SESSION 17 – TRAVERS & CANTER

Another busy session looking at Claire and Savannah's progress with travers and improving their transitions and canter.

In groundwork, Ali helps Claire make sure Savannah is doing travers with the correct angle. Claire works on keeping Savannah's walk slow to make the travers more accurate.

In ridden work, Ali makes sure Claire's right leg is rotated in and back. This helps Claire to be narrow at the top of the thighs. In the trot-walk transitions, Claire needs to think 'slump' and 'slingshot back' to avoid lengthening her front. With Claire keeping her front short, Savannah keeps her underneath short and stops her hind legs before her front legs in the downward transitions.

In ridden travers, Claire has got into a muddle with the correct rein to use! Ali also gets Claire to think about the edges and diagonals of her box. Savannah shows that with Claire using the correct aids and using her body correctly, just how easy travers actually is! Savannah does find it harder on the right rein so Claire uses her whip to tap her hing legs over.

Claire has to continue to think about the diagonals of her box in canter and also 'slump' and 'slingshot back'. Claire's brain is on the brink of being blown but the improvement in canter is clear. In canter right, Claire needs to really think about her left side being more advanced as she is over rotated. Correcting it makes Claire feel really 'squiggly' and Savannah reacts to having to use her right leg!