Guest Blogger Mari Monda Zdunic joins us again!
“Doubt caused indecision. Indecision causes inaction. Inaction causes us to put the important back there where the unimportant things reside. Inaction cause idleness and additional doubt. It builds a wall between what’s important and what’s unimportant. Once those walls grow, it’s difficult to know how to tear them down.”
- Michael J. Shank
This blog is about the flying change of lead. This is where most people get fouled up in their horse training. You’re listening, reading, watching too many clinicians, performers, riders and there are too many ideas floating around in your head. That slows down your athletic responses. I don’t want to discuss the actual aids for the change in this blog, but rather the mentality you need to have about the changes.
My trainer and mentor, Chuck Grant, who many consider the father of American Dressage, taught me to first study the science and then later you can become an artist. The flying change of lead on the average horse does need to be approached scientifically. First, the talented rider on the talented horse can have muddle unscientific aids and produce a flying change. If you are not that super talented strong athletic rider and you want to train flying changes, I strongly recommend you find a trainer who has trained a horse like your horse from really green to say at least 4th level or even 3rd level where there are single flying changes of lead. If you live in an area that does not have that person then go to the source. Read Chuck Grant and gently and scientifically proceed forward and learn to train your horse.
If you watch a horse at liberty, you will see most exhibit a flying lead change at some point or the other, so most of them are capable of doing it under saddle. However, unlike every other movement in dressage, it is a “trick” and it either happens or it doesn’t, which makes it very important that the change be taught correctly to be clean and straight. All of the rest of the movements you can work within – you can make the shoulder-in a bit better as you trot down the long side, or add angle to a half pass, but the change either happens or it doesn’t and that is what makes it so unique.
The flying change is something that if messed up is a difficult thing to correct – better to ere on the side of caution and go slow. Don’t teach an incorrect response.
Good luck!
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