SESSION 30

Claire has been focusing on not sliding off right, really concentrating on feeling her seat-bones. Savannah has been spooky while schooling, which has unsettled Claire's nerves a little, but they are planning a BD test in a couple of weeks.

Claire’s right side looks nicely lined up at the start of the session, although Claire feels like she’s a little bit off to the left. She says if she remembers to keep her hands pushed up against something so that Savannah has her poll as the highest point, then it all goes well.

Ali comments that Claire is nicely in the middle of the saddle in trot to start with, and on the right rein Claire can feel her right seat-bone. On the left rein Claire feels herself going right, the fix is to think ‘how far left can you land’. They change the rein a couple of times to check that Claire can maintain the same feeling in her seat-bones on both reins.

After leg yield Claire tends to let go of her core a bit which creates a ‘power up’ in Savannah, the solution is for Claire to keep her core all the time, then she goes with Savannah and gets a great working trot. Claire admits that her confidence has been knocked by Savannah’s spookiness. Ali explains that if Claire tries to close down the trot by not getting to the top of her rise, and not matching Savannah, it can actually emphasise the spookiness. If Claire matches Savannah’s power with her rise, she is taking Savannah, and she has control. If she hovers, Savannah is taking Claire.

They move on to look at canter, Claire feels that canter is too big, but that Ali says is perfect. Claire can get a bit tipped forward, but when she ‘sits heavy’ Savannah takes more weight back and produces a nice canter. Claire thinks that in slowing the canter, she’s perhaps gone too slow, corrected too much - Beware, your correction becomes your next problem! The words ‘Sit heavy’ create a ‘plugging in' of Claire’s seat-bones which helps encourage Savannah to sit her hind legs.

On the left rein the transition in to canter is lovely, Claire is plugged in. In the downward transition Claire tips forward a bit, but she corrects it well and Ali gives her the tip that whenever she feels she tips forward, what she needs to do is sit back and keep her hands up.

Ali comments, that when it [your position] goes wrong, quickly correct it, and each time you do, you will become closer to the correction being 'just what you do'.