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Lucinda Green clinic

Eventing
#1

I am considering doing the Lucinda Green BN clinic at Fair Hill this year.
I have not done eventing for 15 years. I do hop over some xc jumps out at the local park. They are pretty straight forward jumps such as logs, hanging logs and coops. I go foxhunting with a farmers pack with no jumping so am fairly comfortable trotting and cantering across terrain. I have gone out with Doc Addis and jumped a bit in a group at speed.

This horse has done unrecognized to BN but it has been 5+ years. When I am in consistent lessons I can hop around a 2’6" stadium type course.

I can’t really start to take lessons and jump again until I get my new saddle at the end of March. That gives me 2 months to get my act together. Current saddle is now too big and puts me in a chair seat. Only a custom saddle will fit this horse so I can’t borrow one.

My normal trainer is a h/j trainer but she has an eventing backround up to Advanced. I would take weekly lessons with her.
I plan on working with another local trainer that is an eventing trainer but I am not sure I really click with her like I do with my h/j trainer. H/j trainer does not have time to take me xc schooling.

I plan on taking advantage of the FH xc schooling days leading up to the clinic, hopefully with eventing trainer. Plus I plan on taking some xc lessons with eventing trainer at her farm.

I am concerned that I am not going to be really ready for the clinic. A friend has signed up for the BN. She has done the Lucinda clinic a few times with another horse. She rides with me regularly on trail rides and some lessons. She thinks I should be fine at the clinic.

Has anybody else participated in one of the Lucinda Green BN clinics? What was their experience like?

#2

You can do a search and find a decade+ worth of opinions and descriptions. :slight_smile:

Lucinda is a nice, genuine person but her concepts and teaching aren’t for everyone. I wish I’d audited a clinic before doing one as I found it really chaotic and too different from my own values/priorities as a rider.

#3

I love Lucinda, and try to clinic with her whenever I have a chance to.

She focuses on having the horse figure things out, rather than depending on the rider telling the horse what to do. The clinics I’ve done have been 2 days, the first day uses stadium fences and skinnys. They were all small fences, spaced sporadically and at the lower levels we were expected to trot over them. They were meant to come up in awkward strides so your horse learned to have quick feet/figure out how to navigate the imperfect distance. Other things we’ve done - walking up and jumping a set of barrels, riding with very long reins (to practice how to ride when you’ve lost your reins), and riding fences at speed.

Second day is cross country - the big 3 are broken down - water, ditches, and banks. Expect to walk over ditches, walk up and down banks, and play in the water. Depending on the level skinny fences might be incorporated

Walking ditch
Ditch combo

double down bank to skinny
again, going faster

I plan on taking my new horse (who should have at least schooled xc by then) to her clinic end of May.

#4

Take some time to watch some videos of her clinics - she has lots of “literature” out there and recordings of her clinics. Some people don’t care for her style, others love it.

Personally
 I say if you have the time and money, do it. I love her style of teaching. I’ve audited a few of her clinics and even got to watch on horseback during my ride in a separate ring and she really has some great insights for riders of every level. I went and worked on some of the stuff I witnessed in the clinic and felt I was very lucky to audit.

#5

You must have read my mind
 I’m thinking of doing the one at WinGreen in April but not sure if it’s appropriate for my horse. We’re doing Training/Prelim, but my issues with him is that he is VERY spooky and hard to keep his attention
 not exactly the most comforting feeling as you’re galloping along and he wants to inspect the fence thoroughly before jumping!

#6

No, Lucinda’s style is not for everyone, BUT I think all eventers can benefit from an introduction to her thought process. In a world that has become more technical and detail oriented she presents how having a kick on, git it done style of riding enhances not just ability but safety.

If you are a highly technical rider that works on perfect distances and perfect balance and perfect position she will drive you bat dung crazy. I think those types of riders and their regular mounts have the most to benefit from her teaching!

We have lost some of our seat of the pants riding ability in this country which is fine until the moment on XC when things start going wrong. Lucinda teaches you how to kick on through those moments which is almost always a better and safer option than our intuitive desire to pull back.

And yes, I suspect you would be ready for BN. She keeps the awkward questions quite low and I found her very sensitive to which one and how hard to push green horses. I rode a quirky, very green horse in a BN clinic with her a few years ago and it was a superb experience for both of us. I will admit to a little pre-introduction to a ditch and a folded up tarp at home before hand was helpful but not necessary.

#7

Here’s my experience -note that I rode last year on a different horse, (who has done training, we have one training together) a much better jumper, and have nothing but positives to say about it, I definitely felt more confident, but it was my experience with my other mare, who is NOT a natural jumper (there is no way to really describe her “style”) that may be more pertinent.

"I came out of it a changed (all for the better) horse and rider! I was somewhat new to eventing and my horse was young (just 6) and was not shall we say a “natural” jumper.While it may seem the first day that one is merely trotting over lower obstacles and repeating various patterns, “something” starts clicking and it becomes quite obvious that Lucinda’s progressive method is working. After the first day, I thought, wow, that was great. Lucinda gave me valuable insight into my horse and really worked on my position (but in a positive way).

Little did I know how "great’ it really was. On the second day, XC day, the horse and I were doing things I would not have attempted before and I dare say it almost seemed “easy.” My horse had turned into a confident XC machine! While much credit for my horse’s performance showing last season goes to area trainers, I feel as though the Lucinda clinic was where things “clicked” and it made schooling/showing the rest of the year much more enjoyable. She gave a supercharged dose of confidence that made all the difference.

Perhaps what most impressed me, looking back, was how she worked with us a pair and focused on the positives while being realistic about things that are not quite ideal. I never once felt she was being negative, and I had been a bit nervous about that given my horse’s jumping style at the time. Rather than reminding you about what isn’t quite right, she allows you to leverage off what IS right about you and your horse.

Note: This mare won all her three HT that year at BN!

#8

[QUOTE=SonnysMom;8544827]
I am considering doing the Lucinda Green BN clinic at Fair Hill this year.
I have not done eventing for 15 years. I do hop over some xc jumps out at the local park. They are pretty straight forward jumps such as logs, hanging logs and coops. I go foxhunting with a farmers pack with no jumping so am fairly comfortable trotting and cantering across terrain. I have gone out with Doc Addis and jumped a bit in a group at speed.

This horse has done unrecognized to BN but it has been 5+ years. When I am in consistent lessons I can hop around a 2’6" stadium type course.

I can’t really start to take lessons and jump again until I get my new saddle at the end of March. That gives me 2 months to get my act together. Current saddle is now too big and puts me in a chair seat. Only a custom saddle will fit this horse so I can’t borrow one.

My normal trainer is a h/j trainer but she has an eventing backround up to Advanced. I would take weekly lessons with her.
I plan on working with another local trainer that is an eventing trainer but I am not sure I really click with her like I do with my h/j trainer. H/j trainer does not have time to take me xc schooling.

I plan on taking advantage of the FH xc schooling days leading up to the clinic, hopefully with eventing trainer. Plus I plan on taking some xc lessons with eventing trainer at her farm.

I am concerned that I am not going to be really ready for the clinic. A friend has signed up for the BN. She has done the Lucinda clinic a few times with another horse. She rides with me regularly on trail rides and some lessons. She thinks I should be fine at the clinic.

Has anybody else participated in one of the Lucinda Green BN clinics? What was their experience like?[/QUOTE]

I dont know Lucinda Green specifically but I think it depends on you and your confidence regarding your and your horses abilities. Watch a video of former clinics and consider if you are able to do confidently what she will be asking. If you think you and your horse can then go for it and have fun!! I think doing clinics when you are kind of borderline with your current shape can be very good and can give you new input.

I took lessons with a BNT although my horse just came back from a break in our training and it was amazing how much it helped. I also went there with a horse which I had ridden only a few times and it was not so efficient because I really have not figured out the horse yet.
but if you are confident with your horse you will have a great time for sure!!!

But if you think there is no way that you will be able to do what you will be asked to do in the clinic then it doesnt make sense to go and its a waste of money, because then a regular home trainer will be more useful

#9

(last century) but thoroughly enjoyed her clinic. Mare & I were getting a bit blasĂ© about training level fences but I wasn’t sure prelim would be such a good plan for either of our health/wellbeing>>really, really wanted to aim for a long-format 3D though. We went in a training group and were solid—mare quite bold & fearless with a fence in front of her (completely erratic & often explosive at all other times) and was quite happy to step up her game to include many of the prelim exercises. I asked at the end of the clinic about taking her prelim & LG replied “she’d take her prelim tomorrow–problems were not with the fences”! In fact, she turned out to be far more reliable at prelim than she ever was at pre-training.

A friend’s horse in the prelim group but lacking some mileage at that level ran into confidence problems. Be honest about experience/expectations on application forms so organizers can form most compatible groups possible.

Would definitely attend another== willing pony/creaky human bones/$$ notwithstanding :slight_smile:

#10

Thanks for all the feed back. I had done a search on CoTH before posting but apparently am search impaired.
It didn’t occur to me to try to find some on-line videos. I will look for them tonight since I probably shouldn’t be watching them at work.

#11

If you decide to go it, and I don’t mean to scare you off, but I would be sure horse and I were Ok with skinnies, as in 4 foot long skinnies, one block, one barrel, etc. Not all poles were that skinny, but that is what i used to practice. For BN, I set them low, as in 12" or the block on the long side


Also, be Ok TROTTING fences, even walking doesn’t hurt to practice -but remember, the first day, the BN group will likely stay quite low.

Also, set up low fences by just dropping them somewhere - walk off nothing, as in don’t measure at all. Then trot through random patterns, make turns you never thought of it
don’t worry if you knock some stuff over, that isn’t the point.

I also recommend googling her on youtube before - the exercise stay mainly the same, but there are some changes year to year, I think, for example, last year, there was this “box” set up that made bounces and one strides and gave lots of angled options.

I signed up for the one in our area, honestly, if I only did one thing outside my normal trainers’ lessons, including shows, it would be Lucinda.

#12

[QUOTE=akor;8546497]
If you decide to go it, and I don’t mean to scare you off, but I would be sure horse and I were Ok with skinnies, as in 4 foot long skinnies, one block, one barrel, etc. Not all poles were that skinny, but that is what i used to practice. For BN, I set them low, as in 12" or the block on the long side


Also, be Ok TROTTING fences, even walking doesn’t hurt to practice -but remember, the first day, the BN group will likely stay quite low.

Also, set up low fences by just dropping them somewhere - walk off nothing, as in don’t measure at all. Then trot through random patterns, make turns you never thought of it
don’t worry if you knock some stuff over, that isn’t the point.

I also recommend googling her on youtube before - the exercise stay mainly the same, but there are some changes year to year, I think, for example, last year, there was this “box” set up that made bounces and one strides and gave lots of angled options.

I signed up for the one in our area, honestly, if I only did one thing outside my normal trainers’ lessons, including shows, it would be Lucinda.[/QUOTE]

We are fine with trotting fences. Jumping from the walk, not so much. It just feels so awkward.
He should be fine with skinnies but I can certainly practice that. Since my trainer has some jumper riders I made her some skinny rails but they are more like 6 ft. Her coops are 2 4ft wide sections so I could ask to jump just one section. I am sure she has some broken rails around that I can pop over.

My trainer does a lot of gymnastics so the bounces and one strides are fine. We have done some with bending lines but not much with angled fences.

I will try to watch some videos.
I will ask my h/j trainer her opinion too. I am sure she knows Lucinda’s teaching style and certainly knows my learning style and my horse’s quirks.

#13

I’m considering going to her clinic at Fair Hill too. It will be my first time riding with her, but from the video’s I’ve seen online her clinics look like a lot of fun. The only detail I have to sort out is if I can convince husband to make the drive (4 hours round trip) twice in one weekend. I think it’s going to be a worthwhile experience and a great learning opportunity.

#14

[QUOTE=PonyPilot;8546823]
I’m considering going to her clinic at Fair Hill too. It will be my first time riding with her, but from the video’s I’ve seen online her clinics look like a lot of fun. The only detail I have to sort out is if I can convince husband to make the drive (4 hours round trip) twice in one weekend. I think it’s going to be a worthwhile experience and a great learning opportunity.[/QUOTE]

I’ve had a front row view for a few clinics and people tended to have wildly different experiences. Some people love love love her and go back year after year and some people found it a waste of time and money. I would definitely look around online and maybe search COTH for some of the old threads because there were definitely some posts that described the good and bad experiences with a level of detail that should enable you to guess which into which camp you are likely to fall. Based entirely on observation, I would say she’s best with confident riders of any level and nervous lower level riders. Otherwise competent midlevel riders experiencing an issue or two did not always have the best experience IMHO.

#15

I have done 4 clinics with Lucinda over the last 8 years, on 3 different horses, so obviously I am a fan! My most recent one was a few weeks ago (I’m in Australia).
I ride up to the 2* level, however I am an amateur and definitely suffer from nerves. I’m not your typical confident 2* rider.

I agree with most of the comments above, and definitely suggest making some skinnies to practise over if you can, and just try to jump some weird stuff
 for example, apexes/corners made out of poles (ie not filled in), but just jump one of the poles on an extreme angle, that is harder to explain than it would be to draw!

In the clinics I’ve done, I’ve found she prefers nippier, hotter horses to the fancy moving, beautiful warmbloods that don’t necessarily have good footwork. She loves horses with good footwork! I have noticed that if you are riding that type of horse, she will tend to spend more time with you.

She absolutely does not tolerate anyone talking back at her (though she will really genuinely listen to what you say if she asks you a question), she just doesn’t like talking back. At my last 2 clinics I have stayed over at the venue and had the chance to watch other groups. It’s not always the best riders or the best horses that get her attention, it’s the ones that try the hardest and are prepared to have a red hot go and trust her. She loves tenacity, in horses and riders.

This year I was on the end of an absolute serve from her because my rather green, but very talented and generally quite honest TB got a bit frazzled towards the end of Day 1, and I in turn got a bit frazzled and wasn’t giving him enough confidence, I wasn’t determined enough. On Day 2 I started out the same, and she got stuck right into me, I mean raised voice and some pretty direct and severe comments, and it was exactly what I needed to hear. I really turned it around and my horse was amazing (there’s something about Lucinda Green staring you down and telling you to toughen the hell up and dig your spurs in that makes you want to do it :smiley: ), and by the end of the session she was practically high fiving me and gushing about the turn around. That’s what I love about her - even after all these years she is so excited about a horse or rider improving. But I have seen on many occasions, that if she detects that you’re kinda phoning it in, she’ll just sort of switch off from you and you won’t get your money’s worth.

For what it’s worth, my horses have always gone to their next events after clinics with Lucinda and been absolutely outstanding on cross country. Really looking for their fences, really aware, really respectful of the fences but bold if I remembered to ride like she was there saying “ELBOW” (Engine, Line, Balance, or you’ll say “OW!!!” - that’s one of her favourites).

I also just think it’s amazing to spend time listening to such an amazing sportswoman who has achieved so much on so many horses - imagine winning Badminton 6 times! She’s a legend! She constantly shares her views on everything eventing related and makes no apologies for her opinions, which you may or may not agree with. It costs about 3 to 4 times as much for me to do a clinic with Lucinda than it would with anyone else, but I wouldn’t miss one that I could get to. I hope that helps, and if you go, enjoy it and have an open mind!

1 Like
#16

Love LG. My all time fav clinician. Love her style. I rode with her once at Training level - she loved my horse and once in an Intermediate group (LMAO - I was just helping get a kid on 4 yr old out of that grp and volunteered) - she was not in love with my horse that time but still, it was a blast.
As long as you and your horse are comfortable over basic BN questions you will be fine. Nothing is huge - to me it is technical stuff. Go for it.

#17

I have also done clinics with Lucinda.

One thing with Lucinda is she doesn’t spend much time building into exercises. She is pretty much “jump this than this than this” from the go.

As someone said above she can be very direct. I was in a Training group with her one time and my horse ducked a jump. In doing so he popped my back. We struggled in the next two passes and she got right in my face and said “What’s wrong with you?” I explained about my back and she was very understanding. She said we would do limited passes then but “you must suck it up and not let him evade.”

To be honest, at the current pricing of her clinics I would rather just do individual lessons with my trainer.

#18

just saw this video - which i think reflects her attitude towards teaching young horses about “life”. This was how we approached the cross country day - walking over things and such.

http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/videos/horse-training-videos/lucinda-green-young-horse-cross-country-schooling-warm-up?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social

#19

Not disagreeing with you in that i believe you have observed this, but for me, this was the thing I worried about. Without seeming obnoxious, my mare could be in the teens with a trainer at any level in dressage, but oh my, her “footwork” was AWFUL. Lucinda didn’t bat any eye, and in fact, worked quite hard to make sure my horse had confidence over everything - even changed an exercise once, just for us - she analyzes each horse, and gave me great feedback on how to approach different fences with MY horse, with her bad footwork and odd way of using her neck/eyes to fences. Somehow in 2 days, that horse got a little footwork and got better about assessing obstacles.

For me, the one “downside” I have had would apply to ANY clinic. In the lower groups, you can get a horse/rider having a bad day and it can seem like a lot of time gets spent getting that pair over a pole, tarp, barrel, etc
HOWEVER, again, that is a risk every clinic, and any of us could be “that pair” on any given day, IMO. In the higher level groups, the pair might be having a bad day, but they are just better at getting over it faster. That is why I suggested skinnies, tarps, blocks, odd things so you are better set up for success.

Also, the comment on if you are looking to “fix” or work on one or two certain things, I can see where that rider would really have to open his/her mind and assess it AFTER the clinic is over.

I do feel like there could be a bit of a “delay” in seeing the real results - it is that next go where felt that “Wow, LG really did help us” with my more training level mare. I think after day one you can feel a little frazzled, but keep the faith!

#20

The big issue for me was the lack of straightness, and the utter lack of concern for straightness.

I was in a ‘young horse’ group with my then-young mare Zizi. The little jumps were set in such a way that there was no way to establish any form of straightness before or after a jump. Lucinda actively encouraged people to ‘wiggle’ over and keep kicking (big kicking) throughout.

Zizi and I both felt out of sorts. I start my horses jumping by making it clear that they will always be straight. I’ve been taught to always keep a horse straight. If you’re straight, you can adapt to changes in stride, speed, terrain, etc. If you’re not straight, you’re scrambling and on an uncertain stride to a jump. It’s confusing for horse and rider.

At the clinic, Zizi resorted to throwing tantrums which, when she was young, would involve a lot of flinging herself in the air and screaming a lot. (She used to throw tantrums over everything - not getting worked first every single day, not getting sufficient attention from other horses, having to go back to her pen after being worked, seeing her people dare to pay attention to another horse. She was lots of fun. Now that she’s older and firmly established as queen of JMP Farm, horses scatter if she so much as flicks her ears back.) As I have better manners than that, I resorted to asking Lucinda about straightness, specifically, how to incorporate it into these exercises. ‘How do you keep them straight?’ I asked during a break. The reply: ‘When. Are. They. EVER. Straight?’

Which explained a lot about Lucinda’s somewhat frantic XC style, her less-than-stellar dressage, and her oft-claimed inability to see a stride. Those would all be results of having a horse that’s not straight. And again, because I don’t want to argue with anyone about something that was clearly stated in public: Lucinda herself said she didn’t expect a horse to be straight.

We all have different priorities. She was successful like this. No arguing with that, either.

Despite Zizi’s obvious fury at Lucinda’s exercises, my little black pony’s brilliance wasn’t lost on Lucinda, who, after watching my mare carry on like an irate toddler for two days, told us, ‘This horse will go far in the sport.’

So while I didn’t care for Lucinda’s training methods at all, I appreciated that she could see a good eventer hidden inside a screaming, angry pony. :slight_smile:

But the straightness stuff is serious, and worth mulling over if you’re considering a clinic.

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