I was having a bad run of stops because I was getting my whoa timing off. I KNOW it's the same moment as you ask for a lead change and whatnot but I know that by feel, an instinct feel, not what's actually happening under me. So I started riding my stops like I wanted to change saying 'now, now, now' on each beat. However I seemed to psych myself out doing this and still missed it. Then I talked to Steph, one of Lise's most successful students and she gave me a tip to watch the lead leg come down. This, coupled with feeling the quarters come up has helped somewhat. Also adding speed. We needed speed as well as staying collected and straight.
One day I got 2 out of 3 timed and he slid between 5 and 6 feet. A couple of days later I got a 7 footer and then last week, I'd nailed all three stops but still felt like I was flunking them so I ran him down to the door, really pushed (for me!) at the middle and said whoa.
We went 10 feet! Oh boy, I was so proud! My pony can and will stick that butt in the ground and go for it if I get him right. Yay!
Now it's for consistency and me to really find the groove each run down, the guts to push him, the coordination to collect him and the timing to say whoa.
Our next show is next weekend and I will do two classes each day, a total of three patterns.
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