[StylishK]

So we rode outside for the 2nd time, he was only out for 10 minutes yesterday. Last year he was a scared in this pen, but not this year (at least so far ahha). He was fabulous today, I had one of my best rides on him.

I haven't ridden him a lot lately because I've been away at school (maybe one other time in the last month). His feel is soo different from Brandi, it's going to take some time to get the feel of his canter because he's so up and down when he moves.

I'm so excited to show him, we're almost ready to show, we could probably go show now and just look green. We need to work on our canter to the right a little bit, he's a little stiff that way.

Let me know what you think I'm so happy with him today. I think he's come along nicely.

Oh btw, he's a 3YO Quarter horse, and I'll be showing him Hunter Under Saddle on the QH circuit, just so you can gear it towards that when critiquing.

It's english in a western saddle

Here's a screen shot I love too lol..How big does he look there ahha?

 

[PaintsPwn]

Why do you keep making him put his head down more? He's carrying it level for you as it is, and as soon as you make him go down more, he starts moving oddly and you're almost telling him level is not what you want. I could understand if he'd brought his head up, making him put it way far down - but there were many times you asked for it lower when it was already level and where it should have been... So work on your timing a bit more, and don't push him down unless he goes up.

I don't know if it's just the incosistency in his head, or if he's actually hurting - but he almost looks sore.

Where his trot and head are at 6:40-6:50 is where he needs to be. Canter needs lots more work. Try some counter canter.

 

[StylishK]

He's definitely not sore. He's a little gangly and doesn't really know what to put his feet sometimes, he needs to get stronger too

As for the head thing, it goes down naturally. I'm not asking him to put it lower I'm driving him forward to the bit, the head happens naturally. It's a little low now, but I'd rather it be that way when we are schooling.

His canter is coming, like you said he needs more work, but he's young and only had around 60 days on him as a 2YO.

 

[westonsma]

As far as WP riding goes, all I ever see are horses with their heads low, I don't think it's a problem if that's your forte...

 

[westonsma]

I did notice, however, when you're riding at a trot there at 0:38, from that point on you really bump your horse's sides with your legs. Notice the man riding with you. Watch his legs. See how tightly clamped they are to the horse's sides? When you ride, you should ride with a constant and steady pressure with your legs, and steer with your horse's ribs more than his face. I noticed too, every time you move your hands your horse reacts to the bit. (Which should be, naturally, the case, but when you're riding pleasure, you should be able to ride no reins at all) Lift for go, lift for whoa.

Watch your feet at 2:49.

If you really focus on driving him with your feet, I think he may come along quite a bit more for you, he won't be so busy thinking about why the bit in his mouth is wiggling a little. And it may keep him from being so inconsistent with his carriage.

Also, I'd give him a little more rein, especially at the canter, I noticed there at the end of the vid he was tossing his head a little at the contact with the bit.

 

[StylishK]

I'm not riding western, I'm riding him english (I school english in a western saddle). Not to mention he's young and green and isn't ready to go on a drape . I lift up on the reins to hold and drive forward. I'm not sure thats something thats going to change because thats part of our program. When I show him my hands will be quieter, but like I guess he's green and its just something helps teach him. He isn't ready to go around like a broke horse where I barely have to touch his face.

I agree my ankles are a little loose and I need to work on that, I don't think they are as loose as they look my spurs were slipping up a lot. I think it can be partly blamed on that fact that my stirrups are long for english (not an excuse, because I know I do have a loose ankle naturally). I do find my leg a little more secure when actually riding an in an english saddle. But I've been working on that issue when I'm away at school in my Jumper lessons so thats probably why. I need to work on it at home in my reining saddle lol.

I definitely should give him a little more rein, but I think thats a trust thing right now. We were outside for the 2nd time, last year he was scared of a lot of things ahha. Today when I ride I'll try that for sure.

Thanks though for the critique. I definitely agree with most of it =)

 

[StylishK]

P.s. If I sounded rude/defensive, not the intention. I was just trying to explain ahah, I see everything you see for sure

Sorry just felt like I should add that in case my post came off the wrong way

 

[Quixotic]

I'm not trying to be rude at all, and this is just my opinion, but I think that if you can't keep more control of exactly when you're touching him with your heels, then you shouldn't ride him with spurs. If you bump him with them at every stride, he's eventually going to become dull to your leg.

Also, since you say this is meant to be english schooling, you need to keep your hands even & never cross them over his neck when you're turning (your first canter bit in the video). Instead of bringing your outside hand over like you're neck reining, you need to be keeping it out & holding him up. Turning should be inside leg into outside hand while always looking into your circle or ahead to where you're going, with the inside hand as a reminder since he's young and learning.

Do you have an english saddle that you can school in? Western saddles put you in a different position than english saddles do.

 

[StylishK]

I'm not actually hitting him with my spur, its my leg (it may look like its my spur in the video but I promise you its not -- maybe once and awhile I'll put my spurs in but the majorty of the time its my leg), but when I trot I liked to bump every stride, thats how I've always ridden. It really helps with if I give him that rhythm. It's not that I can't control, its just how I ride and it works for us. It's more a squeeze and release with my legs, my ankles are a little looser at times than I like but its not that I can't control them, I know what they are doing, it just takes some strength to get them to move less). I think most of the movement you see there though is actually my spur because its loose (its not hitting him though)

I'm turning like that because we like to turn like we are turning one hand, he's going to be a western horse as well and its a good opportunity to teach him that. It's just a schooling session, so I don't mind if my hand comes over like that. I ask my horses to turn differently then you I think. I go outside rein and outside leg with a supporting inside so they don't drop their shoulder but thats it, its not really on. Thats just a preference in styles I think, I prefer the way I turn for me . I actually do that more with my reiner (the inside leg to outside hand), it really helps her make a nice circle and keep her shoulder up, but I still don't like to do circles on Cash, I like square turns (hence the hands the way I have them and outside leg). I also like to have my inside hand a touch hire to help keep his shoulders up with my leg (he likes to drop them in ahah)

As for school in an english saddle, I put it on him once and awhile but we school mostly in my western, just how we do it..its a really common stock breed thing. Not to mention if my trainer wants to get on him and show me something he can, he doesnt like english saddles ahhaa . I will school more in it when it gets closer to show season though for sure. I'm not really worried about the position part of it Trust me though I will ride in an english saddle more closer to show time, I just want to get him going around at home outside comfortably before I put the english saddle on for out there (last year he was pretty spooky out there, so far he hasn't been but I'd rather have a western saddle on when he goes because I ride in that more and therefore more secure in it).

Thanks for the critique though I appreciate it. If I sounded defensive not my intention (its so easy for things to be misinterpretted on the internet ahha), I just ride him a english a little different then the real hunter/jumper/etc people do because eventually he's going to be doing both western and english and its better if some of our buttons are the same haha. So I was just trying to explain my way to you. Thanks again.


I should have been more clear in my original post too I was asking for a critique on him not me, but thats my own fault aha, again thanks

 

[StylishK]

I wanted to add too, another reason I bump is because he's the kind of horse that doesn't need a lot of leg, so if I hold it there he'll want to speed up. So its easy to squeeze and release (and I guess that kind of matches my style of riding ahha).

It's definitely a habit, but when I show equitation I hold it much more still. For hunter under saddle I like to do a double bump when I'm showing and get that extra stride.

I guess basically its something that some people may not like but I don't care about fixing it because I like how it works for me . That being said, I'm talking about legs bumping not spurs. I'm going to fix my spurs right now actually ahha. I might need to put the straps that go under my boot on them too lol.

 

[Quixotic]

You said he doesn't need a lot of leg, so will he keep going at that pace if you don't bump him at every stride? Holding your leg steady doesn't mean it has to be pressed against him constantly. I'm just asking, because I personally only like to bump them either if I feel them slowing down, or if I know the horse needs it after so many strides to keep going. Usually not every stride at the trot though, because I really don't think that's necessary unless the horse is quite lazy. But again, maybe that's a personal preference. Unless you're training him to slow down to a walk once you've stopped squeezing, as I've seen that done as well, I actually watched a clinic on it once.

I know the turning thing is more of a western thing, but I mentioned it since you did say you were schooling english
I totally understand about using the western saddle for security reasons - he is a baby, after all.

 

[StylishK]

You said he doesn't need a lot of leg, so will he keep going at that pace if you don't bump him at every stride? Holding your leg steady doesn't mean it has to be pressed against him constantly. I'm just asking, because I personally only like to bump them either if I feel them slowing down, or if I know the horse needs it after so many strides to keep going. Usually not every stride at the trot though, because I really don't think that's necessary unless the horse is quite lazy. But again, maybe that's a personal preference. Unless you're training him to slow down to a walk once you've stopped squeezing, as I've seen that done as well, I actually watched a clinic on it once.

I know the turning thing is more of a western thing, but I mentioned it since you did say you were schooling english
I totally understand about using the western saddle for security reasons - he is a baby, after all.

I'll definitely try that out and see how it works. It'll look a little prettier if I do that too I've been taking jumper lessons and its something we've been working on a little bit for jumper. I was doing dressage before and we found that once my stirrups shortened for jumper the movement actually pretty much went away. So maybe its that in that western saddle my stirrups are longer and I'm reaching which causes the movement.

On my reiner I rarely trot its all cantering so I'm good at stepping down in the stirrups, maybe I'm just weaker at the trot.

Now that I think of it all ahah .

I definitely want to school him in an english saddle a lot more for sure, I was actually even thinking of just working in that when I work on english. I'll use the western for now just till we are comfortable with one another, he wasn't this broke a month ago ahah, he's been coming along very well lately.


Thanks again

 

[kmacdougall]

I'm the same way on the leg thing.. In a regular close contact saddle, if my stirrups are down a hole for flat, my leg tends to wobble. I have great leg muscles and a good secure seat, I just have a hard time keeping it still. Bring my stirrups up a hole and I have a leg is secure you couldn't knock it out of place. I think if I worked on it more I could probably keep it still though, maybe something for you to try as well?
Also my leg tends to wobble less if I keep the ball of my foot straight across the stirrup for flat.. Because when I jump my stirrup is angled across the ball of my foot.

 

[StylishK]

I'm the same way on the leg thing.. In a regular close contact saddle, if my stirrups are down a hole for flat, my leg tends to wobble. I have great leg muscles and a good secure seat, I just have a hard time keeping it still. Bring my stirrups up a hole and I have a leg is secure you couldn't knock it out of place. I think if I worked on it more I could probably keep it still though, maybe something for you to try as well?
Also my leg tends to wobble less if I keep the ball of my foot straight across the stirrup for flat.. Because when I jump my stirrup is angled across the ball of my foot.

Probably, its probably a strength/habit thing. Not that we are weak, it just maybe at that length theres a muscle that isn't used to being used, at least not in that particular way aha.

 

[Quixotic]

Have you tried no-stirrup work? Doing a lot of posting without stirrups will help strengthen those thigh muscles even more, so it won't matter so much if your stirrups are a hole too long, because you won't be relying on your feet so much.

 

[StylishK]

Have you tried no-stirrup work? Doing a lot of posting without stirrups will help strengthen those thigh muscles even more, so it won't matter so much if your stirrups are a hole too long, because you won't be relying on your feet so much.

Lots!! I have a solid leg that doesn't move its weird. It's a stirrup thing I think, so does my jumper coach. Maybe because in no stirrup work I have to think about it more.

 

[Quixotic]

That makes sense, I tend to ride with my stirrups about a hole too short (I'm a jumper/eventer), so I can see where you're coming from. I tend to ignore my stirrups completely when I'm doing dressage, & kinda pretend that they're not really there. Which may or may not be the most effective way to deal with riding with long stirrups, but it works for me & keeps me from concentrating on trying to reach for them, so whatever lol