he second day of SH Production's West Coast Dressage Convention with Carl Hester continued to focus on the importance of basics up through the levels. Hester reiterated that the quality of the connection is paramount to achieving success in each movement from the young horses up to Grand Prix.
Joseph Newcomb rode the beautiful 4-year-old For Finland. The horse went into the contact well and was relaxed in the symposium atmosphere. Hester once again emphasized that the rider should not expect to work a young horse too long or too hard, and explained that his own training regime involves a two-day cycle consisting of two days of work, two days off to focus on fitness and then two days of work again.
"If you want to do dressage, it's important you know what to look for in a young horse," Hester explained. "The walk should have a solid, clean rhythm that tracks up. The trot should have swing, but I'm not too concerned with the trot at this age. The canter - I like when it has thrust and push from the hind end. You can train the suspension in the trot as you work up the levels. Look at the walk and canter of a young horse.
"You may get lucky and find a nice, quiet 4-year-old then it turns into a raging monster at 5 and 6 years old," Hester laughed. "As they become stronger, they may start flexing both their new muscles and personality. Before moving on to gymnastic work, be safe." Hester had the rider work on transitions and ask the horse to find his balance without the rider's help.
"A 4-year-old horse needs to be ridden where they can find their rhythm," Hester explained. "You don't have to go too deep in the corners if that disrupts their balance and rhythm at this age. You must ride in a balanced position yourself. A small rider can ride too heavy, and a larger rider can be light - it's all about effective balance. "When you ride, how often do you give and retake of the reins?" Hester asked. "That is very important. The horse has to be given the opportunity to balance itself."
The second ride of the morning was Teri Paton Rich and the 5-year-old mare, Belissa. Hester explained aspects of the FEI 5-Year-Old Test, including the walk-canter, canter-walk transitions and teaching the horse to take more weight on their hind.
"It takes a fair amount of training to show the first stages of teaching a horse to sit, especially in the canter," Hester began. "You need to adjust the balance - it's a bit too horizontal at this stage, which is pushing onto the rider's hand. Encourage the horse to sit up more."
Hester emphasized the correct timing of the release of the half halt as to not restrain the energy.
"The half halt lasts one stride - if you are holding it more, you are stopping the energy from going into self-carriage," said Hester. "Check the balance with a half halt, then release and let go. Don't do all the work for her. It doesn't have to look perfect, it has to be corrective. The first reaction has to be forward. If you aren't happy with a transition, go forward first for half a circle then go back to the previous gait and do the transition again."
An exercise Hester recommended to try was to rise at the trot for three steps, then sit for a few steps to test if the horse is holding his back. According to Hester, until they learn the cadence and swing of the trot, he rides them mostly in rising trot to take the pressure away, while the horse is learning to carry itself.
Horses get used to riding in an arena and both the horse and rider will anticipate the corner as they know they are going to make the turn. Oftentimes they will float through the short side without the rider actually riding and the horse not paying much attention. Hester had Rich head toward the corner in a trot and a few strides before ask for the walk. He had her slightly leg yield into the corner at a walk, pick up the trot for a few strides around centerline and then ask for the walk and leg yield into the next corner.
Cyndi Jackson rode her well-developed 6-year-old gelding Sir Amour, and Hester began their ride working on encouraging the horse to take more weight on his hind, as the horse tended to have a flat collected canter.
"In the canter, test how he sits," Hester explained. "Do not hold him in your hand - if you are holding and tapping with your leg or whip, he is stuck. He can begin to understand the aid is to come up, not go forward. There may be times when you have to sit it out if he is still holding himself until he lifts his hind leg up underneath you. Wait, develop and then relax again into a working canter. Whatever you are making when you collect him, you have to take with you into the forward."
Hester had Jackson ride many forward and back transitions within the collected and working canter to help improve the quality of the activity, which in turn helped them have more expressive flying changes.
"If you risk going too forward, you will lose the suspension. Could I walk beside you when you collect the canter? Or will I have to run holding onto your knee to keep up?" Hester laughed. "We have to understand that impulsion is not going faster, it's what creates the uphill activity."
The mare was slightly hesitating before the flying change, so Hester had Blake collect her on the spot in the canter so that she achieved a more uphill outline and improved the balance. Then they would ride forward for three strides and ask for the change. They continued that exercise by immediately making her wait again, collect, then ask for three forward strides and ask for another change.
They also worked on the mechanics of beginning the canter pirouettes.
"When you begin to work on the pirouettes, do a working pirouette in a working canter," Hester explained. "Do not let her think it is difficult. Ride travers on a 10-meter circle and then transition to shoulder-in on the circle. Do not cut the energy by asking her to sit too much. When you can do this without any tension on your inside rein, you can do the pirouette."
David Blake rode Heide Spirit, a very expressive 7-year-old Oldenburg mare, and Hester explained how a horse with such big movements often has difficulty finding their balance and maintaining the same rhythm. The goal, Hester emphasized, is to get the horse to carry herself and become more genuine in her self-carriage. The quality of the expression of the gaits is the direct result of the basics: suppleness and relaxation.
"Trust that the horse will carry herself and when the reins start moving the horse should relax her mouth," Hester said. "The more you have the snaffle-feeling, and the horse is not hanging on the curb, that's genuine connection."