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By Kerry Mack

 

The National Dressage Squad clinic in Sydney has been really stimulating. Of course in dressage nothing is new. All the coaches are on the same page, as it were. They are looking to improve the quality of the paces, the self carriage, the accuracy, the energy, the bending and suppleness.

 

I have had the privilege of having lessons with my Futures Squad horse Mayfield Limelight with Bjarne Elefsen. Limelight is rising seven, a big gentle overachiever. He has big paces and a lot of energy naturally. Bjarne is helping me get him to engage the hind legs more, to get him to reach more under his body with the hind legs. This is essential to develop more collection.

 

After a normal warm up, including a long walk to stretch his muscles after the night in the box, the work begins with a leg yield along the long side. His nose is toward the wall and his body pretty straight. Hindquarters yield to the inside. As you change the bend, change the diagonal that you are rising as the outside leg is reaching under his body in the leg yield. Make the trot small and energetic. Don't allow him to run away into the big trot that is so easy for him. Slow him down.  More balance not more trot. Just have enough leg yielding that the outside hind leg steps up underneath the body, in a line between the front legs. Don't let him trot away from you, support him. Do this a few times until he is waiting. Change rein, and repeat.

 

Then a big circle. Start in canter, with the leg yield. The nose bends a little into the circle, and then push the quarters out in a leg yield. Keep pushing the quarters out quite a long way, until you feel him give in the back. Ask him to lower the nose a bit more. When he gives, just allow him out around the circle with a straight, normal body. Not faster, still waiting. Repeat the leg yielding, over and over. Not pressure on continuously. Just ask, wait until he gives, keep it for a little while, allow forward and repeat. Limelight gets the idea, and I feel his back stretch up to me as his hind leg reaches underneath him and pushes up. Change the rein.

 

When he gives a lovely feeling, allow a walk break to allow him to catch his breath. Then repeat the exercise in trot. Take care as he reaches in the leg yield to ensure he doesn't fall out through the outside shoulder. Be aware of controlling the shoulder with the outside rein and a little outside leg to support him. Ensure that you can switch off the sideways when you want to. If he makes a mistake and canters as you put the inside leg on to push the quarters out in the leg yield, no problem. Correct him. Allow him to settle. Explain again. Change the rein and when it is good, walk break. 

 

Then the lesson proceeds to the work from the tests, shoulder in, travers, renvers, changes. All the work benefits from the extra engagement as he finds a way to keep the reach with the hind leg under the body. But most of the time in the lesson was in the work to develop the engagement.

 

You can use these leg yielding exercises at trot and canter as part of your warm up. Remember to be in control of the size of the trot. Pay attention to the balance. Try to notice if he is making bigger steps by pressing his front end forward and away from you. This is not what you want. Keep the front a little restrained, and push the back legs up. Just allow a few bigger steps on the short side, but not so much in the leg yielding exercises themselves. You can do small transitions within the pace in the leg yielding. Take care to allow the neck to be long, give with the reins when it is possible, but correct him if he loses balance or speeds up, or let's the front legs run away from the back legs when you do give the rein.

 

Since the clinic, I have been using all of these exercises with all the horses and found that I can use the leg yield to supple up all of them, and achieve more engagement in a friendly loose way. I think they are all enjoying it. Have fun playing with it yourself. 

 

Kerry Mack

kerry@mayfieldfarm.com.au