Young of Mind

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Malachi, despite everything, was one of the few faculty members that had remained at the Academy for the summer holidays, but he had a lot of catching up to do, especially since his horses had only arrived the week that the school had closed for the holidays. The headache that was bringing them into the country was finally over, and he was lighter in pocket because of it. Not that it mattered, as he had his four warmbloods with him now.

It was also the morning of his first clinic and he would be holding his second one the following morning. His polished Ariat boots clicked down the barn aisle as he headed to Fifi's stall. The mare was his first and only option when it came to teaching. Jazz was too volatile when it came to working, and would need more time to settle in. The elegant bay head appeared over the stall door, and Malachi smiled happily.

Hey girly. You ready to teach today? Sure you are.

He fussed over the mare for a while longer, and then lead her out and clipped her into cross ties. He groomed her quickly and then wrapped her legs in the turquoise polo wraps. Patience of a saint, Fifi eventually dozed off as Malachi put in the quick plaits into her mane, but not rolling them up. He did up the girth on the dressage saddle, but not tightening it, and then slipped on her Micklem Relief bridle, smiling as Fifi started rolling the bit in her mouth. The cherry copper roller was the ideal bit for the mare, and he only ever changed it out for shows.

Leading the mare to the indoor arena, he tightened the girth and mounted her, starting to walk her around on a loose rein, waiting for his student to appear.

[Cara-Jean Kitchi]

Cara had been up for hours, her stomach roiling in though of the clinic she was attending that morning. It wasn't that she was nervous of riding the mare in a lesson, it was she just didn't like anything that changed her routine, and attending this clinic was enough of a change to upset her stomach.

She had been in the barn as soon as the door opened and hoped that giving the mare a good calming massage with lavender oil would not only settle the mare's nerves but her own as well, but it just ended up that the scent of the oil just caused her to run for the bathroom. By the end of the massage, the tiny girl's pale skin had taken on a shade of grey, but the mare was rather relaxed as Cara braided her mane and pulled her tail back into a French braid.

She left the mare in the cross-ties, in her dressage saddle and snaffle bridle, and went to the toilets where she shed the tracksuit she had been wearing to protect her white jodhpurs and cornflower blue long sleeved shirt. After throwing up once more, Cara washed her face and exited the toilet to put the now folded tracksuit into the mare's locker, collect her helmet and gloves from the tack room, and returned to the mare.

She walked calmly and confidently toward the arena, using the parking method whenever Kit decided that she wanted to be the boos, and it wasn't long before she arrived at the gate. She closed her eyes and pressed her hand against her stomach again as she quickly donned her helmet and gloves. "Gate." She wasn't even sure that her whisper soft, clipped accent would carry into the arena, but she had announced her presence to the best of her ability before she opened the gate and led the mare into the arena.

It was only once they were in there that she realised that she was now alone with a male.

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Malachi looked up at the same time that Fifi lifted her head, noting the young rider that came into the arena. Once more it seemed that he had a student that was incredibly shy, and he almost let out a sigh. It had been difficult enough the last time round when he had classes to teach, but he had managed to keep his head and get the message through it seems.

Fifi snorted softly, and kicked up her heels playfully, jolting her owner out of his thoughts. Morning. I'm Malachi Harris, this is Fifi. Welcome to Dressage 101. We'll start with a basic warm up, on a nice loose rein, just so that your horse relaxes into the work we're doing today, and then we'll slowly start bringing them into work mode.

Once he had given the instructions, he tapped his heels lightly on Fifi's side, and posted to the mare's springy and active trot, keeping light contact on the reins, allowing the mare to stretch her head down and take up the contact at her will. He loved being back in the saddle, there was nothing like the freedom riding provided him to experience and especially when he rode his higher level horses, he felt as if he could fly.

[Cara-Jean Kitchi]

Although it wasn't a conscious thought, Cara placed her mare between herself and the male, although she knew that if he advanced on her, she would let the mare go, as there was no way she would put an innocent animal in danger. She made sure to keep a good hold on Kit so that the pony didn't do anything stupid - after all, this would be the first lesson-type situation she had the mare in. She bowed her head to the man's words as she quickly set about pulling her stirrups down and tightening the girth, before glancing at the man again and leading the mare over to the mounting block. Ducking under the saddle flap again to check the girth as she waited for her stomach to settle and her head seemed to swim as she closed her eyes.

Shaking her head, which didn't help the light-headedness, she forced her body to pull it together. Bringing the reins over the mare's head, she stepped up the block and smoothly swung into the saddle. If she had been in here alone, she would have vaulted, but she didn't like doing that in front of instructors unless they had asked her to do it. As it was the first time she had ridden the mare in her dressage saddle, she also took this time to adjust her stirrups so that they felt correct.

Once mounted, she took up the reins and squeezed the mare forward, using her seat and legs to ask the mare to move. She kept Kit at a gentle walk for a couple of laps of the arena, and then did some walk-halt-walk transitions just to make sure the mare was listening and not working on auto-pilot, before she asked for a trot, keeping her hands soft, and not forcing the mare into contact, as she made sure that the mare was working from her haunches and not on the forehand, that her movement was forward, free, and in front of the leg.

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The teenager walked briskly to the barn where Karmen was stalled. "Karmen." She called out softly as she walked down the aisle to where Karmen was. She gave the mare a good grooming and got all of the tangles out of the mare's mane and tail. Karmen's coat had dapples on it now but by winter the dapples would fade away and her buckskin coat would look like a cream color almost. The girl's hands smelled good because of the leave in conditioner she had to use on Karmen's mane and tail as she picked out the mare's hooves checking for any signs of thrush or anything. Natalia did a French braid on Karmen's mane and tail.

She put the grooming box away and grabbed her dressage tack which consisted of a light blue saddle pad, a black Prestige saddle and a black dressage bridle with a snaffle. The bridle wasn't her show bridle but it was a dressage bridle. She didn't like to ride Karmen in anything but a snaffle for dressage when they weren't at a show. She made sure that the girth on the saddle was tight as Karmen lowered her head for the girl to get the bridle on. She tightened the throat latch and the grabbed the flash nose band as she tightened it so it wouldn't slip off the mare's muzzle.

She left the mare in her stall for a brief second while she went to the bathroom to shed her yoga pants and wind breaker. The white breeches stood out against the navy blue long sleeved shirt She put the jacket and yoga pants in her tack trunk before grabbing her helmet and gloves. She quickly put them on. She walked back to Karmen's stall where she shut and latched the door before going to the dressage clinic. 

At the dressage arena two people were already there. A girl riding a pony and a man also riding. She walked up to the gate. "Gate." She called out so the people already there knew. She opened the gate and led the mare into the arena before shutting and latching the gate behind her. Natalia checked the mare's girth before tightening it up. She let her stirrups down before gracefully mounting the buckskin mare. She let the mare stand for a minute as she picked up the reins loosely before giving the mare the slightest of leg pressure to signal the mare to walk. 

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Malachi nodded in greeting to the other student that entered the arena, and directed Fifi to the center of the arena to watch both students. He was still having to get used to the absolute perfectionism that some student's went through. He had ridden with the best in Germany, but even then, he hadn't shown up to work in white breeches every time, mainly because if he had, then he would have spent all his money on white breeches. Nah, he found comfort in his faded grey Pikeur's.

Okay, once you feel your horse is warmed up properly, then slowly start collecting them and bringing them onto the bit. Remember, you don't want a hollow horse on the bit, so bring their hindlegs under them, not dragging, and keep the energy collected into an active working trot. Inside leg on, and outside rein to balance.

Did he wish he had remembered his instructor microphone? You bet he did, but he wasn't going to focus on that now. Collecting his reins, he asked Fifi to collect herself at the halt, standing square and then moved into a trot, keeping the mare balanced. She was such an easy ride, at times, that it made teaching easy. At least he hoped so.

[Cara-Jean Kitchi]

Moments before the instructor spoke, Cara knew that Kit was ready and she had already started the preparations to get the mare to seek contact. She gave a subtle press with her legs to ask the pony to move forward. Then shortening the reins a fraction, she relaxed her shoulders, hung her elbows at her sides and started squeezing with her fingers - using a give-and-take pressure on both reins, rather than pulling back. She used her legs to “push” the pony into accepting contact with the bit.

Once she had taken up a feel on Kit's mouth, although they had been asked to keep the mounts at a trot, Cara did some transitions, as she knew they helped balance her mount and they would also make her supple. She didn't do too many, just a few trot, walk trot, ad trot, halt, trot transitions, but they would make the pony “lighter’ in her hands and more responsive to her legs - well that, and it also didn't get the mare a reason to turn into a bronc. She then gave the mare a little more rein and smiled when Kit stretched her neck down to keep the contact. She then took the reins up again, gently so as not to yank the mare's mouth and lose connection, a ghost of a smile flickered across her face as the mare arched her neck comfortably and continued forward at the trot, moving into the contact with each stride, keeping her back nice and light and not falling forward onto her front legs. Inside leg on the girth and outside rein to keep her from falling out.

Cara sat almost motionless in the saddle, her upper body still while her lower back worked as a shock absorber as she lifted her hips in time with the mare's shoulder as they trotted. She was finally beginning to feel a real connection with the horse - and not talking about having her "on the bit", but the connection that made them a team.

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The mare's head was stretched low and relaxed. Though not as low as a western horse's head would be set it was still low to the ground. Natalia held the reins loosely in her hands knowing that even with loose reins she'd be able to stop the mare if the mare bolted or spooked for some reason. She doubted that the mare would but horses were prey animals. What seemed stupid to spook at for humans could seem like a predator to a horse. Sure they did spook at stupid things like a bush or a leaf falling to the ground but they were prey animals. They naturally had a fight or flight instinct in them and sometimes the flight instinct won over the fight instinct. 

Natalia listened the the instructor asked them to slowly get their horses collected and bring them onto the bit at a working trot. Natalia gave the slightest touch with her lower leg to ask the mare to trot. Karmen went into a working trot immediately. Natalia shorted her reins enough so that the mare would be collected as Karmen went onto the bit. Natalia's inside leg was at the girth and her outside rein as Karmen rounded onto the bit. The Andalusian mare had always gone onto the bit as soon as Natalia shortened her reins. It was just natural for her. Why Natalia did not know. It had taken some effort to get the mare to stretch her head on a loose rein as the buckskin mare had wanted to still be on the bit when Natalia had first gotten her. Even now if she tightened up on the reins a few inches the mare went onto the bit. The mare's trot was a very nice working trot and even though she could post it the instructor did not specify to post or sit the trot. So she sat the trot. Unless specified on a dressage test you always sat the trot unless stated otherwise so she assumed it would be the same in this instructor's clinic.

Her upper body was motionless and her shoulders were back. Her head was held up high as if she was carrying books on her head and they would fall if her head dropped. Natalia had always liked sitting the trot as it made it easier for her to feel Karmen's movements. She didn't mind posting either but if the mare was acting as if she was going to spook she normally sat the trot so she could feel the spook or bolt coming. Karmen hadn't spooked or bolted yet while in the United States and Natalia hoped she wouldn't spook or bolt now. She didn't feel any of the tension Karmen had before she would spook or bolt so she doubted that the mare would spook. Karmen didn't seem to be looking for anything to spook at as her ears were back listening to Natalia.