So I'm not going to reinvent the wheel and tell you all about the activity our dressage chapter had Monday evening, since I blogged about it on our chapter's blog. But I will tell you that I didn't expect to gain so much from the mini-clinic, and I will be taking advantage of that 50% off deal on a lesson! Jane (demo rider) and I plan to schedule lessons back-to-back so we can benefit from watching each other's sessions.
Jessica's presentation was down-to-earth; she shared her own journey as a rider, struggling to implement all the various things we dressage riders have heard (shoulder blades together, engage your core, head back, etc.). Her efforts created a hot mess of strain and pain at a young age. She got help, and shared that help, including concepts like "stacking" one's body and "knitting down" rather than stretching up.
Amerika the mechanical horse is a fantastic tool for practicing these concepts, since she's absolutely consistent with none of the variables that a thinking, reacting creature can throw at you. Also, you can see your position in real time (from the side, or from wherever the camera is placed) on the screen in front of you. Hopefully what I learned Monday evening and will learn at my and Jane's lessons will give me a big boost towards becoming a better rider!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
I just heard about that "horse" yesterday and to find that you're going to get to try it… I am so envious! Wheeee :-D
Sara, there are different models; a friend who was at the meeting got to try one that has sensors and responds with transitions only if your seat and legs cue correctly. Amerika is a less expensive model (Jessica said the one Sylvia tried is $100K), but still very useful in my eyes.
Wow, that's a pretty amazing piece of technology! How fun, how interesting and as Alanna said, cool! I'm betting no spook either! :-)
Post a Comment