So June, July, and August. We didn't do any shows or clinics or outings. Mort hasn't gotten too noticeably better. My seat is marginally better if I can remember to think about it. Some days we can do fun second level things and some days I don't deserve to own a horse, let alone train one. Part one of this post is going to be about our lesson while part two will be catching up.
We've only had one lesson this year. There are a lot of reasons why, both in and out of my control, but it is what it is.
The woman came out for me and two h/j riders, so while she has dressage experience, I could unfortunately tell that it wasn't her focus. She did have one good exercise for Mort and I that was essentially mini-serpentines on and off the rail. It's a good one for Mort as he tends to lean and pop his shoulder. And it was a good one for me as I tend to focus too much on the outside rein and not ride him evenly into the bridle. It's one that I find myself still using occasionally. It's right up there with bend/counter-bend to get Mort and I tracking more evenly. Not mind-blowing, but a good tool in the toolbox.
Now we get to two things in the lesson that I was less than thrilled about.
We almost exclusively worked on the rail--no lateral work and no real focus on transitions. As a dressage human, I was a bit disappointed. I like a lesson that kicks our butts and shows where we're really lacking. I know that Mort and I are lacking in those two areas and they weren't even touched.
The second issue I'm probably being a "dressage snob" about.
Mort gets a head tilt sometimes when we're tracking right. I know that it's his hind end not tracking properly. Usually a half-halt on the outside rein and pushing him off my inside leg fixes it. Her solution was to just lift my inside hand. I did it and it worked on correcting his head carriage, but from my eyes that was only fixing the symptom and not the sickness. I did ask her more about why she told me to do that (in case I was missing something) but it was simply to get his head in line (while his inside hind was still getting away with being lazy). It didn't hurt me or my horse in any way. It wasn't "wrong" and is maybe something I'd pull out in the show ring for a stride if we're struggling. But it's not what I want to do in a lesson. Lessons are for working on the real issues--not just putting Band-Aids on. Also, like, the whole point of dressage is teaching the horse to use his body correctly, not just going around with his head in a frame.
There was obviously more in the lesson and it was all just ok. Not great and not terrible, but you can see why I haven't tried too hard to have her out since. I warned you all that I was a dressage snob.
Part two--catching up on the last three months (excluding a week of vacation at the end of July and two weeks in Puerto Rico for work at the beginning/middle of August).
Our dressage rides are pretty simple. We play with lots of different versions of changing direction. We do some transitions. I sometimes play with second level items and sometimes let him end when we're feeling great with first level work. Essentially we are just moving along slowly in the trenches. I do these rides probably two or three times each week.
I probably have one ride every 10 days where we're not meshing. Those either end in me fighting until I get something mediocre and tense or I just let us be lazy and we plod around on the rail or doing big circles and let him drag me along on the forehand. I'm a champion trainer; I know.
About two or three times a week we do "easy" rides. Sometimes I start off with the "basics" and if he's being decent that's all we do. About once a week all I plan is walking. We've been walking in the field, on the trails, and on the gravel road. Our favorite is the gravel road because it's the longest adventure. Mort is the first horse I've had that walks faster heading away from home versus heading home.
So essentially we 35-40% of our time working on getting really solid at first level and working on second level. We spend about 10% of our time with me being a terrible, frustrated horse person. We spend 30-35% of our time working on the "basics" and exploring. And we spend about 15-20% of our time on days off.
I'm hoping we can get to a clinic or two this fall and winter. I've talked to someone else about starting up the occasional lesson. It's probably time to get moving again. Life just gets in the way. Obviously work is busy sometimes. Mort isn't a huge fan of the new trailer we bought him so we've been working on that. Sometimes Steven is out of town. Sometimes Mort needs major feed adjustments to deal with energy issues. Not to mention we're still chipping away at the whole property/house building project. Time and money are in short supply and I could come up with a million more excuses. Hopefully we have the chance to be more productive soon--if not, Mort and I are still having a good time.
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