Working on soft seat and relaxed horse.
I enjoyed watching your work…may we be all so focused and successful!
Very nice! Is your horse a Morgan? Hard to see, but lovely!
Very nice - you guys look great!
Yes, he’s a Morgan. Thank you. He did a lovely leg yield from the quarter line to the rail today. Tomorrow, I’m going to begin adding in the lope from that. See if I can get my seat to relax with that too. I’m his biggest problem. :yes:
Well isn’t that the case for all of us? 
He’s lovely. I have a big ol’ soft spot in my heart for Morgans. Wicked smart, they are. I found lateral work to be no problem for mine, but straightness was challenging. As well as listening skills when he felt that I “wasn’t the boss of him”.
Can’t wait to see the lope!
HaHa! They ARE wicked smart. I could swear they do homework in the barn at night because they come out better than when I put them in!
He was raised by a family in NC and trained by their equitation daughter. What I get most is “You’re not my REAL mother”. No sadly, not 18 or 110 pounds nor a perfect rider. Poor guy. 
I don’t know if you want ‘constructive criticism’ or not.
I think you have a beautiful horse, and your seat follows him very well.
I think, though, that your horse is not softening and turning around the first corner very well, he is stiff and tight in his body, though the rhythm remains consistent.
I never object to constructive criticism/observations.
You are right about that, I noticed it too. Not at the time but on the video. He did soften later because I remembered to use my legs to help him bend.
I did some 3 loop serpentines in the dressage ring and remember to use my inside leg to change rein.
Can I ask a question because I don’t know anything about western riding and the only “western” riding I do is basically just my “english” riding but in a western saddle…
Why are you going so slowly? What western discipline do you do? It certainly looks like you have a soft seat and relaxed horse!
PP, looks like she’s working on Western Pleasure - he’s got a great WP jog going. not so slow that he’s walking in front, just a good, even, comfortable gait.
Tee is exactly right, it’s wp for the breed show rin. And it’s a good, ground covering jog. And SOOOOO comfy. I could ride the range all day with that.
The show ring wants a little more animation but not speed or rough. He’s always ‘up’ a bit at a show so I figure I don’t have to change the way I ride to get that show ring look.
And some of the Morgan judges have started liking this jog. I hope it’s a trend to a more ‘working’ gait.
Here’s a longer video from later in that session. He was warmed up and flexing much better for me. I had a video taken about 10 days ago and was appalled at how many transitions I was doing…basically, making him nuts. Our concentration now is to get into a gait, develop it, hold it and work on suppling and relaxation. He very much approves of my new plan. 
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=581747241845977&set=vb.100000321183079&type=2&theater
Got it - thanks for the explanation. When you say the judges are starting to like this jog, do you mean there is an even slower jog?
Oh yeah, watch the QHs sometime. They barely move. My Morgan can do an ultra slow jog naturally. Probably half that speed. Handy for pattern classes, not so much for rail work. Generally I have to pick him up and push him forward to get a nice jog like what Ezduzit has there.
In the Morgan ring, knee action is EVERYTHING…even in western. Not very useful on the ranch, however. This ‘working’ jog is being judged more favorably now than it used to be.
Western used to be the bottom of the barrel, show wise and prestige wise. Park was everyone’s goal, followed by English Pleasure. We rarely see Park horses anymore, English Pleasure is now what Park used to be. Hunters are what Eng Pleasure used to be and Western is what hunt was. Except that as more of the baby boomers age and more money is thrown into that division, the quality of the horses and the variety from which to choose and reward is quite large. Everything from break even parade types to dowdy, mincey movers. The horse that can look the part, cover ground and still have ‘presence’ is being chosen for the winner’s circle more and more.
My QH does his ultra slow jog and ultra slow canter naturally. It’s nothing I trained into him. Put him on the longe line and unless he’s got a few bucks in there (in which case he may canter at a “normal” speed for about 2 minutes) he will go back to this super pokey gait. Horses that have slow jogs naturally exist (and being from the hunter world, I didn’t understand it either, until I bought one).
Why do you think Park is going away in the Morgans, ez?
It’s a really expensive division. 6 figure horses. Too rich for the Midwest. It’s THE THING on the east coast tho. Where western isn’t as big.
A young teen I know spent over $100k for a park horse to show in English Pleasure and saddleseat equitation. Not my idea of fun but I’m old.
I like to pick out my own horse, traveled 12 hours to look at it and bought it. All my friends with trainers were simply aghast that anyone would do that. I’m independent and will buy what’s right for ME, not what a trainer…or anybody else for that matter…says I should buy.
So here in the Midwest, western and hunter have huge classes. Park generally has none and very sparse in the English pleasure. When I was carriage driving, it wasn’t unusual to have 12 or 14 of us in the ring. Now there’s 2 or 3. The regional championship shows get more entries but it’s proportionate…western and hunt are huger still.
I ride western because I fall off English. :yes:
…knee action is EVERYTHING…even in western. Not very useful on the ranch, however.
Oh, hey now, if the horse will pick his feet up, you can go over, instead of around the rabbitbrush!!..maybe not the big deer sage or bitterbrush, tho…
Okay, SOMETIMES has a use on the ranch. :winkgrin:
