Post by Cara-Jean Kitchi on May 6, 2013 1:19:27 GMT -8
The end of the school year was all Cara had been thinking about for the past couple of months, ever since Mr Andrews had told her of the plans he had for his sixteen year old charge as soon as she was holding her high school diploma.
She shook her head to remove the thoughts as she walked into the barn. Right now, her mind needed to be on her mares, and her plans for their future. She was already making arrangements of a buyer for Mouse, the mare needed a highly competitive home, a life that was always moving and she felt that she had found the perfect buyer for the mare. Ella however, was a totally different topic. The mare had been doing so well and was settling into her work so nicely. The thing though, was that Ella needed to be somewhere where Cara knew that she would never be made to feel that she was being overworked, so she had decided to gift the talented mare to the Academy - a decision that Ms Carr was thrilled with.
"Shall we go and do some work, beautiful girl?" She asked as she looked over the Hanoverian mare's door. She scooped the mare's golden-yellow halter and rope off the hook and entered the stall. "There's a good girl." She slipped the noseband over Ella's nose and flicked poll strap over her neck and fastened it before leading her out of the stall and down to a set of crossties.
It didn't take her long to get the mare ready; snaffle bridle, shaped numnah, and close contact dressage saddle. Cara slipped her feet into her field boots and after clicking on the helmet, she led the mare out to the academy's Olympic sized dressage arena. Using the mounting block that was strategically placed in the area between the arena she wanted and the jumping arena, she vaulted onto the mare's back, tightened her girth another hole and then squeezed the mare forward.
Cara knew the importance of allowing the mare warm up properly before they started work, but she could also feel the mare under her at bursting point so she allowed the mare to shoot forward at an almost uncontrolled canter before she sat back and used her legs and seat to bring the mare under her and offering the mare her hands for balance. "Good girl." She said as Ella slowed down to a smooth trot and then a walk.
Once back at A, she started the exercise she wanted to work on today, a simple thing called The String of Pearls; a suppling exercise done at the walk. Simply put, it's a succession of ten-meter circles along the longside, followed by a walk down the centreline to change direction. While working on each circle, Cara made sure to concentrate on using her leg and seat aids to hold the mare in position, so that her inside leg generated forward movement and blocked any tendency Ella may have had to pivot or fall in on the circle. Her outside leg and outside rein moulded the bend and kept the shoulder or haunches from bulging to the outside.
She shook her head to remove the thoughts as she walked into the barn. Right now, her mind needed to be on her mares, and her plans for their future. She was already making arrangements of a buyer for Mouse, the mare needed a highly competitive home, a life that was always moving and she felt that she had found the perfect buyer for the mare. Ella however, was a totally different topic. The mare had been doing so well and was settling into her work so nicely. The thing though, was that Ella needed to be somewhere where Cara knew that she would never be made to feel that she was being overworked, so she had decided to gift the talented mare to the Academy - a decision that Ms Carr was thrilled with.
"Shall we go and do some work, beautiful girl?" She asked as she looked over the Hanoverian mare's door. She scooped the mare's golden-yellow halter and rope off the hook and entered the stall. "There's a good girl." She slipped the noseband over Ella's nose and flicked poll strap over her neck and fastened it before leading her out of the stall and down to a set of crossties.
It didn't take her long to get the mare ready; snaffle bridle, shaped numnah, and close contact dressage saddle. Cara slipped her feet into her field boots and after clicking on the helmet, she led the mare out to the academy's Olympic sized dressage arena. Using the mounting block that was strategically placed in the area between the arena she wanted and the jumping arena, she vaulted onto the mare's back, tightened her girth another hole and then squeezed the mare forward.
Cara knew the importance of allowing the mare warm up properly before they started work, but she could also feel the mare under her at bursting point so she allowed the mare to shoot forward at an almost uncontrolled canter before she sat back and used her legs and seat to bring the mare under her and offering the mare her hands for balance. "Good girl." She said as Ella slowed down to a smooth trot and then a walk.
Once back at A, she started the exercise she wanted to work on today, a simple thing called The String of Pearls; a suppling exercise done at the walk. Simply put, it's a succession of ten-meter circles along the longside, followed by a walk down the centreline to change direction. While working on each circle, Cara made sure to concentrate on using her leg and seat aids to hold the mare in position, so that her inside leg generated forward movement and blocked any tendency Ella may have had to pivot or fall in on the circle. Her outside leg and outside rein moulded the bend and kept the shoulder or haunches from bulging to the outside.
For those of you struggling to envision what Cara's doing:
