Eole - october 15, 2009

Today, I rode Eole alone in the large outdoor arena which was completely empty. Clear sky, chill wind, a good Autumn weather for riding. Instead of the dressage routine pattern, I chose to ride him towards maximum relaxation and flexibility, as simply as feasible. A few lateral flexions at walk, jaw relaxation on high neck and deep 'descentes d'encolure'. Beautiful sensations, with hind quarters engaging, and very mellow mouth contact. Then posting trot in a soft elastic cadence. Just a little lateral work at sitting trot (SI and LY with outer bend). All this with halts now and then, quite square. At a point, we stopped in front of a few children who were watching us behind the fence with their mothers. Eole very kindly allowed them to pat his head, resting at a quiet standstill. The little toddlers were delighted!
Then, we had a wonderful canter session, slow, tranquil yet cadenced. I tried to reduce myself to 'my chest', with elbows at sides, 'soft legs' and thereby enjoying this delightful relaxed sensation of balance that the horse offers you. You literally drown yourself in the horse movement as Cdt de Padirac so elegantly wrote. Getting freed of your own weight, even of your own body is the real marvel of horse riding. I ended the session with reins at button, Eole nose down, yet hindquarters engaged. I felt like sitting on a soft ball that could move in whatever direction I would have wanted - I had nothing else to do for that than to THINK of it.
After all, these simple things on horseback are probably the most wondeful ones!
Eole was dry and quiet when we went back to stables, where I gave him a good grooming before his midday meal.