Lesson +photos

[stormchaser]

My instructors' husband brought along his camera and snapped some pics. So here's me on Fantom ('Fantik') at the new riding club in Moscow.

Oh, lunge lessons are wonderful! :D

Comments please!

[stormchaser]

more pics

[Trewsers]

Nice pics. Glad you like lunge lessons! (BTW, the weather looks nice).

[stormchaser]

Yeah weather was nice that week. But summer quits early here! :(

Know the pics are small, but some comments on my riding would be great! :)

[cvb]

stormchaser

the middle one of the first lot looks the most relaxed and "in line" (you're over the horse's centre of gravity and more balanced yourself).

In the other ones you look a bit tense and apprehensive ? or rather I should say I can observe some tension in the hip and lower back that is closing the angle there so you are a little forward. To me this looks like it might be linked to tension etc ? Or is it a coincidence that your photographer caught this particular "view" in a few of those pictures ?

Don't mean to pick on the negative, but I'm guessing you are after improvements rather than pats on the back ?? ;)

[cvb]

p.s. just to say again - that middle piccie is pretty fab. nice length of leg, you look relaxed and happy where you are (at least from the rear view !). I could just see the reins being picked up and the pair of you going off in harmony :D

[stormchaser]

The middle one... if you did notice I had taken my feet out of the stirrups! Looks like it's more no-stirrup work for me now.... There were times that I felt out of balance and tip forward a bit.

However it seems that the first pic in the second lot also captured one of the better moments.

[cvb]

yes, but you are in "rise" there so its harder to see what's going on...

did you feel tense ? out of balance etc ?

[stormchaser]

I was generally ok while posting (says instructor), but later on in the lesson Fantom started playing his usual tricks on novice riders like ducking out the gate, refusing to move, dragging his feet along etc. and when I feel that he's going to either of those, I tense up when I try to get him pay attention.

Maybe riding with slightly longer stirrups might help? I've tried to make them as long as they could be, but perhaps there's also room for improvement in that department as well.

[cvb]

I was generally ok while posting (says instructor), but later on in the lesson Fantom started playing his usual tricks on novice riders like ducking out the gate, refusing to move, dragging his feet along etc. and when I feel that he's going to either of those, I tense up when I try to get him pay attention.

Maybe riding with slightly longer stirrups might help? I've tried to make them as long as they could be, but perhaps there's also room for improvement in that department as well.

I don't think you need to fiddle with the stirrup length - from these photos anyway. I can ride with a v.short stirrup and not tip forward, or v.long - your upper body angle is not drastically affected. Tho when you're less fit (as I am) then of course the most comfy position will be the easiest for you to work in.

But that doesn't stop you working on the tendency to shorten up your "front line" when you tense (and close the hip) - its what you may hear called the fatal/foetal position - we have a natural instinct to curl up when threatened !

[stormchaser]

I had one instructor who yelled out 'torso back!' (well, in Russian it doesn't sound so funny) every time I curl up. Maybe that could be an idea for the next few lessons. :rolleyes:

[cvb]

LOL - I had an instructor who yelled "RELAAAXXXXXX!!!!!!"

which of course was difficult as you'd just jumped out of your skin :rolleyes:

The trouble with "torso back" is that if the hip angle stays the same, your leg will come forward, and then you'll feel unbalanced and try and adjust - which takes you back to square one !

So you need to find a positive image for the WHOLE of you, rather than just the upper body. A word, or image, or feel..

for example,
think "open" (open at the hip angle, open hips, open shoulder so you breathe, etc)
or pretend you are a dressage rider ;)
or imagine you have a smiley on your chest and if you tip its only going to look at the floor - so show the smiley where you are going...

(yes, I'm mad - but they DO work !)