Laura is beginning to get the measure of me
Riley and I ready to take on the Welsh hills
Riding took an unexpected turn this week during our lesson with Laura (Parkes), when Riley and I practiced a prelim dressage test. I think Laura is beginning to get the measure of me—she’s worked out that I perform better in a lesson when I don’t know what’s coming next and she surprises me in the moment. We made a respectable attempt at the test and even managed to canter the required 20-metre circles. Admittedly, they weren’t worthy of a 10—probably not even a 7—but considering that not long ago we couldn’t manage them with any degree of success at all, I was genuinely pleased to have produced something resembling a circular shape in canter.
My two priorities in life at the moment are cantering 20-metre circles and negotiating up and down the formidable Welsh hills close to the yard. To this end, I dedicated a day of hacking for Riley and I. Laura was at the yard about to long rein her daughter’s new pony and offered to join us on the hack. Grateful for her company (and her expertise), I immediately accepted the kind offer and off we set.
I found myself actually enjoying the ride
Perhaps the mix of having hacked up the first hill a number of times now, and chatting to Laura, combined to leave me feeling more relaxed than on previous occasions. So much so that when we reached the flat part at the top of the hill, I found myself actually enjoying the ride. That feeling ended abruptly however when we arrived at the first downward slope, and was replaced by mild panic. It’s amazing how quickly in those moments I can dismount. Once on flat ground, I remounted and carried on blissfully until we reached the next dreaded downward slope. This one was not by any means steep but nonetheless looked scary to me, however Laura encouraged me to attempt it, which I did, and this time I stayed aboard Riley and we made it all the way to the bottom (mercifully no one could see the look of horror on my face). I also attempted the next slope (which was even less steep) with the same facial expression and once at the bottom I found myself thinking that it hadn’t been half as bad as I had expected. This was progress!
Shaking in my boots
We then turned around and headed back to the yard going up and down the same slopes that we had encountered on the outward journey until we reached a rather severe looking downward gradient close to the yard. Once again Laura encouraged me to attempt it, and for a moment I did think it might be possible as I had ridden up it quite comfortably, but this particular one seems to go on forever. I sat on Riley quite literally shaking in my boots and it only took a few steps before I announced that I needed to dismount immediately. Almost sinking to the floor as I did, I had to take a moment before I could stand up straight and look like a normal human being.
We walked the rest of the way back—me, as usual, quietly chastising myself, but also trying to acknowledge how far I’d come. Inwardly, I made a promise: next week, I would give that slope another try.