Started with an exercise with a pole halfway down the long side and counting down the strides to take off, starting with one and building up. He said most people start to get stuck at 3. I got it spot on until 6 and then fluffed it. Chris said not to worry about making the strides even, it was about being able to pick a number of strides and ride to the fence from that distance on that number of strides. After that I had it sorted. We did up to 8 on a nice, steady canter. Then he made me open up the canter and ride straight away 8 strides in a much bigger canter and we got it right first time on both reins. Chris said "Super" a lot - he said to me at the end I've got a really good eye for a stride and he's not sure he could ride that exercise that well. High praise indeed. Maybe he was just being nice but still - put a grin on my face :)
Moved onto jumping and he was being a bit backwards thinking and adding strides - had to really wake him up, move him forwards then gently bring him back whilst keeping the forwards momentum and not killing the canter. Jumped a great round after that including a really tight right turn to a big x-pole oxer which Chris pre-warned was going to be a difficult one and we got it spot on - lots more praise :) Jumps up at 1m10-1m15 and Monts pinging. Really thinking about opening my inside rein for landing on the new leg which worked well and also using outside aids more to turn which also worked!
Got told mustn't make life difficult for Monty by seeing backwards strides into things like the treble and means he really has to reach to make the distance. Need to come into it much more positively. He called me a chicken rider lol - he has me sussed! I go round in a nice canter and then gradually shorten it on the way to the fence - it's not chipping in, just not the best canter for the job, get away with it at single fences but not good at all for a treble - need to continue riding the big, positive canter all the way to the fence. He said given I did the pole exercise so well it's clear I have a good eye for a stride so no excuse for not meeting the fences in the right place - need to look at my fences earlier and with the treble make sure to focus on the top rail of the first fence and the rest will happen - don't get hung up on the others.
Showed him the video of me falling off at the coffin at Badminton. He said my canter was rubbish - easy to do when they're pulling and charging off with you but I didn't create nearly enough energy. He said you have to really channel the energy up and have them arguing with your hand, desperate to go forwards, pinging with energy then ride really positively forwards at the fence. Equally he said sometimes these things just happen - he did the 4* at Kentucky with his old mare who wasn't ditchy at all and she jumped in, down the steep hill and just stopped at the ditch which wasn't like her at all. He did say he was thinking about building a coffin over his ditch in the field as impossible to find one to practice over anywhere and he won't do Tweseldown's as the open ditch with the water running through is such a harsh question for them.
Hopefully organising some XC clinics with him over the summer so should crack the XC soon enough. He asked if I was going to take him Novice this year or even 1* - explained about the whole points thing for Badminton. It's such a shame no Badminton if you get even one point :( Will keep my ears open for an unaffiliated Novice to run him round.
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