Shoulder In? I Barely Know 'er!

Catskills humor for the win!

I had another super fun and super early dressage lesson on Seneca yesterday. He was really good. I think spending a week just trotting around on him was good for both of us. We're much more comfortable with each other and he was pretty relaxed the whole time (except when a deer went running by, and when a rattly truck came up the driveway, and when my whip hit the gate. OOPS.)

I'm getting better at sitting up there and letting my leg stay in the right spot, but I'm still struggling to be totally even and straight in the saddle. I do weird twisty shit with my torso and am only just beginning to feel it. I think it's coming from over-riding, trying to make everything perfect. When I let go, it gets better.

M introduced shoulder in and haunches in yesterday. I've done shoulder in on other horses but not a lot of haunches in. It took me a couple times to get the shoulder in right (I used an indirect inside rein when I should have used more inside leg; I tried too hard and needed to just let it happen). I sit crooked so I need to think about scootching my inside seatbone to the middle of the saddle, and then everything goes better.

Haunches in took me a minute to feel. It's a lot more subtle than shoulder in. If M hadn't been on the ground telling me when it was right or wrong, I wouldn't have known. I'm going to need more lessons in both of these movements before I'm trying them on my own, that's for sure.

One thing that's super fun on Seneca is medium trot. I'm not asking him for extended trot yet, mostly because I'm not sure I'm really straight enough up there to not mess him up. But crossing the diagonal and asking for a bigger trot on a horse who already has a big trot? SUPER fun. I will have to practice sitting it sometime when I need a laugh and Seneca is in a good mood.

 In other news, check out the ear net contest at Alyssa's Four Mares, No Money. Who doesn't need more ear nets??