Frames.....

I am fascinated by the whole concept...as we progress it is becoming more and more clear that the 'frames' we have at our disposal as a partnership have to be a few in number and used for the right reasons...
How many of us are truly aware of the frame we have our horse in at a particular point in a single training session? And why? What is the effect?How are we benefiting our equine partners...or are we?
As a starting point I quite like this article:

Dressage Frames

However, I am no biomechanics expert and I quite often get confused by the science and the technicalities...for me it has to be having a great trainer on the ground to lead and advise and developing that experience and 'feel' that can be elusive...

We have begun together to understand each other a lot more...I am learning so much every time I sit on my boy....I have just had to learn to listen a lot more...

So, the frames we have at our disposal at the moment....

Our long and low, warm up, working in frame....here, the nose has come behind the vertical, which is clearly not ideal, but we are working over and down from the wither with a long, relaxed, draped neck. This has taken a long time to achieve out and about, at home (weirdly my photographer hasn't captured any of these moments) we begin and end every session with a walk and trot in this frame and intersperse hard work with the opportunity to stretch and relax in between...the purpose, freedom of the back and neck...working forward into a giving contact, suppleness....always forward

I have borrowed this diagram which shows what we 'should'aim for in an ideal world:

We also have at our disposal a frame that for us is important...a relaxed, working frame:

Have tried to show it in both the double and the snaffle bridle, top picture, showing a more forward, relaxed trot into a forward pair of hands,nose slightly in front of vertical or on the vertical, poll the highest point, balanced and happy...we use this frame for suppling exercises, a lot of on and back within the paces, straightness work, our default working position I guess...I think the type of outline a judge might expect to see throughout a novice or prelim dressage test...

Clearly this is a work in progress as far as maintaining it in competition:

Where I have to ensure the neck does not become too short and rigid....one of the things that all our lessons work on achieving. It is a peril of having a willing but tense little bundle of fun.

Then our nemesis....the frame that is more collected, engaged and ready for the challenges of Elementary and medium work!

I love this article written by Kyra Kyrklund...the woman is a hero in my eyes, and here there are some thought provoking and enlightening comments and images...and our responsibility as a rider to ride from the seat and with an engaged lower leg to achieve that uphill competition frame:

kyra-kyrklund-collecting-body-and-step

So our lessons in the last few weeks and months have focused on exactly that. I have realised how important it is to have (for us) very regular input with someone who has been there, trained and ridden it and has an eye on the bigger picture. Small Brown is a natural worrier, but also a VERY quick learner so we have to ensure everything new is introduced absolutely correctly, at the right time, sympathetically and rewarded immediately.

Our recent work which has truly engaged the hind legs has unfortunately not been captured as yet...I need to get the photographer much more organised....however the inhand work has been invaluable...very quickly he has learned to bring those little legs underneath him...all stemming from the halt work, but now progressing into a much more engaged and uphill trot!!

We have worked on ensuring every halt is square and engaged, he does it on the yard, out hacking, on the track, walking to the school....like breathing, he knows it is the thing to do. From that halt with trainer on the ground, I ask lightly for the left hind leg to step under more with a light left leg aid of my own  while she lightly touches his left hind with her whip.Instant reaction...the trick is keeping upper body tall, seat engaged,legs long and draped, hands forward but neutral (not pulling back or allowing him to creep) and then with the right. Left, right...then without the whip I ask and he amazingly does it without trainer's help and immediately we allow him forward into an active relaxed uphill trot! Those few steps feel AMAZING!!! but now I have a sense of what it feels like and we can work towards creating that in more of his work. My calves are now aware of the job they need to do and MAN ALIVE I need to get even stronger and more flexible in my legs.

He is powerful there is no doubt...getting the combination of power and relaxation is a more difficult work in progress (hands here need to be giving forward much more)

I look forward to channelling some of this:

into perhaps some of this:

But we do get moments of uphill which are so blooming exciting!

Part of the issue is the boy has to have confidence HE can, I have to be quick to reward and send him forward...we are being very very careful not to allow him to become 'stuck' and feel 'trapped' by me and my hands.

We then carried the engagement work into the canter transitions, a great exercise we worked on was active forwards trot, down centre line,arrow straight, steep leg yield to the track at E or B and ask for canter as soon as you hit the track, straight onto a 20m circle....wow, we got some fabulous transitions....rider now needs to remember to ride the canter and not sit grinning like an idiot...our next step is getting that engagement in the downwards transitions too...

One day we may even get to experience the advanced frame...we will keep having a go that's for sure!!

Love that boy!!

Onwards xxx