Benny had, how should I say it, a bit of a day the other day. We were working on 20m canter circles, and every time I tried to transition to canter out of trot, I was met with a wall of resistance. In return for my request I recieved tense rounding, stiffness and, in the end, bucks. That session, we quickly decided that he was not himself that day and gave him some time off in case he was hurting. He was fine by the next ride.
I had another similar day a while ago. It wasn't the same level of resistance, just one of those days when I was of the opinion that he was capable of doing what I was asking of him (again, 20m circles at the canter). He disagreed (respectfully) and it just wasn't happening at the level of my expectations.
As I circled again and again, I had a flashback to my 16-year-old self. Back then, I had a wonderful arab mare named Shantay. When her performance wasn't meeting my teenage expectations, we kept at it. It could be two hours of us at odds. I was a really stubborn kid, and she was a high-energy horse. I thought a bit about those epic battle-royales, and I couldn't even think of one thing I accomplished, other than both of us ending up sweaty and tired.
I've finally learned that there is no shame in altering your expectations sometimes to suit your ride. Every day doesn't need to bring massive leaps forward in training. Our plans don't always mirror our horse's, and the end goal is what counts. Baby steps make a less frustrated rider, and a happier horse.
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