A
very strange title which hopefully caught your attention!
Recently, I was honored to participate in a clinic with esteemed
Dressage Master
Conrad Schumacher from Germany. Janeen
Langowski-Grava of Topline Stables and I, Regina Sacha,
participated in the clinic with my Grand Prix horse, Don Darveen.
Clinics are a wonderful way to learn valuable insights and gain new
perspectives about your riding. I wish to share some of my take
aways from this amazing experience.
On Saturday morning I awoke full of
good anticipation. Was I good enough to ride in front of this
master? Will I be able to understand his English? Would he be
kind and generous? What were my expectations to convey?I had some
time to think about these answers since Janeen was going to be the
first rider on Saturday. I would ride the following day on Sunday.
We arrived at the barn and saw our
host, Gold Medalist and “L” judge, Lynn Hamler-Bonar, owner of Hobby
Horse Farm in Fredrickstown, OH casually walking Conrad through the
barn, introducing him to the horses while he sipped his morning
coffee. Conrad is a very tall, imposing figure not prone to
expressions of great emotion. We were introduced to him and I
felt like I was meeting a great dignitary. I managed to utter a
“Good Morning” and shake his large hand. I was glad when he passed
by and gave me a chance to breath!
What I discovered later early in the
day was that Conrad is a great lover of The Horse! He is a kind and
generous man with simple and effective solutions. He is able to
watch a warm-up and decide what basic exercises will impact the
effectiveness of the riding to achieve stated goals. He asked
each rider to perform their normal warm-up and then come over to
where he was standing. He asked about the horse and rider and what
specific riding goal each rider had for the session. Then the
work began!
The solutions for each horse were
suited for the age, level, and riding experience. However,
pervasively a lowering of the neck to allow the horse to balance and
step under to carry himself was applied to each horse. It was like
magic to watch the release of tension in the horse disappear and the
movement become so through and improved. ‘No gripping with the
legs!” was a frequent exhortation to the rider. He would ask the
rider to remove the leg (while cantering) and keep the gait and
tempo with the seat. Then when the leg was applied, the horse
recognized it was a signal! “Let the Horse be a HORSE” and “allow
him to carry himself!” Frequent requests were made for the riders
to allow the horse to be in self carriage by checking with the
release of both reins. In German it is referred to as Ubersteichen.”
Very revealing!
In their lesson, Janeen and Drave were
magnificent. The horse became more and more engaged and flowing.
By lowering his neck in the pirouette, Drave was able to jump around
Conrad with ease. It looked effortless. Janeen was working on the
one Tempis and with Conrad’s directives, she was able to do them
consistently. Conrad then turned attention to the piaffe.
Without use of leg, Janeen was able to do an even and rhythmic
piaffe which looked like it belonged in the Pam Am Games! (Don’t’
we wish!). Both rider and horse put in the effort to make this
session fantastic!
Conrad ended each lesson on positive
notes and complemented the horse and rider for their effort and
achievements. He was very encouraging and motivational. I was
excited about my chance on Sunday.
I performed my normal warm-up and
Conrad encouraged the horse to move forward in the canter with a low
neck. At the trot, Conrad wanted shorter reins and a shorter
frame. We did shoulder-in, variations of tempo within the trot and
some half-pass. Conrad immediately put me at ease. I had admitted
to being an amateur and afraid his expectations were set with Janeen
the day before. We began the session with a focus upon the neck,
and consistent but light contact. Darvee was very accommodating to
me and allowed me to sit into his raised back. Since we were
having trouble collecting the canter, we began our focus on half
halts. Conrad showed me how to half halt with my wrists and not my
arms or elbow at the time when I was deep in the saddle at canter.
We then rode 20 meter circles, counting strides of ten at the canter
and five at the walk. Then eight strides of canter and three steps
of walk. No more, no less. Try it. Harder than it looks.
Conrad also had me shorten the reins
and allow the horse to come to a more collected compact frame.
Coming “TO THE BIT.” The canter was unbelievable! After some
amazing piaffe with Conrad assisting, he asked me to do a medium
trot! Darvee shot out like a rocket, lowering his croup and
extending like we have never done! What a rush!
Conrad believed in each student and
horse. He saw immediately what need to be done to improve the
quality of the riding and gaits. He needed very little time to
decide what was best for each combination. He was firm but
encouraging. My biggest
“oops” was allowing Darvee to come off the bit when we stopped and
were talking to Conrad. He said, “Regina, you are killing me!”
I got the point thereafter!
Conrad also stressed to the riders to
keep heels down and work on posture to enable the best riding. If a
rider was too tight, he would ensure that the rein was lightened.
If the horse were lazy, the leg was lightened and then applied
quickly and firmly. Then the horse was allowed to continue to move
forward without being “nagged” by the leg. Conrad referred to the
perfect leg as “cuddling” the horse. Not tight – not off, just
there softly.
At the end of my lesson, Conrad had me
stretch Darvee down at the canter and the trot. I crossed the
diagonal at the canter and allowed Darvee to do a change of leg
without much interference at all. Darvee simply and very naturally
performed a huge change. Conrad laughed and said now I was
becoming a “daring Cowgirl!” and made me do it again! He pointed
out that the horse did the change without any interference of rein
and with a very relaxed and balanced neck and frame.
It was truly a riding experience I
shall not soon forget. That is why I wanted to share the learnings
with you as well. Let’s all remember to allow the horse to be in
balance, don’t nag with the leg, allow the horse to carry himself
and “BE A HORSE!” and allow the neck to stretch forward and
downward to help the horses natural balance. Most importantly, we
must always LOVE and RESPECT this animal as a gift in our lives!
Check out Conrad’s latest training DVD’s which were recently
released. He is working on the sequel already!
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