turning a corner

No, wait - jumping a corner. Yessssssss, that's what I meant. And omg it was kind of the coolest!

Just a baby corner made of poles in the arena - but it was certainly a first for me. And more than likely a first for Isabel as well. Good times!

look at those butt wrinkles!!! (hers not mine lol)
also - how neat is that pedestal for the corner?

It wasn't all kittens and rainbows... but predictably the mistakes were my own and now I'm kinda kicking myself for showing Isabel the way around the corner... Ah well, we worked through it. Essentially after jumping it once (above. it was fabulous, btw) just to get her eyes on it, we plopped it into a course - as an end jump, left turn from the outside line (a two stride measured at the full 36'). 

Isabel can definitely do the two in 36' - but we have to be GOING. And after landing from the out jump I kinda panicked and turned WAY too early to the corner, allowing Isabel the easy glance off. Then immediately proceeded to make the same damn turn and she glanced off AGAIN. Le sigh. 

erm.... miscommunication? either that, or i was just sniff testing izzy's new shampoo haha

My geometry was all off! In trying to aim for the narrower section, I was sorta pointing Isabel out to the right. I needed to actually be pointing her left toward the wider part, while still jumping just the edge. 

Or, in other words (and correct me if I'm wrong here) - I needed to approach at an angle perpendicular (approximately, at least) to the face of the corner - rather than perpendicular to the back rail, which I had initially tried.

Once that was sorted and I managed to get over the corner on its own, we went back to do the full course again - which sadly wasn't captured on camera (it was perhaps a very VERY off day for our sainted videographers...). The course was a full circuit of the arena all on crazy bending lines. And the jumps came up FAST (made trickier by the fact that nothing was measured) so perhaps it's for the best that it wasn't on film. We got it done tho!

defensive but getting it done

That might explain why I look so uptight getting over the corner again tho - there was a big wide oxer just a few short bending strides later haha.... (but seriously tho emma... don't forget to release!)

not the greatest footage... but oh boy was it fun!

(and, predictably, now I kinda want to build that pedestal thingy for our own farm!)

So yea... The rest of the lesson (this was our standard OF Saturday lesson, ie the day before Tranquility) went pretty well. We mostly kept it light - building up fairly quickly to the full course and calling it a day once we made it through alive. 

The flat work for the ride was also definitely back on track for us. I came prepared with dressage whip and spurs - which I usually don't bother with for OF seeing as I don't use them for jumping... but given that it was our last schooling before the show I wanted to give it my all. And Isabel definitely reciprocated. Good mare!