on controlling that.

Lessons Saturday & Sunday

2008-03-17T13:03:00.001-07:00

I gave myself off Friday, and had a lesson Saturday after L. had returned from CA. Odin was being 'hot' which for him means stepping, snorting and looking. A quick go around on the longe and he looked much more like the horse I know.

The lesson was pretty nice, but a bit hard as it always is when I don't have a lesson for about a week. All those things I forget in such short time.

Sunday I had another lesson, and Odin was still acting a bit excited, I think he is in a spring mood!
L. told me I really, really need to canter and trot without stirrups to get my behind in the saddle. I am not happy about it, more like terrified! Stupid irrational fear!

I tried to think about some of the things Barokko's mom told me after giving a very nice critique of me picture, but I cant get my back and legs to relax enough, I still end up in a position where my hips and pelvis are not in the right place.

I know that dropping the stirrups is the answer, so I compromised and did it on the longe, that makes me feel more secure.
And it was great! especially in the canter I could relax and sit and follow Odin's rhythm. I grip so badly with my legs when I ride.
We only did it a little while, and then when back to riding. This was actually a great way of doing it, because now I had the right feeling, and I could immediately apply it.

So, all in all, great lesson!

some days are not so good...

2008-03-17T13:00:00.001-07:00

Thursday I went out to ride in the evening. I was really tired, but went there anyway.

Odin was a litte unconcentrated (somehting in the bushes? lunging horse acting like he isn't lameish at all?) and so was I. Well, you have to take the good rides with the bad ones...

Counter cantering in the morning...

2008-03-12T17:18:00.000-07:00

L. is out this week, so no lessons. I am quite busy at the moment, so Odin have had Sunday and Tuesday off, with L. riding him Monday before she left.

I was thinking on how he felt, and I think I was able to get him to 'sit' a bit on his hind legs with out that much trouble. It is still hard for me to judge the result on my own...

I did some trot serpentines and canter circles to begin with , it was a bit cold this morning, so I thought we should get going and get warm. I then did some side movements, he felt quite responsive so I think L. must have worked on that!

I then went on to do some counter canter. I feel both that and the leg yields are really helping me to get him a bit less stiff, and that in turn make it easier for him to respond to my half-halts.
I have not done counter canter without being in a lesson in a long time, so it was good to see that I could do it :). I think Odin was not quite straight enough, but he didn't change or break, yay!

he did feel better still after that, I really suspect that he is stiff (he turns 16 April 29th!), so I am trying to focus on riding him out of that on my own, without L. being there. And then practicing the half-halts! I still need to think about following his movement in the trot and canter (I really think my seat should be better in the canter than it is), but it is so hard to do all these things at once.

Oh, and my random thought about my half-halts today: I feel I need to push everything under me and behind me up in front of me using my stomach, seat and legs
I think I need to use a lot more aids than I should be to get through, but I like the idea about pushing the back half of him up and in front, instead of using my hands too much.

Wednesday & Saturday rides last week

2008-03-12T17:11:00.000-07:00

So, my Wednesday ride was a bit tough. I was just very tired, and I didn't feel on top of everything. Despite that, the ride was pretty good, and we most repeated what we had been doing in the previous lessons, working on collection and the feel of the half halt.

Saturday was my next lesson, and he was not as good as he had been the last two weeks. He felt a lot more reluctant to step under himself. L. said that since it had been about 6 months since he got the hock injection, he might need another. He had just had a Legend shot the previous Saturday, and for all the good they do, they tend to wear off in about a week.

I was thinking that he was good the week before that, the first week I was back from being a way, so maybe he was just being a little more stiff? We did some side movements, and he did feel better. I still had to work a bit harder, he didn't feel as light as he had.

L. said that I could do the 'bute test', give the horse 2 bute (horsey pain killers) in the evening, and if he feels better to ride next day, there is probably some pain somewhere (ex in his hocks, since he showed no other signs of pain, wounds, sickness, lameness etc).
However, I did not have time to ride Sunday, so I skipped that for now.

I need to keep track of how he feels, it is in generally hard for me, I focus so much on what I do, or do wrong, that I sometimes forget to feel Odin.

half-halts, collection and a fantastic ride!

2008-03-04T13:54:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I had an amazing lesson.
We started out by doing half-steps, which feels like a 'cheap' passage, a bit of collected trot rhythm from walk. It was fun, and I found the 'hind-legs under' button and corrected him going heavy on the bit out of it the first few times.
The point of all this of course, was to make me feel what I need to do for a half-halt, so I could get the feeling of Odin really collecting himself (which according to L. is one of his main features, he can do that if you ask him correctly).
I then did some really good half-halts in trot and canter, especially the canter. Because I corrected him for being heavy in my hand, he was a lot lighter than usual, the half-halt and demanding he stay up was really working! He felt really uphill.
I did some counter canter, and at one point I did a half-halt in the corner, where I probably ended up shifting my legs a bit, so he changed, and it was actually a really nice one since he was collected, huh what do you know, these half-halts are pretty cool... of course was a bit surprised so I didn't manage to keep my aids on a keep riding him, must remember those things.

When we then took a break, L. was asking me 'so you are going to show in the next schooling show, right.' ( I do think it was more of a statement than a question :P). So I said yeah, and she said that we would be showing First Level. First Level! leg yields, argh, I can't really get them straight! I don't even know how to do lengthenings! Well, L.s argument was that if we did Training Level, he would just run around strung out on his forehand, we have to have something to do. Which is probably correct, but still.

We got right on it and did some leg yields, a bit better but still not perfect. So hard for me to keep my outside aids on, and push him over.

In the end we did one lengthening, but L. said it wasn't really that much of a lenghten, I thought he was moving fast though, hehe.

I am actually looking forward to going to the schooling show (first weekend of April), since now we have a goal, and the lesson last night was so good I think we can do. I mean know, I know we can do it. I just need to keep my behind in the saddle...

Being filmed

2008-03-03T10:34:00.001-08:00

Canter, originally uploaded by IdaWW.

I got my husband to go along with my to my Saturday lesson, to try and film me with our new video recorder (www.supacam.com - a camera made for filming stuff which goes on the web. Pretty new cam, I got it on the conference I went to).

Oh, its horrible to watch myself ride! It has been a long time since I last was filmed, and while Odin moved a lot better, I still lean forward so much, my butt going out of the saddle all the time. I thought my seat had improved more.

Anyway, we will see if I dare to post it, for now a picture of some canter, and me leaning only slightly forward.
The lesson was good iteself, lots of canter and really getting the feel of using the outside aids to collect him with.

Back home

2008-02-27T13:12:00.001-08:00

The previous week I was away at a conference, so my trainer L. and her working student/groom/fellow boarder T. rode Odin.

Sunday I came back to a much more supple Odin, and I was able to get a really great lesson even if had been away for a week. We worked on bend and getting that elusive elastic feel on the rein contact. Hard, but some rewarding moments. I wish my hands were better!

Monday was more of the same, with a bit of counter canter, which really helps to make him more supple. It definitely feel like he has an easier time collecting and bending in the canter than the trot. Ir probably helps that I sit better in the canter too...
At the end of the lesson we had a little argument. I was chatting with L. and Odin kept moving around. She told me to make him stand still on the bit for 20 sec. This turned out to not be that easy. L. walked over to him and made him stand by standing next to me, showing that it is a respect issue... He knows he can fool me. So I really tried not to be the fool. He huffed, and puffed, and cantered on the spot, but in the end he stood still. Funny horse as he is, Odin has the look of of, 'oh, OK, I can do that. I just wanted to see if I could get you to give up'.

Tuesday, it turned out that along with a little positive reinforcement, this really helped me to have him respect me on the ground too. Nice. My lesson was not so good, I was very tried, but we worked on more bend, suppleness etc.

This morning I had a really great lesson. Along with everything else, L. made me constantly think of my own balance, and not leaning on the reins, and keeping a steady (elastic) connection. Still pretty hard, but we had our moments. Of course, when I get my seat and hands independent and stay in my own balance, Odin is more balanced too, and our transitions are really so much better.
In the end of the lesson we did some canter three loop serpentines with trot transitions in the middle, a very useful exercise. And I think it went pretty well :)

Recap

2008-02-16T11:58:00.000-08:00

The last 2 weeks we have mostly been working on sensitivity to the aids and bend to the right. Odin is a lot less supple on the right side, and I have up until now not really been able to do that much about it.

The first week we mostly worked on him listening to my aids. If I asked him with a light tap of the leg, and he didn't have a really convincing reation, I corrected him with a large aid with the whip. Doing it a with a little more, and a little more, etc would just need to nagging, which really is a bad habit of mine. Two things I learned that I must remember:
1) Most of this is mental, I must demand a immidiate and large reaction to my aids, not be satisfied with a little bit.
2) I cramp with my right leg. Because Odin is not really in front of it very often, I nag, pull my leg up and cramp it on. Much easier for him and me when I manage to relax it and use it lightly!

This week we worked on bend to the right, now I could get him to move off my right leg. We did a lot legyield on the left lead, and shoulderin or shoulder fore on the right lead, and I could feel him getting easier to bend. Nice!

Wednesday we did this weeks most interesting exercise. I was having trouble keeping him in front of my right leg countercantering on the left lead, not really figuring out how to apply my right leg and keep him on the left lead.
L. had me do this:

We go on a circle to the right, and do some shoulder in in walk. Straighten him, ask for canter to the left. Half halt and collect, keeping him in balance. If he stiffens against my right hand, back to walk and shoulder in, then back to left lead canter. If he popped a change, keep cantering on the right lead, shoulder in (ish, as well as I can do it) in the canter. When he feels softer, do a change back to the left lead.

It was a little hard for me to do, lots of thinking, but in the end I could feel him being softer on the right, more in balance, and I could see how doing all the right bend was helping him to be more in balance, and making it easier for him to do what I really wanted. That was a very cool feeling!

Bonus fact...

2008-02-04T16:59:00.000-08:00

8. my farrier just raised his prices for a full shoeing from $110 to $115.

I think it would be interesting to compary horsey price points around the world, like prices for shoeing, board etc. Should even be done in something like 'liters of skimmed milk' or another price index instead of cash value, with the dollar right now I am sure this looks a lot cheaper to European eyes than it was even 2 years ago...

7 things

2008-02-04T10:43:00.000-08:00

Diary of a Young Horse tagged me to write 7 things you might not know about me (or Odin, I suppose), so here goes:

1. I have lived my whole life within a 50 km radius, until we in July 2005 moved about 7800 km from Copenhagen to the Seattle area.

2. I have had one dream about Odin (that I remember), in which it was very important that I bring him to Verden for the Hannoverian stallion licencing. I thought it was a bad idea, but his breeders (whom I have never met), told me it was very important for the owners of the foals he had sired. This being a dream it made no sense, even though Odin presumably have sired some foals before he was gelded at 5 years old. I remember I was stressed in dream over bringing him to Germany (why on earth would I bring a 15 year old horse across the ocean for that?), but not over riding him, which is funny since I pretty sure I would not be able to present him in any way to his advantage :P. Anyway, I guess dreams a silly like that.

3. Unlike so many horse people, I am not really a dog person. I like other people's dogs if they are nice, but I would never own one. We have 2 cats, and I also have a freshwater aquarium tank (which had been somewhat neglegted after I got Odin)

4. It is hard to make out in pictures, but Odin has a tiny white snip on his lip. It is very cute.

5. I am in many ways a real geek, I am a software developer by profession, I love sci-fi shows (Stargate SG1, Stargate Atlantis, Battlestar Galactica), playing PC and console games. Actually, if I am not in the barn, I am probably in front of the computer, or maybe the TV.

6. After we moved to the US and could suddenly afford decent cars, both my and my husband got a lot more interested in them. I love my 2005 Mazda MX-5 Mazadaspeed, so much fun. We ended up spending a lot of time looking at cars, we now have 3 for the 2 of us (our American friends mock us and say we have been assimilated), we go to car shows, sporadicly reads car magazines etc. We don't have a truck, though (yet).

7. I rarely watch sports, but I love figure skating and follows it closely. I try to catch every thing the send on TV, what I can find on youtube (Russian tv shows every competition, apperently, yay!), reads about the skaters and so. I am trying to figure out how I can watch the figure skating in the 2010 Olympics, since it will be just around the corner in Vancouver, BC.

Metaphor of today

2008-01-30T13:17:00.000-08:00

In today's lesson, I was working on the general stuff I have been all week, namely getting Odin to move in balance, with out me hanging on his mouth, and letting him hang on my hands (we're really good at the dragging each other off balance, making it worse and worse).

One thing L. (my trainer) focused on today, was the fact that he is out of balance and doesn't bend on the circle. One of the reasons for this is that he is not in front of my legs, so he is just slugging around.

We did some exercises like haunches out, leg yields and turn on the forehand, to get him more responsive to my legs. However, L. nailed it when she said that I really don't have the right idea about how he should feel when he is in front of the leg, I am satisfied with a little bit. Like I ask him to go more forward, and maybe he does, a tiny bit, for two steps. I have to demand more.

So the metaphor she used, which I think works for me, is that he should be like a puck on an air hockey table. The very slightest of aid should have him move, and keep moving. He is like an hockey table with no air, I push, he moves, stops, I push again. Turns into nag, nag, nag, and he really isn't in front of my leg. So I have to turn the air on!

A lot of this is really mentally demanding a really good answer from him. He can do all this stuff. He knows what he should do. He just knows he can away with not doing it. Then I tell him no, he has to, and then he gets all huffy and puffy, because he knows that there is a chance I will be intimidated and back off. So I really mentally needs to tell my self that I am doing the right thing, I should be aware of what I ask and get it.
And then he will grunt, say OK, and do it. Wonderful well balanced canter suddenly, isn't it nicer for him to be in balance and bending nicely too? Hmmm....

Anyway, I need to turn the air on for that table, be able to make him respond to the lightest of aids. Maybe then I can rid of this stupid nagging habit I have!

on another note:
- I was riding Sunday, when suddenly there were two coyotes outside the arena. Bigger than one should think. I think I was more startled than Odin (hugs my safe, sane horse)
- Echo tagged me, I will get around to that, I hope.

Some pictures

2008-01-24T20:38:00.000-08:00

Well, I emptied my camera...

Newly pulled mane, looking all groomed:

In the stall:

Horses are silly:

L. riding Odin. Very fuzzy, but you can see the wonderful big arena I ride in (love it, except on cold days):

Balance

2008-01-24T16:29:00.000-08:00

this has been the theme for the last couple of lessons. Both mine and Odin's, since we of course influence each other.
L. has been making me aware of the fact that Odin's balance is constantly changing, every time I ask him to do something, like be a little more forward, a little more round. So I am trying to be aware of this, and keep his balance steady. It is so much my ability as a rider that is the problem, it is not that he can't be in balance, but we do pull each other around a lot.

Also, I had a light bulb moment this Wednesday morning in my lesson. Odin likes to lean on the bit a lot, and it is quite hard for me to make him stop, and get him forward enough. However, I managed to get him to be light in the hand (still not steady enough, still have balance issues!), and L. pointed something out to me... I tense up and feel insecure in the saddle, when he doesn't pull at my hands! So basically I lean on him, and he leans on me, and I let it happen because it makes me feel more secure.
That is really, really annoying. I have to encode my brain and body to him being light being a good thing!
At least now I know.

It feels like there is a million things to work with sometimes. Sometimes I feel a bit sorry that Odin has to put up with my faulty riding, but at least it keeps improving. I am sure that every horse I will ride later in life will be grateful to him.

Otherwise, it is really cold (freezing) right now, and that is really annoying in a covered arena. Brrr. Where is that Seattle cloud cover? On the other hand, that means I have had plenty of opportunity to use one of my Christmas gifts, a Rambo Newmarket Quarter Sheet. In goldenrod stripes, it so reminds me of winter back in the stable in Denmark... I feel all nostalgic when I look at us in the mirrors.

Sensitivity to the aids

2008-01-18T13:34:00.002-08:00

Odin's coat is getting really thin right now (because of the changing weather?). He had rubs from the girth on both sides this week, the hair had rubbed off (so now I have put socks on the girth, hope it helps. Luckily the skin wasn't broken at all).

This also meant that I could suddenly see a slight spur rub appearing... oooops, bad, bad rider.
So, I got to work on aid sesitivity these last two lessons. Odin is really bad about not reacting, or giving a half answer, and I just let him do it, and then keep nagging every stride.

A lot of it is mental for me. I have to recognize that he gives me a bad or barely there answer to an aid (fx doing legyields), and then correct him. When I manage to wrap my head around it, it is great. I give a small leg aid, he doesnt do anything. I use the whip he moves forward. I then use a small leg aid again, and he moves forward. So I need of course to reach a point where I don't have to correct him, but he is reluctant. I need to be really consistent, so I hope I will manage to do so. It is a lot faster working on the lateral aids such as the leg yields than the forward ones, probalby because moving forward he has to move into the bit nicely as well. I also think he has not been trained to be very sensitive to the forward moving aids, so we have some work. But no more nagging, hopefully!

A great lightbulb moment that came from this, was in the canter. I have had trouble to keep him in the canter without him breaking, so my nagging gets bad here. We also worked on the half-halt (again, making him listen to it), so I had some trouble figuring out half-halting vs downwards transistion in the canter, espcially without the nag.
L. told me to keep him in the canter by keeping my inside seatbone forward, and use me seat to tell him that he should keep moving. And wow! that helped, when I figured it out. It was one of those great moments, where I felt I could really communicate with Odin, when we finally figured each other out! I was also very pleased that using my seatbone like that even worked, I think my longe lessons really paid off!

Another thing we worked on these last two lessons was counter canter, where I seem to have less trouble keeping him in the canter, probably because I concentrate on having him bend and having the inside aids on (including my seatbone) so he doesn't swap leads (going across the diagonal in canter? You must want a change!). It was some really nice counter-canter I got, I was pleased :)

backlog...

2008-01-18T13:34:00.001-08:00

Ok, I have whole number of things I want to put here...

I will not accept mediocre canter transitions

2007-12-27T11:10:00.000-08:00

I will not accept mediocre canter transitions
I will not accept mediocre canter transitions
I will not accept mediocre canter transitions
I will not accept mediocre canter transitions
....

has pretty much been the mantra these last lessons during the Christmas time lessons. L. has been on my case to higher my standards for what I except of response to my aids. The result has been much better transitions!
It is still hard for me to know when it is good or not, it is a question of feel, but I am getting there. I have much to practice!

Work done these past days

2007-12-19T12:05:00.000-08:00

[I am trying to clear out notes on my lessons this week]

Sunday I had another longe lesson, this time we did a bunch of canter on the longe. One thing of the things we did was making the walk-canter and trot-canter transition using only my seat bones (and possibly a little help from the longewhip...) . It really worked perfectly one time from the walk, and in general it was a good exercise.

Monday, I was horribly tired, and I asked L. to ride Odin. It is nice to watch her ride him from time to time. She spend a lot of time working lateral movements to get him more supple, he is has trouble reaching latitudinal suppleness before he is completely worn out.
I expressed some concern about being able to ride him well enough while she is gone over New Years, so we agreed to work on that in the coming week.

Tuesday, I then had a lesson off the longe. It is always very nice to work him after L. has ridden him, I can really feel him being easier to ride. We worked on my position when riding and not just sitting, and it was actually feeling really good. I also did leg yields, and used the canter to get it trot better by doing lots of transitions between movements. It was very helpful, as it is a log easier for me to get him to come together a bit in the canter, and I can really feel that my seat is much improved especially in the downwards transitions.

This morning, we worked some more on the same, added in some haunches in and walk pirouettes, which helped my to make him supple and straight.
I really have to feel like I am pushing his right shoulder on to the track all the time, otherwise he is not straight.
A very nice exercise was going in a square with turn on the haunches/quarter pirouettes on the corner in walk, then going to trot between the corners, and then trotting through the corners turning his shoulders and haunches.
I did some really nice canter too, where I could get a good quality canter for a few steps, but it really requires me to be vigilant about not letting him fall on his forehand, keep pushing him up to the bit and keep his shoulders on the track.
This a was a really great lesson, I hope I can remember it all!

Training the rider, training the horse

2007-12-18T11:48:00.000-08:00

Saturday I did not have a lesson, so I went out to ride. L. mentioned that she didn't ride Friday as usual (her horse list got mixed up), so she suggested I longed him first, since he had the day of Thursday as well.
So I went and did that. I started having him go to the left, and he was fine, trotted and cantered. Then I went to the right, and somehow he suddenly realized that he was hot, and jumped up in the air in the canter, raced around me, didn't want to trot etc. I really don't have that much longing experience, so I couldn't get him to calm down. I was beginning to fear that he would fall over in the racing canter, every time I tried to stop him, the circle just got smaller! Luckily L. was teaching a lesson to someone else, and she came down and helped me. Yelled at Odin, yelled at me, and taught me some more safety concerns and a trick with using the walls to getting him to slow down, and how to really react and get him to respect me some more. She was (rightly) concerned about safety issues, he could hurt me, himself, other horses or equipment.

I definitely need to practice this some more, and get him to respect me. This was clearly not Odin being a dangerous, crazy horse, but me needing some more horsemanship and training knowledge. So many things to learn as a horse-owner!

Afterwards I rode him a bit, and I can see that while all the longing is great for me, I have halfway forgotten how to get him engaged and on the bit. He really pushes his shoulders out and is not straight, I tried to fix it but I am not sure I was 100% successful.

lessons

2007-12-11T16:12:00.000-08:00

I had a lesson Sunday, which went OK, and another one yesterday which was excellent.

The weather is so cold, and Odin is snorting like crazy when I ride him. He is such a funny guy, it is not that the cold doesn't affect him, it is just that all he does is snort... No crazy bucking around.

I was on the longe again, and L. tried to make him canter, however Odin decided that he didn't want to do that with a rider on. Or maybe he was confused, but he canters fine without a rider, i just think he was being uncooperative. Anyway, it was some fun moments with Odin racing around in a faster and faster trot every time L. asked him to canter... we got about half a circle of canter in the end. Hopefully next time he will have a better understanding of what he should do.

The rest of the lesson was so great. I really felt my progress, I was sitting better both with the reins and without, even if holding the reins still make me fall forward.

One of my main issues is that I get slightly off balance, and then I tighten my thighs, which pushes me further out of balance, I am trying to stay relaxed and use my core to maintain my balance. L. has me bicycling my legs to stop them from tightening, and it seems to be helping.

After the longing I rode a bit regularly, so Odin could get going in a canter, and I could feel what I have learned. And wow it is such a difference when I manage to stay back, use my core strength, and don't tighten up. I still need a lot more practice, but I could feel what went wrong, what went good, I am so much aware of my body on the horse.

Still so grateful Odin puts up with this!

yuck, cold

2007-12-08T15:57:00.000-08:00

I had a cold the last couple of days (a real annoying one), so L. rode Odin both Wednesday and Friday.
Today I thought I had a lesson at 9am, but it was moved to 9.45. I also felt a bit dizzy still from the cold, so L. agreed to teach me tomorrow instead. She is so nice to have a flexible schedule!

I rode him a little bit, about 20-25 min before I felt too bad.
I have such big troubles on the left lead. He prefers the left side of his body, so on the left lead he curls too much to the left and I can't keep him straight. I think it might be a bit mental for me, since it is so much better on the right lead, probably because I think I am bending him right, when I really am making him straight. On the left lead I have to really concentrate on using me outside leg and almost feel I bend him to the outside, while using my inside leg to keep him on the circle. Well, I didn't succeed with that today, but at least I know what I theoretically need to do.

Longing, now with reins

2007-12-04T16:08:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I had another longe lesson, and due to the heavy rain (the Governor declared state of emergency kind of heavy) the horses had not been turned out that day, so they were all a little funny. With Odin that resulted in sideways stepping at the mounting block, and looking at everything in the arena as if he had never seen it before... He really is a very calm horse.

L. noted that I compromised my position quite a bit still when I had a lesson Saturday, so she had me hold the reins on the longe, not using them other that keeping a contact with Odin's mouth. Turns out that make my whole body tense up, so I fall back into my bad habits (leaning forward, clamping with my thighs). Sigh. Well, it was good to get this next step on the way, I think a lot of it is me re-learning how to sit, so I don't do this thing.

Much more longing to come, I suspect.

Odin got (another) clip last Wednesday, because it have been so cold he was getting really furry again, and sweating after just a little bit of trot. He got a nice full body clip again, this time I remembered to tell the clipper to leave both the whiskers and the inside of his ears. The other people of the barn think is quirky, but let me be the quirky European...

The clip revealed that he really has a bit of dandruff here in the winter, his hind quarters were full of white dirt. I don't brush him there always since he hates brushing, but since last night was somewhat warm, I decided to bathe his hind end... Yup, he sure doesn't like someone scrubbing in shampoo either, but he looked a lot nicer afterwards. I think I will have to torture him occasionally, but I don't feel compelled to bathe him all the time...

Saturday Lesson

2007-12-03T15:22:00.000-08:00

Had a lesson on Saturday which was not a longe lesson. It was fun to feel how much more secure I feel in the saddle, it is making such a big difference. He still pulls me forward a bit when he is on the forhand, but I can feel when my body is doing the wrong thing so much faster.

L. rode him Friday, and Saturday morning there was light dusting of snow all over. That made it a good day to ride him, since he was nicely forward and fresh, and he also wasn't too hard to get some bit acceptance out of, since I have completely forgotten how to put him together, of course.

It felt really nice to feel the progress in my seat though. Still have ways to go, but it is moving forward. I can't wait for the shows this spring, though, hopefully it will be fun to show, and my position and aids will make me ready :).

My name is Odin...

2007-11-28T13:43:00.000-08:00

... and I'm really bored. My rider only does longe lessons, so I'm trotting in circles again and again. I might as well be falling asleep. And it is kind of tiring as well. Then I don't get that much food, so I am so starving all the time. Starving I tell you *kick door*. No, I should just be outside rolling in the mud all the time. Mmmm mud... But, no *paw, stomp* I have to work. In circles!
I guess it is OK when I get carrots and apples and treats, but I really don't get enough. Longing all the time, remember!

[yep, I am still getting longed. L. says she wants me to trot and canter with no stirrups and no holding on to the bucking strap. It is moving forward a lot, it is so helpful. I'm insanely thankful that Odin is such a good boy for this. ]

Back in the saddle

2007-11-17T12:56:00.000-08:00

So, today I was back in the saddle again, I had a lesson this morning.
I was afraid that not riding for a week would have destroyed the progress I had made on the lunge the week before, but I could really feel a difference, even just when posting. Very nice.

I didn't ride very much in the lesson, since my back is still sore and tight, sadly.

The bumps on Odin's back I discovered 2 weeks ago are almost gone, the saddler pushing around the stuffing must have helped.

In other news, Odin is getting fatter, a bit too fat. The barn uses really nice hay, but that means it has a lot of glucose in it. So now we have cut back his hay, and L. said he really didn't like that and was acting up during the day... bad horsey!
I also feed him Cool Calories, 4 scoops a day as this is what his previous owner did. I will try and see how he does with 2 scoops. The theory was that the fatty calories were better for him, but I think 4 scoops is a lot, the recommended dosage is 2. We will see what happens.

No riding :(

2007-11-15T15:06:00.000-08:00

So, Sunday I went riding and was looking forward to see if all my lunge lessons had a noticeable effect. However, after 15 min of riding, I did a trot-canter transition that somehow tweaked my back, and I was in quite a bit of pain. So Monday and Tuesday I spend on my couch, and L. was riding Odin. I passed on a lesson on Wednesday as well, even though I could sit up.
So I am waiting until Saturday to ride again, hopefully my back will be good at that point.

I also need to note to myself, last week Odin had a bit of thrush, but it got quickly fixed by using a formaldehyde solution for 4 days.

More lunging

2007-11-06T14:37:00.000-08:00

Saturday, I had truly crappy lesson. Just nothing worked.

Yesterday I had another lunging lesson, I feel they really help. I felt a little bit more secure in the saddle, but I still really need to sit!

Before the ride, I noticed some bumps on Odin's back, right under the pack part of the panels. He didn't seem sore, though. Then the saddler actually turned up doing a fitting on another horse, so I asked him about it (since my saddle is only about 1 1/2 months old). He took a look, said I should keep an eye on it for now, and then did some wiggling around of the stuffing. I hope that helps, and we wont have any problems.

Since the saddler was doing the saddle trying with another boarder, his saddle rest was in the middle of the barn isle. After my lesson, Odin thought this was horribly terrifying, and almost pulled me out into the wilds. Sigh. I then spend some time trying to make him see that a) nothing is that terrifying and b) he should respect me when I say it is OK, and especially not step in my space. Yeah, he is teaching me about horses... There is a difference between riding and horseownership!

On the Lunge

2007-10-31T11:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was feeling crappy, so my lesson was short ( I was so congested I felt like me head was exploding). Odin hadn't been ridden for 2 days ( I felt even crappier Monday), so L. made us canter a lot right at the beginning of the lesson Canter circles, canter diagonal, trot at X and canter again. Only hard part was to keep him from changing at soon as he hit the diagonal going from right to left. I have to keep thinking about right being the inside, any shifts in my weight he takes as a signal to change to his easier side... He felt nice and loose afterwards (hm, maybe a note for a better warmup?) and we did some leg yields and transitions. I was pretty much game over at this point though, so that was it.
The message to me was: "Ride the transitions properly, and only do them if they will be nice. We know he can canter!"

Now, for the post topic, this morning L. wanted to lunge me, and I agreed. I need to work so much on my seat! I have been tentative of the lunging since I lost my balance in trotting with no stirrups in August, but now was the time.

It was so cold this morning, frost on everything, so of course Odin was really frisky. L. lunged him a bit before I got on, he really worked himself into a fast canter with bucking and all. Yep, I really don't see Odin buck at all very much (takes too much energy), but today they were there.

That made him nice and calm for the lunging with me on his back, in the end of the lesson he was really ready to go home :).

I kept my stirrups on, so I felt more relaxed, and it was really great. L. made me think about feeling my seat bones and concentrating on that, it made me sit so much better.

I think this will help my seat and my riding so much, more lunging for me hopefully!

No rain!

2007-10-28T09:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had a short ride in the arena. I did some canter 20m to trot 10m to leg yield along the long side, as I did in the lesson Thursday. Besides Odin tripping in the canter ( I thought we were going to crash!), it went really well, I was able to keep a nice forward trot without slowing too much down. Odin probably wasn't as much in frame as he is when I rode him Thursday though. I also did some focusing on my position and seat in the sitting trot. Still practicing indeed.

Then, because of the no rain (yay!) I went for a nice walk outside. This time I was a little more convincing in telling Odin that nothing was too scary, so we had a really nice walk. I even did some walk leg yields on the grassy area behind the arena, which was fun.

Progress in small steps

2007-10-26T00:13:00.000-07:00

Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning I had lessons that went OK. Well, the Tuesday lesson was good, until I towards the end of the lesson was cantering at the longside, and got into my head that Odin was rushing, and I didn't know what to do about it. I had a brain meltdown, which of course means tense, tense body, which means no riding, just hanging on. Sigh. All gone now though!

Otherwise, both Tuesday and Wednesday we worked on haunches out. The hard part was to figure out how to keep Odin shoulders on the track, and the haunches only turned. It was a very nice exercise for learning how to control parts of his body. I could use this to help me be more effective in the canter, keeping him straight and not letting him fall in or out.

It is a very nice experience when you can use one exercise to help you understand something basic about riding and to make you understand what you do wrong in another scenario. And I didn't even understand it fully until today; when I was using the same thing to make a nice 10m volte!

Today I had a great lesson. It is getting pretty cold, and my lesson was late, so it was below 40, brrrr. But we worked on forward and not slowing down when bending and collecting, so a little cold weather was great for Odin, less laziness.
L. had me working on my position (shoulders back, hips forward) and it is slowly getting better. Slowly.

And then we did the 10m volte thing, where I kept him forward in a nice moving trot, and kept that while making the smaller circle. I did two things that made this really work. L. told me to be aware of not pulling his head around when turning, so that I slow him down, and all my shoulder-on-the-line work for the 2 previous days came in handy, as I could neatly turn his shoulders. I also counted the trot 1,2,1,2,1,2... something that L. does when she riders (she thinks she is silly for doing it out loud, but otherwise I would never had thought of it!), and it really helped me focus on keeping the rhythm the same.

I really feel I am slowly making progress, my aids are getting more independent, my seat and position better. I can really feel now that when I get a thing right, Odin does what he does better. He just responds to me, perfect.

Riding the strides

2007-10-23T09:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had a lesson after being lazy during the weekend and not riding.

We did some leg yields in walk at trot to begin with, partly to loosen up Odin, but also to work on his response to me leg aids. Getting better. We did the sequence of leg yield (trot) along the long side, canter circle at A/C and then leg yield (trot) again. This worked nicely to loosen Odin.

We then did serpentine in trot with walk at the centre line and some canter figure eights with trot at the center line.

All these exercises really emphasized that I need to think about riding every stride, and not the movements. If I don't think about the quality of the canter, the quality of the transition becomes bad, the trot is bad, the change of bend is bad, etc... It is like a cascading failure (sounds like sci-fi, just add entropy).

The lesson was very educational on that point, and I also felt my position and my seat is a little bit better every time I ride, which is just an awesome feeling.

Morning lessons

2007-10-19T15:17:00.000-07:00

Wednesday and today I had morning lessons, my schedule is shaken up a bit this week because of a Clinic at the barn this weekend. I didn't want to disturb the clinicians by having a lesson in the middle of the clinic Saturday!

Wednesday we worked a little on the canter, which continues to improve. I still have more trouble to the left, and L. talked about me having a diagonal aid problem, he falls apart because I don't have enough outside rein and inside leg. This developed into a 'how do I stop Odin for hanging on the bit' issue, so we did a lot of work with that, including L. using the inside rein from the ground, demanding he didn't hang on it... Odin was not happy. We talked a bit about how my expectations on his behaviour and reaction reflects how he behaves, and how I have to demand that he does not pull the reins through my hands all the time, so this is what he expects.

Thursday L. rode Odin, and today I had another lesson. We worked a lot on response to the driving aid, again I have to learn to be consistent. I have to be way better at demanding a lot of response from using my leg aids, instead of nagging. So we did a lot of legyields, probably because it is easy to determine whether he yields to the leg or not. I was asked to do a small aid with my leg, and if he didn't move sideways immediately, do a big correction with the whip. When I finally got around to give a big enough correction, ta-da, he moved over with a tiny aid. Much better than nagging, huh?

Odin is somewhat lazy, and L. keeps saying that I need to work less when I ride, I have to learn to train him to always respect my aids, so I don't nag him all the time. I really need to remember this, since I am always thinking that 'well, maybe he moved a bit when I asked'. I need to raise my expectations, so I can get to place where small aids = real reactions. To do this I have to be consistent and demanding in my corrections, otherwise he ignores them.

In other news, Odin finally got not shoes on Wednesday, just on the 8 week mark. He has kind of steep feet, so 8 weeks is OK, 6 is better. But of course you need to nag the farrier forever to get him to come.

Lesson today

2007-10-15T22:08:00.000-07:00

My lesson today was great! Our canter was really improving, I felt I was sitting great and riding the canter.
We also worked on half halts. L. thinks that Odin has a few holes in his education, really listening to the seat and the half halts being one of them. He is a lot better already, L. has been working on this with him.
I got the feeling for them a bit today, it actually worked. My transations was better when I could use the half halt, and it just felt great. I feel I'm making leaps of progress!

The view from the barn

2007-10-13T12:56:00.000-07:00

Riding Without Instruction and The Great Outdoors

2007-10-13T12:35:00.000-07:00

Yesterday and today I rode without having a lesson, since L. is out of town (normally she rides him Friday, and I have a lesson Saturday).

First off the clipping, it was very nicely done. The guy who does it also clips a lot of hunters, so it was a full body clip, the legs, head everywhere. I actually like it a lot. I did remember to ask him to not clip the whiskers on Odin's muzzle, something they are fond of here in the US. I believe they have those whiskers for a reason, how can he otherwise know what he sticks his muzzle in? I did, however, forget to tell him not to clip inside the ears, another Americanism. Now Odin has sad naked ears :(. He did survive with that the first 15 years of his life, so he will probably be OK, but I think there gets a lot of dust in there without the protection.

Now, riding. I really do not ride as well without instruction, I suspect I am not determined enough, and also that I do not have developed the 'feel' of when his response to my aids are correct.
That being said, I practiced the canter and the transitions, and it is getting much better. I still struggle with sitting correctly, with an open and relaxed seat, non pinching legs and using my aids quietly to ask him to come up to me. But I sit a lot more upright, and I can support him enough on the outside so he doesn't get long and break. The right side is still way better than the left though.
The canter-trot transitions were a lot better today, again I was able to sit better through them and keep him from falling apart and running away as soon as I hit the trot.

I am convinced that as soon as I can keep my seat in the saddle, relaxed and following the horse, I will be able to ride as well as I want to...

Yesterday and today the weather was great, so I took the opportunity to take a walk outside. Friday, I did it before I rode, since it was getting late (and dark). When I was at the mounting block, Odin as very 'looky', but he sometimes is like that so I didn't think about it. Then I got on the block and faced the thicket next to arena, and there were two bobcats! Very cute! I have never seen them out side a Zoo before. That adds to the rabbits, deers and coyote I have seen around the barn...

The view from the barn is gorgeous, you can see right across Snoquamie River Valley and to the Cascades on a bright day. Today there was mist in the valley, and that was horse-eating mist at that! Odin is not the bravest horse when he is alone, but we did walk a bit around on the barns grassy, hilly (and stony, no trot) area behind the paddocks.

Odin is a funny horse, when he encounters dangerous stuff, he doesn't bolt or something wild, he just stops, and turns around. Then I turn him around and make him look. Then he turns around. I turn him back. Walk a few steps. Stops, looks, turns around... I am trying to get him used to the area, so it is not A Big Deal. We will see. In this season you never know what day is the last without rain, hopefully we will get out more.

Canter, seat, and season changes...

2007-10-12T16:05:00.000-07:00

I have one of my lessons Wednesday mornings, and sometimes L. warms up Odin for me. She did this Wednesday, because she wanted to get him more supple and connected to I could get a better 'feel' for my seat.

That worked, I felt I sat better than I have ever done before, yay! I have trouble in the canter supporting him on the outside, and I tend to lean forward and perch out of the saddle, letting him get long and out of balance. This Wednesday that didn't happen, I really felt like I was sitting in the saddle in the canter, and I could keep him in balance a lot better.

Odin did get quite the workout with L. riding him, and since the weather has been cold/warm/cold, he was all fuzzy, and totally sweaty when we were done, poor guy. After the lesson I hosed him down, covered him with 2 fleece sheets and left him under the heater in the tack up area, since it is cool. L. (or the groom T.) put him away for me when he was dry, since I had to go to work.

Wet Odin:

Wednesday evening he got a clip, so hopefully no more excessive sweating. I havn't seen it yet, since L. rode him yesterday.

Welcome

2007-10-12T15:38:00.000-07:00

Inspired by Barokko's diary kept by my friend Eudiaptumus, I thought I should make a diary for Odin.

I have wanted to keep a paper diary, but I have not been very good about it. Hopefully I will get around to do this!

Odin is my first horse, and I have had him since March 25 this year. I started riding as an adult only 4-5 years ago on school horses, and I felt that now was the time to get my own horse so I could ride more and really get better. I found it was hard to make a lot of progress only riding 1-2 times a week.

Odin is 15 and quite experienced, his previous owner trained him to PSG and competed him a few times in that as well. One of my priorities was to get a safe, sane horse, and he certainly is. It does make him a bit lazy, but that is better for me than a horse that explodes and ruins my confidence.

I would like to call what I do dressage, but mostly it feels like 'basic riding skills'. We are working on response to my aids, and on my seat.

I have Odin in full training at the barn where I am at, so I have 4 lessons a week, and my trainer L. rides him once a week too.

There are unforunatly no really good trails where I am boarding, and most of the other boarders don't do much trail riding either, so I don't get a lot of trail experience, eventhough I would love to, and learn to be less of a chicken :).