Dressage Exercise #4: The ribbon
March 11, 2010
This exercise is great for those horses who get a bit stressed out with the counter-canter. It calls for subtle and careful riding, the transitions give the horse a mental break from the counter-canter work.
To begin:
- start the exercise at A or C in the canter on the correct lead
- when you get to the long-side steer your horse into a gentle bow (or ribbon) off the track touching the quarter-line (or center-line if your horse is more advanced) and then steer back to the track before you get to the corner
- this part of the exercise helps your horse to get used to the counter-canter without going all the way
- once you reach the corner, at A or C, depending on which end you started from, transition to trot
- proceed in trot and complete a three-loop serpentine
- you will now be at the same end of the arena you started on, pass A or C and when you get to the long-side, proceed across the long diagonal
- when you get to X pick up the canter on the correct lead
- proceed back to the track and into the corner
- coming out of the corner on the long-side, do the same as you did at the start of this exercise, steer your horse into a bow off the track, to the quarter-line and back
- this exercise can be repeated over and over depending on your horse’s level of fitness due to the transitions
- sometimes horses begin to lose impulsion during the canter part of this exercise as it is kind of short, with all the trot work mixed in – if this is the case add the odd long side of lengthen canter to inspire your horse
No comments yet
