[rizzodm]

Before I got to the barn today my trainer called me and asked if I would like to ride her stallion for my lesson. Heck yeah I want a lesson on your PSG Lusitano. This was my first time on a horse with this much training. And he seemed to know it tooThe idea was for me to work on lateral movements so I could feel how it should be. He had other ideas and I spent the lesson just getting him to go straight and ride a 20 meter circle. Any mistake I made was amplified on this guy. I was a little giddy about the whole thing and kept getting the giggles which wasn't helping but trainer was patient with me and at the end of the lesson we did have a nice shoulder in down the center line. Can't wait for my next lesson

[threemagicalmares]

One thing I've learned about Lusitanos--I have a PSL mare who's 6--until you prove to them that you are as smart as they are, they are loathe to work for you. That's what the stallion was doing: testing you to see if you met his standards. Apparently, you did by the end of the lesson, since he was giving you what you asked for. Good job.

[lovey1121]

Congrats to you! Exhilarating and humbling at the same time, no? Lucky you!

[abrant]

Do you feel like the luckiest girl in the world?

My horse has been off so the barn owner/trainer felt sorry for me (and realized how badly I needed to get in shape... No riding for 3 years and I bought home a 10 year old thoroughbred.) She's been letting me ride the resident 'old turd' twice a week. By old turd, I mean the 24 year old schoolmaster. The cool thing is that I was once a horse crazy 11 year old and he was the newly imported 4 year old that I was madly in love with We've both been around the block, thousands of miles away, and we both ended up at another Iowa boarding stable.

It took me 20 minutes to do training level work the other day, he's much, much smarter than I am. I can get exactly one step of leg yield from him before he placidly turns and trots to the rail

I announced the other day that I wanted to passage and my trainer helped me do it. It was ugly but it happened. It was actually kind of terrifying, I'm sure hard to watch (I'm still working on my sitting trot, I wasn't ready for BOING BOING BOING, people make it look so easy), but I still have a hard time wiping the grin off my face.

But I can't believe how much he's helping me understand dressage. I know dressage is a progression, a journey I hope to take on my guy, but this horse made something in my brain click for downward transitions, I will go to my outside rein first now because it actually works for him, and even 3 steps catapulted out of the saddle in a messy passage cleared my mind on collection issues.

Good luck! You'll learn a lot!

[paulaedwina]

Yup, when I got to ride a retired PSG schoolmaster for my dressage lessons it took me weeks to get a trot when I asked for it. He was so exasperated with me that if he could speak I imagined he'd rub his forehead tiredly and say, "Okay, I don't know what you want, but let's go through these alphabetically shall we...?"

He made me so correct by the Fall. It was an awesome opportunity!

Paula

[rizzodm]

Yes I was honored and very excited for the opportunity. Though I was quickly humbled when my ride started. My trainer says he is going to make me ride correctly. Which I found to be true right away because he wouldn't do anything unless I asked him correctly and even then I really had to convince him. Trainer says when he has been at the vet he pretends that he doesn't know how to lunge and just stares at the vet.
It is so hard to get an opportunity to learn on an upper level horse if you don't already own one. So far my dressage journey has been on a pony that had years of kids riding her. She has progressed amazingly, now it's my turn to progress and learn what the movements should feel like and then carry it over to my pony.

[lovey1121]

I announced the other day that I wanted to passage and my trainer helped me do it. It was ugly but it happened. It was actually kind of terrifying, I'm sure hard to watch (I'm still working on my sitting trot, I wasn't ready for BOING BOING BOING, people make it look so easy), but I still have a hard time wiping the grin off my face.

Wonderful! I loved to throw my students up on my GP horse, sometimes to REALLY work on throughness, and other times, just to play-he was very generous with his tricks-not so much with his back

... even 3 steps catapulted out of the saddle in a messy passage...

This got such a belly laugh from me, I spooked my dogs Your exhilaration shines through your words!

Appropos of this and the similar "riding a schoolmaster" thread, there's a terrific video of a British TV personality taking a lesson on Fernandez, a fabulous GP horse in Carl Hester's yard.

http://www.horseandcountrychannel.co...nicki-met-carl

Those who have been there will enjoy this! If anyone thought riding a fully trained GP horse was easy, think again!

(You'll need to create an account but just a password is needed--easy-peasy.)

[paulaedwina]

The video was very cool. It brought back memories.

1. He's very very sensitive. Indeed. Having no core and posting out of stirrups or balancing on the mouth (ask me what I'm talking about LOL) made for a hot mess.

2. Forward was scary. Tempi's athleticism scared the pooh out of me. I did alot of WHOA and GO until my trainer gave me a visualization that helped me get through that. Of course after that regular horses seemed to be standing still

3. I love where she gave him too much leg and he responded like a dressage horse. My legs were uneven on Tempi and I was fixed of that problem when I pretty much pushed him into the angled knee wall and came off (very gently) over his outside shoulder into the sand. Boy did I learn that lesson.

4. I thought it was pretty insightful when he had her pat his inside neck at canter to get her to give with her hands. That was pretty smart. I swear I've never heard Carl speak without coming away with something new.

Gosh I love Carl Hester. *Swooon* BTW I appreciate that the program let us see/know she came off, and why. She is very brave -good for her.

Paula

[enthusiasm_exceeds_ability]

Yup, when I got to ride a retired PSG schoolmaster for my dressage lessons it took me weeks to get a trot when I asked for it. He was so exasperated with me that if he could speak I imagined he'd rub his forehead tiredly and say, "Okay, I don't know what you want, but let's go through these alphabetically shall we...?"



Paula

A friend of mine had the same experience. Riding her very educated horse one lesson, it took her 50 minutes to get a leg yield. After she got it, she leant forward, patted his neck and said 'Finally, you did it right!'. The instructor remarked: 'Yeah. He's saying exactly the same thing!'.

[lovey1121]

A friend of mine had the same experience. Riding her very educated horse one lesson, it took her 50 minutes to get a leg yield. After she got it, she leant forward, patted his neck and said 'Finally, you did it right!'. The instructor remarked: 'Yeah. He's saying exactly the same thing!'.

An AHA moment for your friend! Excellent.

[abrant]

A friend of mine had the same experience. Riding her very educated horse one lesson, it took her 50 minutes to get a leg yield. After she got it, she leant forward, patted his neck and said 'Finally, you did it right!'. The instructor remarked: 'Yeah. He's saying exactly the same thing!'.

I get that feeling a lot. I think a lot of the best work he's given me is a result of some kind of 'ok, stop fussing and proding, just sit there and I'll handle this'.

Here's a picture of the old man and I before I realized I could ask him to go forward

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i3...t/ca1e2e2d.jpg

Gotta love the expression on his face.