Go is Release

Karen Rohlf does this speed-coaching thing on Facebook. The "game" is you have to pose your question or problem in only five words, and she answers in three. She posts about it unannounced and, in theory, only answers the first handful of questions she receives, so a little luck and good timing is essential. It just so happens those things were on my side yesterday evening!

I even had a question planned, one I'd been thinking about asking if I was ever "on time" for Karen's post. I hadn't thought about it in a few weeks though, and I almost didn't ask because I didn't feel like it was such a pressing issue for Finn and I anymore. In the end, though, I decided to go ahead with it. The question (or problem) was: "distinguish 'get ready' and 'go.'"

Karen's answer was: "Go is release."

My initial thought was "hmmm." Clearly the point of a three-word answer is to point one's thoughts in the right direction rather than fully explain anything! So think I did... and not without a bit of confusion and a touch of frustration. Okay, go is release... but how?

It's not like the idea was totally foreign to me. I can recall the feeling of asking for a trot lengthening like that... when you compress the trot a bit and build up energy in the corner and then allow the horse to power up into the diagonal or long side, and it does feel like release. But I was a little stuck on how that applied to other transitions. Halt to walk, for example. And I was even more stuck on how it'd apply to riding on a loose rein or even playing on line. I suppose because I was erroneously thinking of the reins as the only way to instruct the horse to wait while you build the next gait inside the current one. How wrong was I!

I think the best thing about Karen's response was that it reminded me that "go" can and should feel like a release, which is a far, far cry from where Finn and I have been lately! As I contemplated that last night, I could see that I had gotten way off track, because "go" felt like pressure and more pressure, like PUSHING and disharmony. In short, it felt pretty awful!

So, I went to the barn today thinking about that. I also downloaded Karen's audio recording about relaxation, energy and balance, and listened to the energy segment while driving to the barn. That provided another super helpful gem in the form of a simulation demonstrating how the "get ready" and "go" conversations might sound from one human to another.

I played with Finn on line only today. I slowed down and was more deliberate. I talked aloud a bit more to help myself focus on the desired feel. And I tried to feel the new gait within the old one, build it up, and find a feeling of simply releasing into the transitions. To some degree this was a leap of faith... I just pretended I expected it to work, and lo and behold, it actually did. Yes, I had to get a bit "bigger" to clarify to Finn what I meant a few times, and a few times I had to remind him to try instead of tuning me out, but the bottom line is WE FOUND IT.

We found upward transitions that felt like release. We found a walk that had a trot inside, and a trot that contained a canter. And in taking things a little slower with the trot, I think we even found a few tiny glimpses of real power (that elusive combination of energy and relaxation) in which Finn pushed and lengthened with each stride instead of hurrying. The silly thing is, he is apt to do that... but I have a sharper eye for quick than powerful, and I think tend to push him quicker than I should.

So, hooray! It felt like a big triumph for us. In addition to all the transitions and gaits being improved, Finn's attitude was also much more willing! Goodness I hope I can find this stuff under saddle next. Crossing my fingers that the Thorowgood arrives early enough tomorrow to take it out to the barn, but I'm not holding my breath.