Riding with Molly

WallE and I ventured to a nearby farm for a lesson with Molly Xanthopoulos this past Saturday. Molly visits this area every month or so and whenever we are able, WallE and I take a lesson with her. I leave her lessons with one of two feelings: 

1. Wow! We did great and I learned a lot of new things and have new things to work on. 

OR 

2. WallE and I need to practice more so when we ride with Molly we can leave with feeling #1.  

This past weekend we left the clinic with feeling #2. WallE did a great job, there was LOTS of activity and he managed to focus and try to work hard, but I think we could have ridden better if we had practiced more leading up to the lesson. That being said, my 'real job' was wild last week and so very busy. I was lucky to get in the two rides I got in prior to the lesson. WallE carried me around like a champion and did his best to interpret what I was asking of him. 

Our takeaways were as follows: 

1. When WallE is fussy, work on the straightness of the body. His right shoulder tends to bulge out and when we fix that, things become easier. 

2. His back right underneath the saddle is tight when we begin to warm up, the straightness helps this as well as cantering. *When I lunge him before riding, I think it is easier for him to be supple from the get go. 

3. Molly had us do a figure 8 in the warm up and again at the end of the lesson. It was a good bench mark and noticeable improvement. 

4. Holding the grab strap with the outside hand can help stabilize the rider's contact when asking for the bend. 

5. Molly helped us experiment with the counter canter using a shallow serpentine. This is something we can practice. 

6. SAVANNAH NEEDS TO STOP OPENING HER HANDS AND PUTTING PRESSURE ON THE POLL OF THE HORSE!

WallE and I lesson every week with a local instructor who is FANTASTIC, however it is nice to have Molly come in every month or so to let us know if we have improved, plateaued or regressed. She always brings new ideas/exercises that we can add to our routine and help us stay on track.