These are pretty bad photos on my part-Sorry Sandy...I am working on my action shots... However despite the quality it shows your position as it relates to your discussion with Tracie on having your upper body well back so your hips and core are doing the work. Hopefully Tracie will be on tonight and can comment on Photos 1,2,3,4,&5
I think your position in number 5 at the trot is super. Your hands are together and quiet. Your shoulder, hip and heal are aligned well and Fritz is in a good frame-he is driving into your forward hand-way to go! Photos 1-4 were taken in the canter. I like your position in #1. Let's see what Tracie says.
Eeeeeeeeeek, my body does not do what it is told! For the moment, I'll pretend that it was someone else cantering, and I'll look at #5, which at least makes it look like I've been on a horse before... :)
ReplyDeleteI can see that in #5 at the trot, my right hand looks decent and seems to have a good connection with Fritz, but my head is jutting forward and down, and it looks like I'm leaning back. Tracie and I (and Fritz, the poor thing) were working on freeing my hips to move with the saddle at the same time that my hands stay still and connect quietly with Fritz. So in the spirit of looking at one thing at a time, I'd say that my hand looks much better than it ever has before, and Fritz does not look uncomfortable.
I look absolutely wretched in each of the other pictures, and I even manage to make Fritz look bad, which is nearly impossible to do, but I'll try to see at least something worth learning about in each picture.
#1: Oy. Look at how Fritz's back leg is NOT reaching underneath him, and he is stiff and objecting in his body language. Maybe it's my hand or maybe I'm pinching with my thighs in an unsuccessful half-halt, but this is an engine stall and the plane is going down! My hand looks stiff and unyielding. I look perched up there instead of sitting in the saddle. The only positive thing I see is that I didn't lean forward!
#2: I'm tilted too far forward, my hands are uneven and too high, and my elbows are plastered to my body instead of forward. If they were forward, I would be able to establish a better connection with Fritz. On a positive note, my head is not shoved forward.
#3: Hands too high and too close together. Fritz is balking, either because he has decided it really is time to eat, not canter, or because I am obstructing him with my hands, or because I never engaged his engine to begin with and he's not volunteering for duty...or some combination of the above. My hips are not doing what Tracie was encouraging me to do: have the saddle move the hips and keep everything else quiet. Instead, my hips are staying quiet and probably everything else is moving! Positive: Wonder of wonders, it almost looks like my core is engaged! How did that happen?
#4: We are turning the corner and approaching the first jump. Seriously, can I ever get rid of this hunter crap?!!!!! Fritz is not impressed, and neither am I. Look at the comment he's making with his tail. Positive: nothing!
Thanks for taking these pictures, Lisa, I will work hard to make sure I exorcise that hunt seat out of the canter altogether! The pictures show me how strong this tendency is.
Sandy, you only moved forward in your hunt position in the depart so do not be so hard on your self. In my departs, I give the right hand forward the first few departs and also come forward. It takes time to change these habits. You are doing great!
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