Cob Jockey

My last couple of lessons have been focused on the alignment of Connor's body.  She's teaching it to me in a strange way, and we're getting things done, but it's not something I would have thought of on my own.  I'm hoping maybe this helps some of you, although it probably just applies to me and my Gumby horse.

Dressage in the CWD for no reason other than I missed it.

He likes to carry his hindquarters to the outside.  So in order to get him straight, she has me put his shoulders where his hindquarters want to go - to the outside.  It's not a way of thinking I'd ever come across myself - shoulder OUT all the time?  But it is, in effect, not at all shoulder out, it's "straight" because we're putting his shoulders in front of his hindquarters instead of vice versa.

Instead of moving his hindquarters in, she has me move his shoulder out while asking for inside bend and guarding his hindquarters from going even further out.  In one case, she told me to think leg yield with the front end and haunches in behind.  Not actually doing either of those two things, just thinking it.

The results are pretty amazing, I can instantly feel a change when I get him there.  I can get here easily when I'm riding him like that:

Because duh, straightness.

I told her that it's frustrating, because we can get there, but we can't get there quickly in the beginning of a ride.  She said "Well he's not exactly a hotblood who gets things quickly.  You'll just have to work with it."  Translation: Patience.

Next up: Jean Luc clinic tomorrow and Sunday!