Piaffe and Right Rein

I think it's going to be right rein all spring....

Started with Piaffe today -- I can stand in the barn aisle-way and get Gracie to lift her hind legs fairly quickly and without fuss, but to sit on her and let Frances ask for the same thing is much more difficult!  We did get some good steps, but it's much more challenging.  I need to get someone else to work on it with me at home.  From that we moved to half-steps.  I need to ask very slowly, keep my legs well back, and click in a good rhythm - that clicking part is really really difficult for me.  I think I need music in my ear that is approximately the correct beat, so I don't lose rhythm as I click.  So, in and out of half steps.  We did get some good ones and Gracie's trot is better after working on them.

Next we cantered around - 20m circles with a change of direction, so we focused on the canter-walk-canter transitions.  When I know I am changing directions I keep the outside rein, when I am not planning a change of direction I pull on the inside rein.  

On to trot half-pass.  Trot left,  turn on to center line, half pass a few steps left, straighten for 4 or 5 steps, change bend, half-pass right 3 or 4 steps.   Keep that right leg on her to keep the hind legs engaged and stop the hind end from swinging right as soon as I try to change the bend.  The change of bend is the shoulders coming around my leg not the hind end wiggling all over.  

Last, Canter half-pass.  Exercise is to come around the end of the arena, half-pass to center line, canter straight up center line 5 or 6 strides, then half-circle to wall, half-pass to center line, etc.  Nice and repetitive. Relaxing.  On the right we were pretty good - nice, balanced half-pass, if I held my left rein we could be straight up the center line and could get a decent half circle.  To the left......  the right rein issue reared its ugly head again.  It takes the right rein to hold the hind quarters straight in the straight part of the exercise.  I didn't usually have right rein, so we changed the exercise.  half-pass to center line, then leg yield back to rail.  I have to think haunches for to get the hind end over where it belongs in the leg yield (straight behind the shoulders).  We did that once successfully and by then Gracie was cooked.

Great lesson with a lot of stuff to work on at home.  Next lesson Thursday after Christmas.