Lesson with June & Whisper | Polework and Small Jumps @appaloosahorses -- Since June asked to work on pole works and small jumps to get Whisper more balanced and calm, that's exactly what we spent this sunny afternoon doing! The weather at Kingswood has been absolutely gorgeous recently - the perfect weather for teaching lessons in and great for jumping too! We started off with a lengthy warmup since, despite the sun being out, it was still quite chilly in the outdoor arena due to the direction of the wind. We then moved on into a little polework in walk, trot and canter. Whisper was working incredibly well and softening nicely into a lovely, relaxed contact, especially in walk and trot. Once jumps were introduced, she showed a bunch of enthusiasm but tended to rush quite a bit! We worked on keeping a steady tempo and asking her to wait for the rider and, after a few small jumps to warm into it, the exercise helped her think about her feet and engage her hindquarters rather than running through and tripping. Throughout the entire lesson, we paid particular attention to softness on the bit, encouraging her to accept a lighter, elastic connection. By the end of the lesson she was far more balanced, smoother in her transitions, and mentally much calmer which should hopefully help with June's goal of making Whisper more suitable for a younger rider. Overall, it was a lovely lesson and thank you June for allowing me to teach you. I hope the lesson was a help to you and Whisper! <3 --
