Part 1:  Courtney King Dye teaches this lesson with Judy on her 7 year old Dutch Warmblood mare. They have just begun working with Courtney, and she goes over what they did in the lesson the previous day. The mare needs to learn to move from the inside leg to the outside rein. She begins with leg yields at the walk.  They ask her to move sideways during the trot transition.  Courtney describes how her conformation affects her ability to stretch out on the reins, and asks her to move the horse off the inside leg until she gives on the inside rein.

 

 

Part 2:  They continue to ask for sideways movement on the circle until the mare releases the inside rein.  When asking for the canter transition, they again ask for the sideways movement.  The mare goes low in the neck, and Courtney gives great tips on riding her up.  

    

Part 3:  In the trot they work on keep her from going too deep while doing leg yields.  The mare shows a much better frame with better transitions. They increase the challenge by moving to the serpentine, and Courtney encourages her to not let the reins get too short.     

 

Part 4:  Courtney discusses lightness, the difference between horses and what lightness means with each individual. She talks about the necessity of finding the exercise needed each day for the desired results.   

Part 5:  The leg yields show improvement, and to keep the mare from anticipating, they switch up where they do them.  One loop serpentines in the canter are next, and the mare shows a terrific uphill trot afterwards. When they go to the counter canter, Courtney encourages the neck to stay up as the mare moves away from the inside leg, allowing her to give on the inside rein.     

Part 6:  They prioritize the neck staying up as they continue in the counter canter.  Courtney explains that prioritization is a key in training. For this horse, they want her to be a bit heavy in the hand and seeking the contact.  They are rewarded with a great walk canter transition.

 

Part 7:  The mare shows improved transitions, and for the final challenge Courtney asks that they try trot lengthenings and shortenings on the circle without allowing her to come too deep.  Their previous work leads to success in this exercise.

 

Part 8:  Because the exercise worked on the circle, they are able to ask for lengthenings and shortenings on the long diagonal.  If she tries to go too deep, they get her up on the circle before proceeding.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Part 1:  Mr. Hess brings us a training session with a nice young horse showing suppleness, good temperament, and good contact with the mouth.  He asks that they go deeper into the corners as he shows his great basics.  He has the rider use the whip either right behind her leg or on the shoulder to encourage him to move from the inside leg with improved flexion.

 

 

Part 2:  When traveling to the right he is a little crooked, so they work a little shoulder in.  They discuss using the whip on the shoulder only in training at home.  In the canter Mr. Hess asks them for bigger strides to let him balance his body.  Going to the right in the trot they help him keep his inside shoulder out.     

 

Part 3:  They continue asking him for a forward canter, keeping him in front of the leg.  He shows a great example of a young horse that has been started correctly.  They finish by asking him to stretch down in the trot. When they ask for the downward transition, he doesn't keep the stretch in the transition so they repeat the exercise and you can observe him improving. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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