Monday at the Aiken Training Sessions

The first group to go Monday was Boyd with Otis and Phillip with Mighty Nice. They were quite an interesting pair; Otis was super fired up, kicking up extra high over every fence, and Phillip’s horse started out jumping rather loosely in front and was not being careful. Lauren set up a grid which was an oxer, two strides to a vertical, one stride to another vertical, and two strides to another oxer. They started out small, but the idea was for Phillip to get in the grid and stay solid with his position, providing even and steady support with his leg and a little bit of pressure on the bit, and stop protecting the horse, and let him figure it out for himself. The less Phillip did, the better this horse jumped. At the end of the lesson, he was jumping so much tidier, and much more powerfully. Otis, of course, hates to touch anything, but did need a little more of a quiet ride from Boyd in order to settle down a little. He knocked down the standard of a skinny jump, and Lauren cautioned the riders to make sure that they don’t anticipate the turns with their bodies mid-air, especially over skinnies. 

Next was another Boyd and Phillip pair, this time with Ying Yang Yo, and Ben. This time, Boyd was on the horse with an unconventional jumping style, and Phillip had the neat and tidy one. I was really impressed with Ben. He is such a big horse, and he hits the ground quite hard, but he is really very clever over the jumps, and very light in the air. His canter balance is so good, he meets every jump in such a lovely way and uses his body really well over all of them. Thomas, as we all know, likes to rub a few here and there, and Lauren worked on having the horse lighter in the stride before and after the jump. He tends to heave himself a bit, and this results in a rather heavy landing, which can be hard for Boyd to keep a soft, forward balance through. She used poles on either side to help with this, and Thomas got better as he went. He’s an old pro, and you can see he knows exactly how much he has to do.

All throughout the day, Lauren was emphasizing the necessity of the rider in staying quiet but firm with the aids, and maintaining a canter balance that was not too slow, not too fast, but energetic and uphill enough to give you options when you try to find a distance. All of the riders had to first work on this over a cross rail before any other jumping.

Boyd and Neville

The last P and B pair was the famous Neville and Phillip’s new horse, Mystery Whisper. I haven’t seen this horse yet, and I don’t know much about his history, but it was incredibly impressive on the flat. Wow, what an amazing mover!  Next to Ben and Mighty Nice, he looked like a pony though! He was an equally nice jumper, with adorable snappy knees. He was a bit spooky and green through some things, but overall seemed to know his job well. Neville, I have to say, looked better than I have ever seen him. He jumped with so much power and zing off the ground, and was clearly having the time of his life. His shape over the jumps has gotten much better, and he seems a bit more broke on the flat as well. 

Phillip basically wouldn’t get out of the ring all morning. He was next paired with William Penn, who is another large animal that tricks you into thinking he won’t clear the jumps. He was incredibly rideable and well behaved, and light as a feather over the jumps. Neat with his front end and tidy with his back, you would never expect such a big horse to be so agile. Lauren cautioned Phillip with the big ones not to confuse slowing down and softening to a jump with completely taking your leg off, which leaves them dead on the takeoff. Will Coleman rode Plain Dealing Farm’s Ideal Contini, who is sometimes a bit of a cheeky monkey. Lauren worked on his ability to release well up the neck, instead of holding the horse in at the pommel of the saddle. She thought that Will was a bit too focused on control of a quiet canter and the shape of the horse’s neck, and not enough concerned with letting Taz use his body over the jumps.

Lynn and Donner

Lynn and Kirstin were next to go, on Donner and Ballylaffin Bracken. Kirstin’s mount is an impressive jumper, who had quite a bit of energy Monday, positively bouncing over the jumps with his knees to his eyeballs. His attitude made Kirstin a little reluctant to use her aids firmly, and Lauren hopped on to illustrate how a firm, but soft pressure from the legs and the hands could calm the horse into a more relaxed and supple frame before and over the jumps. This made him more rideable and easier to stay on! Lauren said that she found the best way to deal with a hot horse was to respond to aggressiveness with a soft but firm touch, instead of demanding more control and creating a horse that is very much on the muscle.  Lynn worked on resisting the temptation to soften and take her leg away at verticals, which resulted in her horse jumping a bit flat. After she kept her aids on, and rode his withers up over the jumps, he completed all the exercises with ease.

Lizzie and Coal Creek

Our next pair was Lizzie Snow on Coal Creek and Jan Byny on Syd Kent. It was good to see Syd out and about again! We have all missed his unique and flamboyant jumping style. He looked very attuned to Jan and a little bit more mature in his way of going. I was very impressed with how soft Jan stayed with both of her horse, but Syd especially. A lot of riders tend to get more muscular in their way of riding with big horses, but Syd was on the softest feel, and very attentive to the cues Jan gave with her body position. Lizzie has the pleasure of riding a very smart and very athletic horse, and you could see Devon knew exactly how to do everything. Lizzie is a lovely quiet rider, but Lauren encouraged her to take advantage of riding such a well trained horse, and challenge herself a little, make her turns a little tighter, pick closer distances, and make Devon use more of his body. He was skimming over the jumps in a very quiet way, but after Lauren got on and changed his canter balance, gave him an injection of energy, and popped him over a few jumps, he was jumping much more powerfully. 

Becky and Can’t Fire Me

The final pair was Becky Holder on Can’t Fire Me, and Jan again on her young horse, Why Not. Becky struggled a bit with her reluctance to use her aids, and once Lauren convinced her to do so, it was apparent that her horse was a bit of a pistol! Lauren explained that for a hot horse, to use no aids and then quick pressure here and there makes them more reactive, and through quiet firm training, they can become a little more rideable and a little less feisty. Jan’s horse is an absolutely lovely jumper, who tends to get a bit inverted on the way to the jumps, so they worked on keeping him soft and quiet, and getting him to respond a little less dramatically.

Jan Byyny and Why Not

I found Lauren’s teaching style to be calming and logical. Everything she said was instantly applicable, and you could really see the immediate results in the way the horses jumped. Her approach to changing the riders positions and tweaking their styles was subtle, yet very effective. Her exercises really tested all of the buttons on all of the horses, and I think everybody really enjoyed their lessons.

For my last word, I have to say that I polled the spectators and I have two requests. One: there should be an option to rent head sets (for a nominal fee), which would make being a spectator SO much more educational. The headsets are great for riders, but its really hard to hear anything otherwise. Two: there should be a concession stand, or, preferably, a Starbucks hut at the next training sessions.