Cyndi Craig

2009 Region 9 Gifted Scholarship Recipient, for Training in 2010


I have been seriously training and competing in dressage for more than 20 years. I’ve also had a number of horses over the years, and all were bought green-broke, bought as a youngster, or home-bred. I have definitely taken the "long, hard, winding road” but have learned an amazing amount along the way.

Cyndi and Faxx

Currently I have three horses. Faeryn and Faxxsimile+++/ are both 5 year olds. Faeryn is a full sister to my most advanced horse, Flying Colorz, (Fling) a 2000 Oldenburg/Arab/Pinto that I bred. I trained her and showed her up to Second Level, moving up a level each year and earning All Breed awards from the Oldenburg NA at each level.  We had just started learning flying changes after the ’07 show season when my trainer of five years moved out of the area.

It is not easy to teach a horse to do flying changes (even with very good coaching) when you’ve never even ridden a horse that was already trained to do flying changes!

I finally found a very good new trainer in Marta Renilla. Marta was raised in Spain and competed all over Europe as a young rider. Although she lived on the other side of town, a friend and I were able to find enough people on our side of town to get her to come on a regular basis.

I have struggled for the past two years with getting Fling to Third level. Finally the changes were at least reliable enough, and the other work was good enough that I felt I could show her at recognized shows. But Fling had other ideas. She fractured her coffin bone, about a week after I’d sent in an entry to show her in a recognized show in June, 2009. By the time we got a correct diagnosis, and it healed and she was back in work, our show season was over before it even began.

In the meantime, Marta had moved to her own barn about two hours away, and her trips to our side of town became less frequent.

I spent all last fall trying to get Fling back to where she’d been before her fracture – both in fitness and training. We had an incredibly rainy winter, which did not help our cause. My horses are at home, and I have no covered arena. When I got to Marta’s barn to begin my week of training with the Gifted grant, I’d had exactly one lesson in the previous four months.

Along with Fling, I took one of my youngsters, Faxxsimile+++/, who is coming 5 and is also registered Half Arabian. Faxx is a huge mover, but the challenge is to keep him connected. Accepting steady contact with the bit has been an issue with him.

The goal for Fling was to work on flying changes, and for me to ride one of Marta’s upper level horses so I could get a better feel for the changes. The goal for Faxx was to work on steady connection so I could get him “through” more reliably. 

I am secretly hoping for an 'epiphany' for the flying changes this week, but realistically, such epiphanies don't happen very often. More than likely, Marta will help me fix the underlying issues involving the flying changes, and that will allow me to go back home, apply those, and over time, the changes will improve.

Monday:

When I got to Marta’s I discovered that Faxx and Fling – who were not ‘best buddies’ at home – were very ‘herd bound.’ 

On the first day, Fling, my normally sensible “never needs lunging” partner, had a major meltdown at the prospect of having (horrors!) 500 feet separating her from Faxx! When I got on her, she was still really up on her toes, and I soon realized this would not be a day to work on flying changes – but to work on basics. Marta quickly pointed out several things I was doing that needed correction – and when corrected, made a huge difference.   Faxx was much more ‘up’ than his normal very laid-back self. It also did not help that we were experiencing freakishly cold weather, with SNOW (SNOW!!) forecast for Tuesday! So mostly, this turned out to be a ‘settling into our new surroundings’ day!

Tuesday:

We started at 9 a.m. today to try and beat the rain/snow/sleet. The main message today was to TRUST Fling. Don't keep half halting her - let her neck up a bit. If she's too deep, it puts her on her forehand. She is plenty collected. Now I just need to ride her UP a bit and slow her down at trot.  We worked on basic paces, half pass at trot and flying changes. Her left half pass is quite good. I've been having trouble with the half pass to the right, so we 'diagnosed' the problem there. She loses bend. Marta said not to be afraid to really shorten my right rein to really get her to bend, then use my right leg more actively to 'wrap' her around my right leg.  At first it will take very big aids until she learns what is expected. In the meantime, I need to do half halts on the outside rein to rebalance and outside leg to encourage her forward. We got a few good half passes to the right and moved on to flying changes. I got many clean ones, but they were happening the SECOND time I asked her, not the first. Marta says she is leaning against my new outside leg (going from right to left lead) and I almost need to 'think' counterflex with new outside and strong outside leg. 

When I got on Faxx, he did whinnied and whinnied (he could hear Fling whinnying) and he danced around a bit.  I got him under control quickly, and had some really super work today. Marta loves Faxx. He is definitely her favorite.  She schooled me on the best way to warm Faxx up. She said give the reins, and wait for him to go TO the reins, to help get his neck longer. We want his neck longer because we can always shorten it if we need to later. He needs to learn to go out to the bit. We then worked on some First Level test movements. Marta is super good for this because she is a stickler for preparing for the movement, doing the figures absolutely accurately and telling you the best way to prepare your horse prior to the movement. For example, for the shallow loop canter serpentine, she instructed me to go deep into the corner before, half halt and get him firmly on my outside rein, turn onto the diagonal and put Faxx in slight shoulder fore, ride to X, and then turn as quickly as I could, using outside leg and rein to keep from losing the shoulder and asking him to really turn around his shoulder, and then put him in shoulder fore again for the second half of the serpentine.

Next we worked on the trot. Faxx still just has 'one' trot and he needs to learn he can take longer or shorter strides when asked. Marta had me slow him through the corners, then put my hands forward and let him go. He's a little lazy, and is not self-propelled like Fling, so I just waved my whip in the air to motivate him forward.  Faxx broke into the canter several times. When he did this, Marta had me send him forward in a 'big' canter and THEN bring him to trot. She said if I ask him to trot from his tiny little canter, I'll get a tiny trot. Asking him to canter forward will make for a bigger trot when I do ask for the downward. We schooled this across the diagonal several times, and by the end, he had a few good lengthened strides. The weather turned nasty right after we finished today - first with sleet, then later in the day with snow. It usually snows here about once every 20 years, and this is the second snow of the winter!

I had planned to take Faxx home tomorrow and return with Faeryn. But, they've had such a hard time settling in, I decided it would be counterproductive to bring Faeryn. I'll keep Faxx here and Faeryn will benefit from what I learn on him.

Wednesday:

I REALLY did not want to repeat the same "extreme lunging" scenario I had with Fling yesterday. So, I got on her without lunging her at all. It took some 'discussion' to get her away from the barn (Faxx), but in short order I had her out in the field and we did 15 minutes of nice relaxed walk as a warm up. She worked super. Marta commented on how strong she is. Fling is short backed and has really good hind end construction. She can 'sit' and she is very powerful for a 15.1H horse. Again, we worked on half pass at trot and canter - especially to the right. I still do not have NEARLY enough bend. I would go into the HP with not enough bend and then try and 'create' more bend during the half pass - that does not work. Once I got enough bend, the half pass was super good, and the quality of her trot also improved greatly. We worked on it at canter, too, with equal success. With enough bend, the half passes felt MUCH more powerful.

We also worked more on riding her 'up' and breaking my habit of getting her too 'deep' in the bridle. I need to keep my reins much shorter, and my hands more forward up her neck. That allows me to half halt easier, and give the reins without moving my hands so much. I tend to 'nag' her with many small half halts - and don't really give her enough time to balance before I do another one. Today I concentrated on doing a strong half halt, then giving my hands forward to give her a chance to rebalance herself. She has very good self carriage if I let her!  I can now give one rein forward periodically - alternating between inside and outside - as both a small reward for her, and as a test to make sure she's in self-carriage AND that she maintains bend with just my inside leg. That's the thing - I was 'afraid' to actually USE the inside rein to create bend. It's OK to use it to create the bend - the horse has to learn somehow - then you get to the point that you create the bend with the rein, but then you can completely maintain it with the inside leg. 

We worked on flying changes too, with some success. We're not there yet, but I can 'see' there from here! Of course it's entirely my fault!. Generally, I am not giving her a big enough aid, or enough notice before asking for the change, and I often let her shoulder drift too much before asking for the change.

We finished by working on extended canter. Marta had me put her in slight shoulder fore, and keep thinking about riding her UP into my hands - like thinking of 'riding her neck up' - then really sitting on her and sitting back a little, moving my legs back a little and just squeezing her forward but NOT throwing her away in front. She aced those and we quit on that. We worked almost an hour and a half! I tacked up Faxx and walked him out to the field to lunge.  No whinnying, no gawking today. What a good boy! I sent him a few rounds in canter to warm his back muscles up and then I got on him.

I did the warm-up Marta suggested yesterday - walking him on a bit longer rein and encouraging him forward until HE decided to take contact. Then we moved to trot and when he started out sort of 'bouncing' on and off contact with the bit, Marta said I need to push him more forward when he does that.  He needs to be really in front of my leg. That solved the contact issue. We worked on some more of the First Level movements. When I cantered Faxx across the diagonal he would feel 'wobbly' to me - like he was not sure how to really go straight without the 'security blanket' of the rail. Marta said, instead of trying to keep using leg to keep him straight, to push him forward to make him straighter. Then we did 10m serpentines and he did those really well. Again, as with Fling, Faxx needed to have more bend - but at his level, not as much bend as Fling. We worked on trot lengthenings again and Faxx had a LIGHTBULB moment and I could feel him 'change gears' in the trot. We stopped on that.

Now it was time to ride an upper level horse! An Andalusian stallion. Marta rode him first. He has a LOT of movement and I wondered how I would be able to sit it!  This horse helped me feel what really, truly, upper level collection feels like! He was very fun! The canter was SO collected it was almost 'on the spot.'  The flying changes were not perfect with him, even, but I got some good ones. The topper was doing passage! Wow! It was incredible! He had SO much LOFT and "upward energy."  It takes a lot of leg strength on the rider's part, because you have to keep cueing in rhythm to maintain the passage, and with this horse, the stronger the aid, the 'bigger' the passage. It was work! He was a very kind, well trained horse. I can see now how much faster you'd progress if you could ride a horse like this from the get-go.

One good thing about taking lessons five days in a row is I get a chance to 'instill' some of the things Marta wants me to change/improve, before I go home to work on my own again.

Thursday:

More canter and trot half pass today with Fling. In addition to more bend, I need to (again!) leave her ALONE more once we start the half pass. Once I get her set up properly, she feels much 'dancier' when I give the reins a bit. Remember that half pass is just a diagonal with bend!  We had much more success in getting clean flying changes from the half pass. I need to keep her from leaning on my outside leg. She needs to stay evenly between my legs and not lean on one or the other. I think I am also 'blocking' her with my seat sometimes, preventing her from jumping through. I need to move my hip forward when I ask for the change, just like I do with 'regular' canter departs.

A few tips on various subjects today -- in shoulder in, think about creating a 'triangle' between rail, horse's body and space between rail and front legs. Keep that 'triangle' the same all throughout the SI. I maintain the 'triangle' well, but again, need to give the reins more and let her dance.  Also, something I've been told before, but forget -- look between the horse's ears. It will help you maintain the right position on the horse. I tend to look too much to the inside, which encourages my horses to go out the shoulder too much.  We finished up by working on our extended trot and canter. Need to really 'rev' the engine through the corners, then just let her go and don't chase her. Keep hands forward and think about riding her UP as much as FORWARD. Especially at the canter, don't be afraid to 'go for it.'

I warmed Faxx up the way Marta told me - waiting for him to take contact. He was very good and when we picked up the trot, he was nicely on contact with a bit longer neck. We worked on doing a bit of shoulder fore with him at trot and canter. He got the idea very fast.  More work on trot lengthenings and tried counter canter for the first time. Easy!  His canter is super balanced and uphill. We did counter canter all the way around the arena, and on the long sides, Marta had me do some shoulder fore in counter canter. We finished up by asking for canter lengthenings. This was the first time I'd ever asked him to do that. The amazing thing is, instead of cantering out of control and having to haul on the reins to come back to working canter, as is usually the norm with a young horse - Faxx listened to my half halt and came back quite nicely to working canter! What fun!

So, tomorrow is our last day. I admit I do miss Faeryn - Fling's full sister who is coming 5. My husband says she's just been moping around in the pasture looking for her friends! Even though she did not make the trip, she will benefit from this week, too.

Friday:

We worked on improving Fling’s canter by making sure she had enough bend. The increased bend makes a big difference in how the canter feels. It improves the self carriage and uphill feel, as well as the degree of collection. Marta said to think about bending her around my inside leg – turn the shoulders to the inside – think shoulder fore. Also, as Marta says, “Keep her face on the line of the circle."  That helps me keep her shoulders and neck lined up to follow the line of the circle. Also, when you think about it this way, you always keep the appropriate amount of bend to match the size of the circle—i.e., on a 10m circle you would have a greater degree of bend than on a 20m circle.   Then we worked on canter half pass and she did great.

Next Marta had me make a small circle, then start half pass on the outside quarter line and just do a few strides of half pass to about X and then go straight, keeping the same bend as half pass, then think of keeping her from ‘falling onto my inside leg’ by keeping it at the girth and pressing….then, for the flying change,  think of taking ONE step of canter pirouette by moving both my hands toward the new direction, move my leg behind the girth and ask for the change. Eureka! Super changes both directions!  THIS was the ‘epiphany’ I had been looking for! It happened at the very end of the day on the last day – but was just the ‘mental image’ I needed to improve the changes! Fling got big pats and peppermints!

Marta says Faxx now needs to learn he has more than one 'gear' at both trot and canter. So we worked on a lot of pushing foward to bigger trot or canter for just 3-4 strides, then coming back. We also worked on leg yield on the circle. He was not listening to my leg and Marta said not to KEEP my leg aid on him - but to give the aid, then remove it, give the aid, then remove it. Sure enough, that worked better. Marta says that when you give the aid and hold it - they tend to lean INTO your leg.

So, my week of training was over! I learned a lot and I am sure this is going to help me with all my horses. I am very grateful to The Dressage Foundation, Carol Lavell and the "Gifted" fund for this opportunity. I never would have even thought of taking a week off work to train 'full time' if I had not read about this special grant.

Postscript:

Faeryn did, indeed, benefit from the week of training! At her next recognized show she scored a 71% and a 67%, won both her classes and was the Training Level Champion! At his next recognized show, Faxx had scores of 66%, 67%, 69% and 70.8% and was reserve AA high score both days!

They are both also now qualified for our Regional Championships.

I showed Fling once at Third Level with not-so-stellar results, but Marta was not there to school me, and I also had a terrible attack of the “OMG this is third level, what am I doing here???” jitters. So we’ve gone back to the drawing board and will try it again this fall, making sure Marta is there to school me, and perhaps with an adult beverage, deep breathing exercises, or maybe meditation (or all three!)  for the rider beforehand. ;)

I kept a detailed training diary of every day during my training week, which can be found at www.donerailfarm.posterous.com