Another Good Day

Wow! I got to be the boss two days in a row! (More, actually, but I'm only counting test days here).

Even though it was Monday, I rode Quila today because of the rain day last Friday. She's getting a bit sticky in her poll again--we'll want to treat it again after the Dressage Affaire--but she warms out of it. After the basic trot/canter work, we practiced forward/back in trot and canter, and she showed me that she's on the aids and listening... and that her engine is really working, too. We had a German farrier here a few weeks to do a tune-up on the horses. He's an expert that works on some of the top horses there, and he showed a few secrets to our regular shoer. He didn't need to make any changes with Quila in front, but he finessed a few things in back, and since then I've noticed that she's naturally travelled straighter and has more push from behind, and slowly, that has translated into an improvement in lengthenings.

In canter, she showed great balance in collection today, too. We rode some very tiny voltés, bordering on working pirouettes, to work on sit, and also did some simple changes--even though neither is needed at First Level. She will need the simple changes at Second Level, and the bending helps us in our work all around.

Then we did a few leg yields. She's starting to do better to the right. I'm realizing that I need to help her by keeping greater contact on the inside rein in both leg yield to the right and shoulder-in yield left (both of which require moving into the right rein)... although she needs to move into the right rein, she still needs an even contact with the left rein in order to maintain roundness and avoid falling onto the forehand. My instinct is to try to ride the movements into the right rein alone--and perhaps that's the ideal--but it doesn't work with her. She needs contact to be perhaps 60:40 right rein to left rein, or maybe even 55:45.

It's not that I'm using the inside rein to flex or overflex her--I'm not. I need her to keep exactly the correct bend in the neck. It's more that I need the rein to help her balance. Perhaps the real problem is just that she hasn't developed the natural balance, and needs more help at this point. I don't know.

Once we were done with our warm-up, though, I rode the test and it was even better today. She stayed at my pace throughout, and today, I tried to concentrate really hard on keeping her round (very round) and on using my corners. Except for one spook in the corner by M, she was very good--well behaved, on the aids and listening. Such a nice change to be the one calling the shots and not having her question my leadership! I felt really good about how it went. It should be a great show.