Argh dressage.
Apr. 22nd, 2019 11:57 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
which_chickI feel very in the weeds as regards dressage. I suck at it, continue to suck at it, keep throwing money at the problem, and fail to progress at anything other than a snail's pace.
My (lol) dressage journey so far, inasmuch as I can piece it together via the crumbs of information doled out by DLB, has gone thusly...
1. Help your horse build the strength and confidence to carry himself in a trot with a level frame and a metronome rhythm. For now, use a very loose, light contact, barely there. You want him to put his head down and relax. You will need stability in your own posture so that he can find his balance without you flailing about up there and throwing him (literally, you stupid fat fuck) off his stride.
(two years later)
2. You have achieved a steady and rhythmic trot with a level frame and the very beginnings of contact. In the process, your horse has gotten stronger and you have learned to hold your body better and in a way that does not interfere with his motion so much. Now, it is time to pick up a better contact. Please have and use a consistent and non-flapping rein contact.
(and another year later)
3. Okay, your contact at the trot is good. However, there is no contact at the walk. Please put tape on your reins for a visual guide to proper and consistent rein length and make there be contact at the walk.
(another year later)
4. Good, you have an elastic contact at the walk and at the trot. The trot that you had before is not good enough anymore. Please add energy to the trot and encourage your horse to take quicker, lighter steps. Experiment with this!
(and that's what I did all winter.)
This is a regrettably slow pace of progress. But, and I cling tightly to this, it IS progress. There are a lot of people who go to clinics and look the same every single time. There is no progress on the part of the horse or on the part of the rider. No progress. We, at least, have progress.
Our progress is regrettably slow for a slew of reasons. Some of these reasons are under my control and some of them are not, but the most frustrating (to me) reason for our regrettably slow progress is that I do not learn especially well from DLB's style of teaching. I mean, I CAN do it, but fuck, it is nowhere near my wheelhouse.
DLB does a feel-based sort of instruction, one aimed at people who are kinesthetic learners. I am not a kinesthetic learner. I am fundamentally uncoordinated and non-athletic. Physical skills are hard for me to master.
"That, right there. Did you feel that?" (No. No, I did not. -- AND YES, I HAVE TRIED SAYING EXACTLY THOSE WORDS TO DLB IN CLINIC, TRUST ME WHEN I SAY I DO NOT EVER LACK CLARITY.)
"Right like that. Do it like that." (Yeah, I got a big fat handful of nothin' here. Can you tell me what I'm supposed to be looking for? Care to give me some clear objectives regarding what we're going for? WITH WORDS? CAN YOU PLEASE USE WORDS?)
"Do it like you just did." (Uhm, nope. Can't tell what you're getting at. I suppose I will just have to go home and cargo-cult it up until, through brute-force repetition, it finally becomes clear to me what the hell you were talking about. But lady, if you'd just put some fucking words to it, that'd be super-duper helpful for me.)
Examples of words that would really, really help me... Horse Steps Lighter. Rider is even in both stirrups. Reins do not flop. Horse Bends In Direction Of Circle. Horse's Head Drops to Level. Rider has weight over hips, not tipped forward at shoulders. Horse Has Moment Of Hesitation. Rider's sternum aligns with horse's mane. Horse lifts up front end and takes more weight on hq. Horse does not flop forward in downward transitions. Rider keeps lower leg close to girth, adds energy there via a scooping nudge. Horse keeps lower jaw soft. Horse improves amount of energy in gait without increasing speed.
Like, there are TOTALLY words that would be helpful. I am not asking the impossible. I feel like there could be words. WHY CAN'T SHE USE WORDS?
When DLB says "Right like that." she is expecting me to be able to isolate the one or two things she is looking for that make whatever we are currently doing "THE RIGHT THING TO DO". There are a lot of sensory inputs going on in my world and I have trouble telling WHICH OF THE INPUTS ARE THE IMPORTANT ONES even if I'm REALLY TRYING REALLY HARD. I do not know what she is looking for because she does not say besides "That, right there. Like that!" FML.
So, what Actually Happens is that I take note of the Things I Am Told To Do (step 1, step 2, step 3) and I try to memorize what the horse looks like at that moment without any idea of what precise changes she is looking for. And then I go home and do the steps by rote and try to get the horse to look like he did then. Because neither of us knows jack shit about dressaging , it takes a lot of reps before any semblance of order starts to emerge. After enough time and enough reps, I can tease out what the hell the "Just like that!" that DLB said two or three months ago ACTUALLY MEANT IN TERMS OF SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE GOALS AND BEHAVIORS.
And what absolutely fucking kills me about this, what I hate most of all, is that once I've figured out what the fuck DLB is going for, I can tell my friend Trys how to achieve the goal in about two sentences. "Do X with hands, Y with seat, Z with legs, and horse will do $GOAL reliably. Look for ATTRIBUTE, QUALITY, and OBJECTIVE ASSESSMENT to see that he's doing it right. It will be weak and sad at first, but he will improve with practice." AND IT WORKS FOR HER, in like three tries, every damn time. She's like "Wow, that's so simple. How did you figure it out? Why don't instructors be this clear?"
The Mr. Miyagi Mystical Magic from DLB's "Just like that!" kinesthetic instructional bullshit can be distilled into simple, clear, VERBAL directives that work for Trysta (normal backyard rider) and Tinnie (unskilled, non-pro-trained horse) in about three tries. Simple, clear, VERBAL directives and Checksums for this stuff exist and they can be employed by normal backyard riders to make the shit happen.
So why don't I get simple clear verbal directives with checksums to make sure it's going correctly?
Because, for the most part, riding instruction is done BY kinesthetic learners FOR kinesthetic learners. They do not KNOW how to put words on things that are SO EASY and SO OBVIOUS to feel. Like, why would you even bother to do that?
Doing it with words would be, for them, the wrong way. It'd represent a stunning loss of fidelity and clarity and quality. It'd be like going all "Dah Dah Dah Dah Dah Dah Dah Dah Dum Dum Dah Dah Dah--Dada" instead of just fucking playing the bloody 9th. Like saying "Well, it's a painting of a bald guy in a black robe who looks like an alien, all wavy and round, with his hands on the sides of his face. He's on a bridge, looks pretty unhappy, and all the scenery is wavy too and the sky is red." instead of showing them Munch's painting.
For people who are kinesthetic learners, getting them to teach a kinesthetic skill in a non-kinesthetic way is just a fucking shitshow of impossibility and it makes zero sense to them. They're gonna do it in the way that is, objectively, the best way and also the way that is most clear and obvious to them. They are not going to sit there and try to describe paintings with words or atonally dah-dah-dah their way through symphonic classics.
I do wish they would use words, though.
I know that words are not easy for them.
I know that they frequently lack the tools to explain what to do beyond "You just do it. I coached you through what to do, just do that again, so that it feels right."
I know that words are not the native language of dressage, that it is a thing more felt than described and that describing will lack fidelity and clarity and be a poor shadow of the feeling.
I know that it's like dah-dah-dah'ing through the 9th symphony.
I know.
But words would be so much easier for me. I learn things with words.
I can, in the silence of the field, with a whole fucking lot of reps and a bunch of concentration and only my horse and me, figure out what "Like that, right there" actually means in terms of real-world observables that I can describe with words. It takes a boatload of time and what I think is an excessive amount of effort. Like, I think it could be easier than it is to learn this stuff. If there were words, I think it could go a lot better.
I know I will still have to put in the time. Physical skills take practice and strength. It's never going to be instant. But there could be less faffing about on my part if I knew better what we were going for.
Hell, once I know what I am doing, I can even FIND THE WORDS to help other people do the skill or technique successfully when they can't fucking feel the "That right there, just like that" thing in the first place. I can FIND THE WORDS to tell them what the hell to feel for, to know what it's like, to be able to recognize it in a sea of feelings.
But bloody hell, it is a whole lot like work and not the fun kind. Words would make it so much fucking easier. SO MUCH. I want there to be words.
My (lol) dressage journey so far, inasmuch as I can piece it together via the crumbs of information doled out by DLB, has gone thusly...
1. Help your horse build the strength and confidence to carry himself in a trot with a level frame and a metronome rhythm. For now, use a very loose, light contact, barely there. You want him to put his head down and relax. You will need stability in your own posture so that he can find his balance without you flailing about up there and throwing him (literally, you stupid fat fuck) off his stride.
(two years later)
2. You have achieved a steady and rhythmic trot with a level frame and the very beginnings of contact. In the process, your horse has gotten stronger and you have learned to hold your body better and in a way that does not interfere with his motion so much. Now, it is time to pick up a better contact. Please have and use a consistent and non-flapping rein contact.
(and another year later)
3. Okay, your contact at the trot is good. However, there is no contact at the walk. Please put tape on your reins for a visual guide to proper and consistent rein length and make there be contact at the walk.
(another year later)
4. Good, you have an elastic contact at the walk and at the trot. The trot that you had before is not good enough anymore. Please add energy to the trot and encourage your horse to take quicker, lighter steps. Experiment with this!
(and that's what I did all winter.)
This is a regrettably slow pace of progress. But, and I cling tightly to this, it IS progress. There are a lot of people who go to clinics and look the same every single time. There is no progress on the part of the horse or on the part of the rider. No progress. We, at least, have progress.
Our progress is regrettably slow for a slew of reasons. Some of these reasons are under my control and some of them are not, but the most frustrating (to me) reason for our regrettably slow progress is that I do not learn especially well from DLB's style of teaching. I mean, I CAN do it, but fuck, it is nowhere near my wheelhouse.
DLB does a feel-based sort of instruction, one aimed at people who are kinesthetic learners. I am not a kinesthetic learner. I am fundamentally uncoordinated and non-athletic. Physical skills are hard for me to master.
"That, right there. Did you feel that?" (No. No, I did not. -- AND YES, I HAVE TRIED SAYING EXACTLY THOSE WORDS TO DLB IN CLINIC, TRUST ME WHEN I SAY I DO NOT EVER LACK CLARITY.)
"Right like that. Do it like that." (Yeah, I got a big fat handful of nothin' here. Can you tell me what I'm supposed to be looking for? Care to give me some clear objectives regarding what we're going for? WITH WORDS? CAN YOU PLEASE USE WORDS?)
"Do it like you just did." (Uhm, nope. Can't tell what you're getting at. I suppose I will just have to go home and cargo-cult it up until, through brute-force repetition, it finally becomes clear to me what the hell you were talking about. But lady, if you'd just put some fucking words to it, that'd be super-duper helpful for me.)
Examples of words that would really, really help me... Horse Steps Lighter. Rider is even in both stirrups. Reins do not flop. Horse Bends In Direction Of Circle. Horse's Head Drops to Level. Rider has weight over hips, not tipped forward at shoulders. Horse Has Moment Of Hesitation. Rider's sternum aligns with horse's mane. Horse lifts up front end and takes more weight on hq. Horse does not flop forward in downward transitions. Rider keeps lower leg close to girth, adds energy there via a scooping nudge. Horse keeps lower jaw soft. Horse improves amount of energy in gait without increasing speed.
Like, there are TOTALLY words that would be helpful. I am not asking the impossible. I feel like there could be words. WHY CAN'T SHE USE WORDS?
When DLB says "Right like that." she is expecting me to be able to isolate the one or two things she is looking for that make whatever we are currently doing "THE RIGHT THING TO DO". There are a lot of sensory inputs going on in my world and I have trouble telling WHICH OF THE INPUTS ARE THE IMPORTANT ONES even if I'm REALLY TRYING REALLY HARD. I do not know what she is looking for because she does not say besides "That, right there. Like that!" FML.
So, what Actually Happens is that I take note of the Things I Am Told To Do (step 1, step 2, step 3) and I try to memorize what the horse looks like at that moment without any idea of what precise changes she is looking for. And then I go home and do the steps by rote and try to get the horse to look like he did then. Because neither of us knows jack shit about dressaging , it takes a lot of reps before any semblance of order starts to emerge. After enough time and enough reps, I can tease out what the hell the "Just like that!" that DLB said two or three months ago ACTUALLY MEANT IN TERMS OF SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE GOALS AND BEHAVIORS.
And what absolutely fucking kills me about this, what I hate most of all, is that once I've figured out what the fuck DLB is going for, I can tell my friend Trys how to achieve the goal in about two sentences. "Do X with hands, Y with seat, Z with legs, and horse will do $GOAL reliably. Look for ATTRIBUTE, QUALITY, and OBJECTIVE ASSESSMENT to see that he's doing it right. It will be weak and sad at first, but he will improve with practice." AND IT WORKS FOR HER, in like three tries, every damn time. She's like "Wow, that's so simple. How did you figure it out? Why don't instructors be this clear?"
The Mr. Miyagi Mystical Magic from DLB's "Just like that!" kinesthetic instructional bullshit can be distilled into simple, clear, VERBAL directives that work for Trysta (normal backyard rider) and Tinnie (unskilled, non-pro-trained horse) in about three tries. Simple, clear, VERBAL directives and Checksums for this stuff exist and they can be employed by normal backyard riders to make the shit happen.
So why don't I get simple clear verbal directives with checksums to make sure it's going correctly?
Because, for the most part, riding instruction is done BY kinesthetic learners FOR kinesthetic learners. They do not KNOW how to put words on things that are SO EASY and SO OBVIOUS to feel. Like, why would you even bother to do that?
Doing it with words would be, for them, the wrong way. It'd represent a stunning loss of fidelity and clarity and quality. It'd be like going all "Dah Dah Dah Dah Dah Dah Dah Dah Dum Dum Dah Dah Dah--Dada" instead of just fucking playing the bloody 9th. Like saying "Well, it's a painting of a bald guy in a black robe who looks like an alien, all wavy and round, with his hands on the sides of his face. He's on a bridge, looks pretty unhappy, and all the scenery is wavy too and the sky is red." instead of showing them Munch's painting.
For people who are kinesthetic learners, getting them to teach a kinesthetic skill in a non-kinesthetic way is just a fucking shitshow of impossibility and it makes zero sense to them. They're gonna do it in the way that is, objectively, the best way and also the way that is most clear and obvious to them. They are not going to sit there and try to describe paintings with words or atonally dah-dah-dah their way through symphonic classics.
I do wish they would use words, though.
I know that words are not easy for them.
I know that they frequently lack the tools to explain what to do beyond "You just do it. I coached you through what to do, just do that again, so that it feels right."
I know that words are not the native language of dressage, that it is a thing more felt than described and that describing will lack fidelity and clarity and be a poor shadow of the feeling.
I know that it's like dah-dah-dah'ing through the 9th symphony.
I know.
But words would be so much easier for me. I learn things with words.
I can, in the silence of the field, with a whole fucking lot of reps and a bunch of concentration and only my horse and me, figure out what "Like that, right there" actually means in terms of real-world observables that I can describe with words. It takes a boatload of time and what I think is an excessive amount of effort. Like, I think it could be easier than it is to learn this stuff. If there were words, I think it could go a lot better.
I know I will still have to put in the time. Physical skills take practice and strength. It's never going to be instant. But there could be less faffing about on my part if I knew better what we were going for.
Hell, once I know what I am doing, I can even FIND THE WORDS to help other people do the skill or technique successfully when they can't fucking feel the "That right there, just like that" thing in the first place. I can FIND THE WORDS to tell them what the hell to feel for, to know what it's like, to be able to recognize it in a sea of feelings.
But bloody hell, it is a whole lot like work and not the fun kind. Words would make it so much fucking easier. SO MUCH. I want there to be words.
