Sit in the saddle

"Sit in the saddle" has become my new mantra. It's done a ton to help with my goal of a better riding position--both in sitting the fuck up and in keeping my leg long. But, unsurprisingly, it makes an instant improvement in whatever I'm asking my horse to do as opposed to contracting my entire body up into the fetal position.

He got two days off after jumper night, and then yesterday we went back to work. It worked well that it was still fucking freezing because all I had planned was our stretchy ride in the double.

perfect lipstick.
perfect suspicion of farrier outside.

I actually got some good stretching out of him finally, especially at the walk. At the trot the circles still eluded us. He wants to throw his shoulders out so far the circle is a good 3-4' larger than I intend it. Neither of us are coordinated enough to fix it on a long rein, so I had to pick up my reins for a bit just to get him going on the intended track. I also picked up both reins to feel out the curb a little bit at the halt and a couple laps at the walk before going back into a stretch. He was completely unconcerned with it.

saves the mouthiness for his bestie

This morning I was excited to put in another real deal dressage school and Dopie totally showed up to play.

I started off picking him up at the walk right away. He could keep his neck long, but he needed to be in the contact and working. Once he felt soft and round, which took maybe a lap, we did an off the wall leg yield, SI, HI, and then half pass before changing direction and doing all of it again. He never got tight or worried, just moved over and did the thing easy peasy.

I went right into the sitting trot because he'd had turnout time in the ring to romp around with his friends before I got on so he was warm and I was freezing. He never locked up his back and I worked hard to make sure I let him keep moving forward instead of trying to shorten his stride to make it easier for me to sit. Another unsurprising fact: if I let him move forward and don't pull, he stays soft and the trot is easy to sit anyway.

"maybe some day this lady will figure out the basics."

We went through the SI and HI again with the 10m circle thrown in in between them and he was perfect--especially when I out-loud told myself to "SIT IN THE SADDLE." Pull it together, self. I want to muscle and shove him around into the lateral work like he doesn't know what I'm asking still, but he does so when I sit quietly and put my leg on to just ask him like a trained horse, he goes and does the thing like a trained horse.

Tracking right is harder for him so he wants to suck back a bit, but to the left was next level. He got praised up the wazoo, attempted a little medium trot across the diagonal (meh, but at least not fast and spastic), and then had a quick stretch-it-to-the-ground walk break.

I didn't do too much in trot because I wanted to hit on several things in the canter: simple changes, counter canter, and finish by seeing where the flying changes are.

His departs were good, the simples could have been softer but they're still there, counter canter was a breeze, and then the changes.

He jumps right over to the new lead when asked, but without any real prep he was late behind by a couple strides. When he switched over behind the bolting activated. I gave him a ton of praise each time anyway because he gets what I'm asking when I'm asking, they just need work. I know there's a perfectly sane clean change in there because he'll give them to me while jumping. That's where I'm hoping the double will come in, and I think maybe the dressage whip as well to tap his butt when I ask to remind him that has to come along, too.

But that's not something I'm dying to dig into just yet. I really want to find a real medium trot, and just overall make every part of 2-2 and 2-3 smooth as butter. Which, at this point in the year with how little focused work we've done so far since coming back from vacation, I am beyond happy with.