Jan Byyny Clinic day 2

Exactly two months and a day since the day 1 recap I bring you day 2.  I warmed up in the arena, worked on forward and back and some of the things from the day before, then I headed out to conquer my slipping on the grass fears.

Don't you just want to kiss his nose?

Not really sure why I think we are going to fall over on the grass.  Jan was great though, she challenged us to kick instead of pull, saying that slipping happens when we pull them off balance.  Let me just say this guys, Jan put the joy back in cross country for me.  By the end of the day I was grinning from ear to ear and eating up the jumps with my horse.  I need to get back to this, it was a rough summer.

Heck yes I got a picture with my new hero

Also, she totally loved my horse.  He did decide that standing still was for the birds and we walked the entire time while waiting for other riders.  He relaxed enough to sneak some bites of grass which thrilled me.  After our horrendous time in Ogden (future post) I was happy that he started to relax at all.  Anyways, she started us over little logs and we worked our way up to coops and such.

He is a bank rockstar btw.

 I really appreciated how she would talk about her own riding as well as the riding of other top riders that she admired.  I think every clinic I do I end up with one big takeaway.  The thing that really stuck with me from cross country with Jan was a theory for gallops and turns.  Get down in your gallop position and kick across the terrain, then ride your lines in a way that you can use the turn for your collection and set up.  Not only does it save time, it keeps you out of your horse's face and keeps your balance.  Watch videos of Michael Jung and Buck Davidson on xc, they are masters of the technique.

Look how relaxed

That way too

 We did come back to the trot for most of the jumps to help build his confidence and keep the sideways to a minimum.  I did kick for the gallop on landing, and suddenly I wasn't worried about falling on the grass, I was a grinning galloping maniac.  Jan commented on how much fun it finally looked like I was having.  I had been rather tense to start.  We even strung some courses together between fields and he was fine leaving and returning to the group.

Getting ready to prep for a jump

Kicking on

I love him

Peaking at the coop first time over

And attacked it the second time

 I was having so much fun.  Then it was time for the ditch.  I was nervous from our first totally failed ditch experience back in March, but after checking it out a few time he was a ditch master.

Sit up and look ahead

 He also was bold up and down the bank.

Fun on xc

 My confidence kept building and the day finished great.

Can't stop, won't stop smiling

One of my favorite pictures from the day, rawr

Over a log

From the start of the lesson, whee!

Bigger log is no big deal

Whoops, getting ready to smile some more;)

 The water he hesitated at (it is notoriously trappy at this course) and so before it could turn into a fight Jan just had another rider go past us into it and Prisoner happily followed.  Back and forth we went until he was  galloping in and out.  He really seems to enjoy water.

Why so wet

Joy all around

 And that my friends is how to have fun on cross country.  Next up, recap of the show the next day.