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Krista and Dave Looking Over Blue

Follow along on what promises to be an amazing journey:
Krista and Dave will gentle and start two mustang youngsters in 100 days.

Rose meets Manolo Mendez.. .. ..

 
Krista and Dave Discussing Blue

 

Wild Rose Must Tango Meets Dressage Great, Manolo Mendez
Please note that these are the interpretations of this observer, and are not endorsed by Manolo Mendez. Please read the Articles by Manolo Mendez for more information.
Rose
Rose
Rose
Rose
Krista prepares Rose for this momentous occasion.
Manolo, being from Australia, is familiar with brumbies: wild thoroughbreds. He's fascinated by a wild mustang of Spanish Barb descent. That's Dave's hat shading Rose's eyes from the sun.
Greetings!
Notice that Rose's head is being directed from the top of her nose. Think about it: the nose should be encouraged to stretch FORWARD and down, not BACK and down as our usual lead rope would do.
The head must be lowered for relaxation and proper body posture. The eye should not rise above the hip. Did you know that lowering the head releases endorphins: think grazing.
Rose
Rose
Rose
Rose
Manolo integrates stretches with his own style of body work.
Rose
Rose
Rose
Rose
There is no stress or pressure of any kind. Rose is a relaxed and willing partner. There is no question in her mind that this is for her benefit.
Rose
Improper
Proper
Manolo has asked Rose to lower her nose. Now that she's moving towards the proper posture, she can raise up her back by using her belly muscles. Her topline will create a nice upward arch which then allows her to reach her back legs under her for more power, control, and grace.
This is what we usually have. Note that the back is contracted which is emphasized with the weight of the rider. The horse is strung out and has little power.
This posture maximizes the strength of the back and allows for maximum impulsion.
Nose down, back/belly up, step over.
Rose
Rose
Rose

Rose
Step over

Think about this:
It's the feet we're ultimately talking to when we ask our horses to move. Why not speak directly to the feet, rather than indirectly through the body as most of us were taught. In this way, we're minimizing the confusion for the young or inexperienced horse.

Trot forward
Rose's eye is level with her hip, and her topline is building. She's going to be able to build the muscles she needs to carry herself with balance and suppleness.

This is all that Rose is going to be asked to do today. And it's a whole lot.
Another horse might well not get any where near this far along. But Rose is easy-going, trusting, and willing to try and to learn.

This work will carry over into her riding. Because of the circumstances of her training
(Krista will present her with just 100 days of work, total)
Rose won't be able to progress at the slow, purposeful pace
that Manolo would recommend. But this will add to her solid foundation.


Krista@FromStartToFoundation.com
831-588-6214
1425 San Marcos Rd. Paso Robles, CA 93446