Hannah and I have been having a few disagreements, in that I want her to do something and she wants to do something quite different. She has been getting really worked up in the training sessions once she has cantered, and we have had a few competitions which have been interesting to say the least!
However, last week I took a good friend’s advice and booked a lesson with Jo Wright-Graham of Dressage Horse International. The first lesson was a little nerve wracking, as it always is the first time you ride in front of a new trainer, but I came away feeling really inspired and with a horse I did not recognise! I rode her first and Jo could see she was leaning on the left rein because she was not straight. We got her straight and she immediately softened in her jaw and also her topline. Then Jo got on her and I have never seen Hannah go as beautifully as she did! She looked like a completely different horse as she was using her hind legs much more, loosening her shoulder and really trying.
With this is mind, I took her to a competition at Croft Top on Saturday. The moment I got on her to warm up for the Preliminary, I could feel how easy she felt. I worked her in as Jo had suggested, and the test was the most fluid test I have ridden on her. She made a small mistake and changed legs in one of the canters which left her on a 4, but she ended up with 65% and 3rd place which I was thrilled about.
As I warmed up for the Novice, she once again felt soft and supple. The test itself felt straight forwards, there was no time in which I felt she was unbalanced or fighting me, and yet we ended up on just 60% which I was a little disappointed with because I felt it was the best Novice she had ridden.
In our second lesson today, she once again came out feeling soft in the mouth and supple through the poll! Jo commented on how much she had improved since the last lesson, and we did more work on getting her up in the shoulder and really powering from behind. By the end of the lesson she was cantering a shoulder in with lots of jump in her hind legs, and we ended on some medium trot which felt fantastic!
We have the Preliminary and Novice classes at Crow Wood on Friday, and then I will have to book some more in as I would very much like her to qualify for the Regionals this year! This is not something I would have envisaged saying a few weeks ago, but Jo seems to have real faith in us!
However, last week I took a good friend’s advice and booked a lesson with Jo Wright-Graham of Dressage Horse International. The first lesson was a little nerve wracking, as it always is the first time you ride in front of a new trainer, but I came away feeling really inspired and with a horse I did not recognise! I rode her first and Jo could see she was leaning on the left rein because she was not straight. We got her straight and she immediately softened in her jaw and also her topline. Then Jo got on her and I have never seen Hannah go as beautifully as she did! She looked like a completely different horse as she was using her hind legs much more, loosening her shoulder and really trying.
With this is mind, I took her to a competition at Croft Top on Saturday. The moment I got on her to warm up for the Preliminary, I could feel how easy she felt. I worked her in as Jo had suggested, and the test was the most fluid test I have ridden on her. She made a small mistake and changed legs in one of the canters which left her on a 4, but she ended up with 65% and 3rd place which I was thrilled about.
As I warmed up for the Novice, she once again felt soft and supple. The test itself felt straight forwards, there was no time in which I felt she was unbalanced or fighting me, and yet we ended up on just 60% which I was a little disappointed with because I felt it was the best Novice she had ridden.
In our second lesson today, she once again came out feeling soft in the mouth and supple through the poll! Jo commented on how much she had improved since the last lesson, and we did more work on getting her up in the shoulder and really powering from behind. By the end of the lesson she was cantering a shoulder in with lots of jump in her hind legs, and we ended on some medium trot which felt fantastic!
We have the Preliminary and Novice classes at Crow Wood on Friday, and then I will have to book some more in as I would very much like her to qualify for the Regionals this year! This is not something I would have envisaged saying a few weeks ago, but Jo seems to have real faith in us!
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