getting serious about canter

Real nice sessions yesterday and today. I'm getting serious about lots of transitions to all gaits. I'm cantering for longer periods, focusing on balance more than the departures, which are still coming along. We can spiral down to 8m or less on both reins at the canter, which I'm really pleased about. Today the shoulder in at the trot really felt nice--on circles and straight lines. Two days ago Maria took Jordan to the park again and did the most beautiful canter. The neighbors were in awe. I'm especially pleased with today's session--very quiet and responsive. Not a hint of disharmony.

one handed half pass

Very smooth, accurate session in the double this morning. Some trot work, which was weak. I think he's still tired from yesterday's trail ride! w-t-w transitions helped a bit. Good canter work today, 100% on both leads. Both half passes really nice now, except shoulders leading a bit too much on the right. This is mostly pilot error and I would not know this without the mirror. We ended doing some half passes one-handed, which were great. He is very light in the half pass and it only takes a whisper of the outside leg to get it going. Neglected counter shoulder in and travers on the circle today. Some figure 8s shoulder in the renvers, which were solid on both sides.

Best hack ever

This morning Tracy picked us up in her trailer again and we rode out of Neubauer's. We rode with Tracy & Tamara as far as 5 mile, then went to the RCPC for some schooling. With the group I made some progress with Jordan. Whenever he tried to pass a horse, I would put him in some small bending circles. He was able to slow his walk and soften fairly well. In the woods by ourselves we moved out at a nice trot and took a bunch of the log jumps. What a blast!

At the RCPC we took ALL of the jumps set up in the outdoor and schooled in both the indoor and outdoor dressage arenas. He did OK in the indoor but we will be at a disadvantage if we have to show there. I don't think he has much experience in indoor arenas and seemed pretty nervous. On the way out we cantered from the RCPC barn all the way around the South side of the field and didn't slow down until the woods. SO MUCH FUN! Jordan's trot in the woods was incredible--he has really learned to soften in the past few rides. He has never been this engaged. We worked a lot of w-t-w transitions on the way back, then switched to the double bridle and worked in the arena until tracy & tamara got back. He felt great, and I suspect he could have gone all day. What an incredible ride!

a little tired this morning

Jordan was a little slow this morning, but our work on his jaw continued to improve. He has trained himself to hollow out in one corner at the trot and this was causing the biggest challenge today, but I think we made progress. Canter work was a little better. Overall the action-reaction exercise is really making a difference.

Yesterday afternoon Jordan earned his union card when we gave a dressage lesson together to Kari, one of the instructors from Red Pine and a student of Lalo's. Kari was able to ride Jordan in shoulder-in, travers, and half pass quite nicely. We worked on the circle and straight lines. Jordan was a very good lesson horse.

action reaction

Very good learning session for the jaw. Have gone back to the basics of educating the jaw using Philippe Karl's techniques. Yielding of the jaw from the ground first, then at the halt, then at the walk. High wide hands leading to neck extension with contact. Very good results. Walk trot only today in the snaffle. Need to fix this issue before proceeding on other fronts.

complete session

We rode in the double today and I was careful to work all 3 gaits. Canter leads were 100%, although he is more excitable to the right. The right half pass is still weak, but the mirror is REALLY helping me find the problems. Shoulder in at the trot was incredible! To the left it is weak, which is consistent with his other issues with the left haunch. No problem this will be trained out soon. Nice quiet session with lots of high points.

Circle work at counter shoulder in and travers is coming along great. Counter shoulder in coming very easily, travers more than halfway there.

bitless session

Just out of curiosity I rode Jordan in the ring today with no bit, just my rope halter and a set of English reins. His bend and collection was a little disappointing, but he stretched well and was very controllable. We focused on canter work and getting that sticky right lead. I re-taught the lead from the beginning by stepping over on the left rein, then dropping the left rein and using the crop on the left haunch. This gave us a reliable canter depart on the right, which I then extended to a 10m circle. His canter was very clear and extended today. He has trouble controlling his excitement after a few canter departs, but this is simply lack of training. We will need to include canter in all sessions from now on.

Nearly every night one of us hops on Jordan bareback and walks him around a bit. Maria trotted him also last night and he did fine. He can pick me up off the fence, or I can mount from a bow. My vault is a little weak but he stands well for it, whether I miss it or not.

two great double sessions

I worked Jordan in the double yesterday and today. He is starting to offer genuine piaffe steps, which is a thrill to experience. He is doing combined lateral work at the walk and trot. Lots of transitions to extended trot, and walk trot transitions. Impulsion is very good.

Today we worked on canter some more, which was frustrating. We are still missing the right lead at least 30% of the time, despite lots of help. Not sure why this side is so weak.

Jordan wormed it Equimax today. It was very easy to administer, but he gave me a dirty look when it was done!

Caledonia Day

Tracy picked us up in the trailer at 8:30 sharp this morning and we were tacked up and riding at Neubauers by 8:45. WE HAD A BLAST! We rode out with Tracy's group as far as the pony club, then schooled in the two outdoor rings for an hour. We took the low jumps that were set up and also worked in the dressage ring. He did well but was not quite as soft as he is at Anarchy Acres. We walked back to Neubauer's through the woods alone and we has soft and on the buckle. Just a joy.

The right canter lead is hard to find again. We will look closer at this on the lunge tomorrow.

2' vertical

Jump session this morning. He was a little difficult to smooth out and got fussy a couple of times. I'm not sure he likes my A/P saddle. Anyway, we finally took the 2' vertical together and we both did fine. When Maria comes back I'll have her set the poles and we'll work up to 2' 6", so we have some breathing room for the CT at RCPC.

Lateral work is amazing, though. Half pass on both sides very easy. Shoulder in could use some smoothing out, but it is totally controllable. Renvers on circle no problem, without a crop or spurs, btw. Very responsive.

Missing the canter lead when we jump to the right. He really loves the left lead lately--maybe there is some soreness or weakness on the left haunch. We will also work on it from the lunge, where he also can take the outside lead on the right rein.

Tracy dropped the trailer off this morning in our neighbor's front lawn and we practiced loading. He does not care for the trailer but walked on at my signal from the ground after some work. Did not tie him the first session. Will need to practice a couple more times.

Dream ride

Rode in the double this morning. He was a dream! Very smooth and giving. Impulsion is really really coming along. Counter bend is totally there now, and very clear renvers on the circle. Travers on the circle developing--much easier to the left. At any rate, I was very pleased overall. We also did nice shoulder in and travers in trot.

I installed a 3 x 4 mirror in the arena yesterday and he adapted to it well. It's very helpful. I plan to enlarge it to 4 x 8 very soon.

Kailey jump session

Kailey stopped by in the afternoon for a check ride on Jordan and some jump work. She really made him look pretty flying through the air!

Kailey hopped on Jordan after I tacked him up and did a full warm up with him. He was very nervous and fussy for this part, which was a puzzle. He did not do anything dangerous, but just stuck his nose out a lot and refused to soften. I hopped on for a quick check and he did a little better. Nevertheless, I would say this "pop quiz" involving a surprise rider definitely unnerved him a bit. We will have to keep throwing things like this at him until he can take them in stride better.

counter bend

Lots of walk this morning. He is still resisting the right bend in most lateral work, so I slowed things down and really focused on it. In trot we did figure eights with constant bend--bend and counter bend. He did very well. T-C-T transitions on 10m circle. The 10m canter feels incredible! For some reason we still miss the inside lead on the right rein a bit. In walk we also did half pass to renvers on the circle to half pass, the circle quite small and approaching turn on the forehand in counter bend. I stole this sequence from a nuno oliveira youtube video!

lighter and lighter

This morning we practiced bowing from the saddle before working in the ring with the double. Really nice lateral work. Still working harder to get the right bend, though, in all lateral work. Half passes at the walk are really getting light and accurate. So much fun. Impulsion at the trot in the double really coming along. W-T-W transitions in shoulder in. Occasional piaffe steps being offered. (!) Shoulder in at the trot coming along nicely. Travers very solid. Travers on the circle being understood better now.

Have not missed a day of training this week--just skipped the blog. Have used the double twice this week and done at least one jump session. Riding bareback off the halter in the evening when I'm bored. Great progress all around.

great work on the circle

Yesterday morning was a jump session on my new (but used) A/P saddle. The knee pads were a great help and we had a fun session. I ended with some more lateral work on the circle, which is coming along great.

Today I focused on dressage work only, including canter transitions on a 10m circle. His 10m circle feels great at the canter--wow. This is real progress. A few weeks ago this circle at the canter was not possible.

More trot work at shoulder in, renvers, and travers. He was a little quiet today, so I skipped the w-t-w transitions. Maybe that was the wrong intuition. I cooled him off by walking up to the house and surprising Maria through the window. She got jealous and hopped on him for a 30 minute ride through the neighborhood. At least two people came running out of their homes when they saw Jordan walk past! Maria also crossed Newman and went around the park, including cantering in the grass. Jordan was terrific. He incidentally also crossed over some large gravel that was sprinkled on the blacktop without showing any tenderness. I sure love horses with good feet!

mid week progress

I worked Jordan in the double bridle Tuesday and Wednesday and was concerned that maybe I was pushing him too fast. He was doing well but there was more resistance than I had hoped for. However, I think this work was vindicated today when I rode him in the snaffle--he was incredible! We did circle work at shoulder in, counter shoulder in, and renvers. We also did w-t-w transitions in shoulder in--WOW! It was really fun. We ended up jumping cavalletti a bit with the stirrups still set long--not my strong suit. :) But Jordan did a fantastic job.

We did some jump sessions in the evening earlier this week, including introducing him to coops. Maria came out to take an informative set of pictures which mostly show me about to scream as Jordan calmly clears the jumps. But it was very helpful to see this.

miscellaneous sessions

Our friend Sarah came over on Saturday and had an enjoyable ride on Jordan. She trotted a little and took him all over the back pasture. Sarah was amazed at how responsive Jordan was.

Yesterday I missed our regular session due to rain, but Maria hopped on bareback late in the afternoon. I opened the back gate and they rode on our neighbor's land and introduced him to the traffic on Newman Rd. They looked great together.

Today I worked on trotting poles and introduced counter shoulder in on the circle. Long overdue. Renvers on the circle getting much better. Nice trot work all around this morning. A little excitable at the canter.

lots of canter departs

Nice warmup today, trot developing nicely. More lateral work on the circle at the walk and trot. Renvers coming along. Travers on straight lines and half passes across the entire arena. Canter on 10m circle sketchy. Simple lead changes through "X" OK. Need more work to control his excitement on the down transition. But a really good start. Using more high hands when he hollows out, which seems to be working. Some barrel exercises at the trot, also.

classical double

Beautiful ride in the double this morning. Focused on lateral work on the circle. Renvers coming along. Travers--not much. Nice neck extension(!) at the trot. Shoulder in at the trot. Great canter on both leads. trot-halt-trot coming along. He really stepped over beautifully today and kept his head rock steady. Nice nice work.

more classical

Started with one-rein circles with w-t-w transitions. Doing better, but still having trouble getting the down transition on one rein. He's figuring it out, though.

Lateral work on the circle at walk and trot. Renvers coming nicely. Better impulsion at the trot. Close to real neck extension at the trot.

Ended with taking the bounce jump a few times, as a 2' "X". Wow, is that fun! No drama, no troubles. Easy easy jumper.

jumping off the lunge

Maria took some pics and video of us jumping off the lunge today. We've done this lesson a couple of times. Jump Video 1 Jump Video 2

classical session

Much better weather this morning! Temps in the 70's and a bit dryer. Good session with double bridle. Focus on classical lessons--shoulder in on the circle, renvers on the circle, introduced counter shoulder in on the circle, etc. Good trot work with a steady head. Some extension at the trot. Beautiful smooth canter and canter transitions. Fun lesson.

first bounce jumps

It's still hot and very muggy, so this morning I decided to just lunge Jordan over some small jumps and skip riding him. After warming up over a single cavalletti I added a regular jump standard 9' after the cavalletti and had him jump both X's and verticals. I eventually went to the max height of 2' 6" on my lunge standard and he looked beautiful! Very calm run out and no problem or hesitation, ever. He never questioned the jumps once today. Once he was a bit too calm and knocked over the pole, same as from the saddle. Just a little bit of gas needed to ensure a clean jump with this guy.

2 rides, 2 riders

I rode Jordan in the early am and had a good session. Many canter departs, and many transitions of all kinds. Changing bend at the trot easily and without a fuss. Steady head. Right shoulder-in a little sketchy, spent extra time on this rein. Introduced travers to turn on the haunches.

Maria hopped on in the afternoon and took him over a few jumps before riding him in the neighbor's field. Jordan appreciated the change.