March 1999
Dear Anna,
I loved seeing you this weekend. I congratulate you on your continued excellent showing on the Smith riding team. I think you should start a Dressage team, but till then keep cleaning up on the Hunter team.
You had asked me about my vacation in North Georgia. I decided after seeing a tape of my dressage show in early February that I needed intensive lessons. I looked awful on the tape, bracing with my left leg, and often posting behind the motion. Scotty didn't look happy, and I didn't look like I was with him. So, I started looking for a place for intensive riding lessons. I typed into the Webb search engine the words "dressage" and "vacation" and came up with Garland Farms in Dahlonega, Georgia. An email confirmed that they were free for the week in February that I was free, and the next day I made reservations to fly to Atlanta and rent a car for the drive to Garland Farms.
I arranged for friends to take care of Huck and the horses while I was away, and flew from Dulles on Monday morning. I arrived at Garland Farms at about 4pm. I was greeted by Petunia and Rufus, the former a stray that was born at the feet of a mare on the farm, the latter a longhaired dog in a bear suit. Then came John Krueger, smiling. A long-haired person, smiling, though no bear suit. John showed me to my cabin, which I loved. Ever since my days at Seminary, I had thought of becoming a monk. This was the place to do it. A 12x 16 cabin, with a bed, an easy chair with a reading lamp, a dresser, a writing table and chair. There was also a TV, though I don't believe TV signals reach North Georgia. Well, not the TV I am interested in watching (Caps hockey games and the Metropolitan opera).
I then joined John for a tour of the Farm. We mounted the "mule" at the barn, then went from pasture to pasture meeting and feeding horses. We also stopped off at the pond and toured the pond house. John built it. While we drove from pasture to pasture, we were accompanied by Elliott and Mack, two very affectionate long-haired dachshunds. Elliott rode under our feet, while Mack chased.
That evening I had my first lesson with Gina on Gringo. This was reminiscent of our dressage lessons in Austria, where instead of riding a German Warmblood I rode a paint named Tex. So, here at the Hanoverian breeding farm, I ride an Arab named Gringo. We focused on my position: center my body on the saddle; use my whole leg, not just my heel. Engage horse with calf, keep hands centered between horse's ears. Turn torso to direct horse. DON'T pull back on reins to get Gringo into a frame. Instead, allow horse to move forward into the reins. Get more leg onto the horse, by turning heel slightly out. Open and raise my left shoulder (I was uneven). We then did an exercise where I stood in the stirrups and then posted to that position. This helped me get out of my chairseat, and get centered over my legs.
That night after dinner with John and Gina, I returned to my cabin. No TV. Just a copy of Sylvia Loch's, The Classical Seat that Gina had cleverly left for me on the bedside table. So, I began reading. I read that "classical riding means nothing more than being one with the horse.." Yup, that is what I wanted. Sort of like the Buddhist who orders a hot dog from a street vendor in NYC and when asked how he wanted it replied, "Make me one with everything." As I read, it became clear that this was Gina's method, Gina's religion. My correctly applied aids would help the horse to remain calm and in balance. It would benefit the horse by enabling the horse to use his back fully and correctly, which would improve gaits and athleticism, which in turn would make the horse (read Beam Me Up Scotty) happier.
Tuesday morning after breakfast, I got a chance to try out what I had been reading in Loch with my second lesson on Gringo. And then some. We worked a lot on engaging my seat. For example, by pulling back my right shoulder, I got a leg yield to the left (by engaging my left seat bone), and then by pulling back my left shoulder, we did a leg yield to the right. It was magical. I started to feel the movement of the hind legs under my seat bones. We then did some work on the lunge line. We worked on my position, and easing the pressure I put on the stirrup. We used the image of imagining the instructor putting her finger between my foot and the stirrup. This works best with an instructor that you like.
After the lesson, John made an amazing lunch. As you may recall, I stopped eating meat last summer. John had done a special shopping and had purchased great foods that I could eat. For lunch, he made a delicious Mexican shrimp dish. Following lunch, I had a lesson on Rucker. Again, we did the magical leg yields. We also worked on transitions. By taking a deep breath, I could get a transition to a lower gate. We then worked on a half- halt. We worked a lot on my position for this. For it to work, my hands had to be forward of the withers, so that my seat is pulled down into the saddle. I had to keep my shoulders open and my weight in my knees.
After dinner ---- a delicious garden-burger ---- Gina told me that I would be riding her stallion, Pik, in the morning for my lesson. My only experience with stallions is visiting barns and being told to stay away from the stallion stalls. Despite anxiety about what awaited me in the morning, I slept well, and went to Pik's stall after breakfast. On the way to the cross-ties, Pik and I had a discussion about his desire for an amorous adventure with Gezelle, a mare on the other side of the barn. Fortunately, Gezelle's stall door is made of strong stuff, and Pik followed me to the cross-ties. Despite my fears, Pik proved fun and easy to work around. He is the ideal horse to groom, as his coat starts to shine like no other coat you have seen.
Pik was fun to ride. Gina worked on getting me to stop nagging with my aids. We also worked on getting turns just by turning my upper body, without pulling the inside rein., while maintaining contact with the outside rein. With Pik, it was easy to feel his footfalls at the walk, and I learned not to stop the back and forth motion of his barrel with my legs. After my lesson, John and I took Elliott and Mack for a ride to Gainesville. Gainesville has a street full of impressive antebellum homes. In the evening, I had a lesson on Ricky.
Ricky makes you feel that Garland Farms is "Dr. Doolittle's Dressage Heaven". When John first gave me the farm tour on Monday, I had seen Ricky wandering. John explained that Ricky didn't like paddocks, tended to jump out of them, and hence, wandered free around the farm. Although in his early 20s (I think), he showed Prix St. Georges last year with one of Gina's students. As long as I kept my lower leg back and under me, he moved well. That night, I watched a tape that Gina lent me, called "The Six Ingredients for Riding Through the Back and on The bit". Jane Savoie narrates. It is excellent. The ingredients are rhythm, suppleness, contact, straightness, "schwung"(loosely translated as impulsion from the rear with the horse's spine swinging in rhythm), and collection.
On Thursday, I had lessons on Rucker and Gringo. Gina made flounder for dinner. It was so great that I went to Fresh Fields this past week and bought fresh flounder, hoping to duplicate the meal. Well, now I see that not only is Gina's riding on a different plane than mine, but so is her cooking. I will have to get the recipe.
On Friday, I had a lesson on Pik on the lunge line. We worked a lot so that I wasn't sitting so far back in the saddle when I posted. We did an exercise in which I stood for six strides, then posted for six, then stood, etc. The place where I stood showed me the point where I should post. We then worked on the canter, leading with my hip over the lead leg, with the outside hip following.
On Saturday, I rode in the Maryal Barnett clinic. We got Gringo very soft, an amazing feeling. Having watched the Savoie tape, I got a lot out of watching Maryal instruct other riders. I watched for evenness, and could detect lack thereof.
Unfortunately, I had to return home on Sunday. As you can imagine, I couldn't wait to try out what I had learned on Scotty. I rode briefly on Sunday when I returned, and he did feel a little lighter in my hands, and I avoided the old fights. I had a lesson yesterday with Starr, and we got one of the best sitting trots I have ever had on Scotty. Very light, carrying himself without tension.
In some ways, the week was very humbling. Although I have ridden as an adult for over 12 years, and evented for the last 8, it felt like I was starting over as a rider. Much of what Gina showed me, Starr has tried to show me before. However, being away from home on other horses and having two lessons per day, instead of one per week, made an incredible difference. I already have reservations for a return trip in May. I think I will try to take Scotty with me so we can learn this together. If you are done school, you and Motley should come with me.
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