Educational and Humbling

 Hee hee.. Poor Lyric! The things she has to put up with!

This weekend was the Jessica Bortner-Harris clinic. She teaches biomechanics of the rider to help make the horses go better. Basically, she fixes the crookedness to help us be straight, so then we aren't blocking the horses. And it was fascinating. And so educational! I was supposed to ride Saturday but decided that it would not be fair (or in my best interest) to take Lyric. I just don't want to rush her on the trailer loading. So I took Dan for a long lining lesson. It was great! Then today, she offered to come by my house when she was done if the weather cooperated. And it did! But brrrrr was it cold! I was a little under dressed. In the beginning. Once Jessica got there, I was working hard!

I didn't know how long it would take so I got ready and got Lyric up to the arena. We did our pillar walks and then I got on. And we walked. And walked. And she kept stopping to sniff the water puddles. Every one. Every time. Ha ha. And then we trotted. And walked. And trotted. And stopped. She was quite lazy today. And I thought she took a few funky steps but she seemed to work out of it. 

Jessica got there and I told her I thought she was maybe off, but she watched her go and didn't see anything. And I didn't really feel anything after she had warmed up, so yay. So Jess watched me ride and told me that I'm pretty crooked, but interestingly, almost ambidextrous in it. ha ha. I was a switch hitter. She said my right hip was stuck back and my shoulders weren't moving. My lower back was arching and I was bracing in my back. She also noted that Lyric was pretty tight in her back and not swinging her hips either. And it could be related to me, although some of it was track tight too. I also told her that our steering was still questionable at times as we only had about 25 rides and she laughed and pretty much said "no.. it's your fault.. you're crooked!". Basically... my right seat bone/hip won't come forward so Lyric can only swing her hind limb forward so much too. And it's causing her energy to shoot right. Especially when you add in that my shoulders don't turn right. 

She put the bands on me to create the X on my chest and we started off tracking right. She told me to think about sending my right knee forward and down, like if I was lunging, and then to also bring my knee and thigh slightly to the inside... pushing her shoulders from the right to her left ear. But then I need to turn my rib cage and shoulders to the right. Far right. So we started off and it was actually fairly decent. Lyric even started reaching her neck down some too. So then we went left and she said it would be harder! Tracking right... Lyric would let me push her to the outside with my inside hip swing and thigh and knee pressure (to her left ear). And because my right hip tends to be be back and stuck, it's a little easier for her to bend around it (vs trying to bend around it tracking left!). When we switched to tracking left... it got hard! I had to still sit on the right seat bone, still swing my right hip forward (all the way around her shoulder... I was stopping short, which meant her hind end energy only swung forward to her shoulder and then shot out sideways), but bring my right shoulder back. Wait? Huh?! HOw on earth? I sort of figured it out at the walk. And it makes me feel a little ridiculous. But I could not get it at the trot. Maybe a step or two, but certainly no more than that. And it got to the point where I was so backwards and twisted that she kept running into the fence. Which makes sense why I struggle when we're on our own. It always seemed to be certain parts of the arena, but I'm guessing it's when I get my shoulders so wonky. I even tried helicoptering my arm, but... it almost just got worse the longer we went. I literally ran her into the fence a few times because she would not turn. Or... she would turn, but she would turn left instead of right. It was embarassing but also so funny because... like ... why is this so hard for me?!?! I've got to figure out how to unlock that hip and then move it forward while moving my shoulders back. 

We finally gave up because Lyric was getting aggravated at me running her into the fence and starting to get pissed. And I was not getting it. So I guess I'll be stretching and practicing it off the horse as well as on the horse. 

So while it was frustrating and humbling, it was also good. I NEED to fix this. Because when I did get it right (all 3 seconds total! ha) she was lovely. She was starting to reach and her hips started to swing! Good girl! 

Then when we were talking Dan started twirling a leg strap he found in the pasture. We were cracking up at him. And I was telling Jessica that when Lyric got here she was like "What is wrong with these horses? What did I do to deserve this? I'll run faster, I promise!". ha ha.. And now it's even worse because she was like "Save me from this incompetant human!". Poor girl!