A Clinic With KERrI Lake
The Morning
We welcomed Kerri and our group of riders/auditors on the patio on a crispy morning, everyone in their puffer jackets and cups full of coffee. Kerri opened the day by sharing some of her philosophies and where she would be guiding the riders throughout the day.
She walked everyone through the basics of communication with our horses, touching on everything from their nervous system all the way to their depth of intuition and sensitivity. She noted that we are often taught the mechanical and physical parts of riding exclusively: how to mount your horse, your position in the saddle, how to post the trot, ask for the canter depart, etc. In doing so, we neglect the intuitive parts of riding that really impact the relationship we have with our horses. We end up missing them in the process, making communication harder and more forceful than it could be. She noted, “Riding without clarity means your horse will need to tune you out”. This reframing of how we interact with our horses set the tone for the day…
The Rides
The first duo of the day was Angela and her adorable hunter, Cid. Angela has owned Cid for about 9 years and knows him inside and out, but has a hard time getting him to go forward. He is obedient and will trot when asked and canter when asked, but doesn’t have that pep in his step like Angela would like.
Kerri started them out by removing Angela’s spurs. She asked Angela to walk around the arena, keeping her eyes up where she was going and creating a level of excitement in her body, encouraging Cid to start thinking about it as a fun game with a direction and purpose. She wanted Cid to start asking the question, “Where are we going next?!” with some curiosity. Kerri also encouraged Angela to not kick every stride, but rather feel the beat of the walk that she wanted in her body first. That “one two three four” of the walk that had the level of pep she wanted.
At first, it was slow going. Cid looked like he was wandering around aimlessly. I started to think… hmm maybe he just isn’t into it, this whole going forward thing. Then Kerri started to introduce some other elements to encourage him (other than the constant kick from the leg/spur). A dressage whip and a kiss along with Angela’s intention to go forward with some zip. Everyone started to see the difference in Cid’s demeanor. Then the same thing at the trot… First thinking and feeling what kind of a trot Angela wanted from him. That “one two - one two” rhythm. He went from looking dazed and lethargic to having a quicker rhythm and a more forward-thinking attitude.
The youngest rider in the group was Ava, a 12 year old dressage rider who asked to work on getting her horse to come round in the canter. Ava was riding an older schoolmaster named Ducati, who has been an amazing teacher for her. As she rode, Kerri asked her to start drawing attention to her own breathing, especially as Ducati’s canter starting to build and become a bit quick. When Ava’s awareness went inwards and she focused on her breathing, the canter slowed naturally and became more relaxed. Kerri emphasized bringing awareness to our own bodies first and how this can actually lead us to clearer communication with our horses.
Next up was Jen who had never met or ridden her mount, Figgy, before the day of the clinic. Jen asked to work on unwinding some of her “thinkiness”, something a lot of the auditors related to. Kerri continually brought Jen’s awareness to her body, getting her to feel into her heels, hips, wrists, etc. Being on a new horse was an added challenge, but Jen and Figgy had brilliant moments of ease and softness.
Laura and Bubbles were next up. This duo had worked with Kerri before, but wanted to build on some themes they’d been unwinding in the past. Bubbles has a tendency to brace against the contact instead of offering softness in the bridle. Kerri spoke to the importance of a steady contact that tells the horse, “here I am”, rather than the off and on, give and take that we are often taught to create lightness. The timing of the release or what Kerri called “floating thank you” down the reins was very cool to see in practice because you could see the shift in Bubbles when he was truly soft.
The final pair was Kelsey and her jumper, Yummy, who is known in the barn for his exuberance and wicked buck. Kerri nailed his personality when she said he’s like surfing a big wave… So powerful and you have to be in just the right position to ride the wave. As they jumped a few fences, Kerri offered a subtle approach to directing his energy and power. The visual she gave was of an orb just in front of the rider over the pommel and moving that orb left, right, forward, or back like a joystick. It gave Kelsey a great tool to use while on course when that over-exuberance might kick in. Kerri wrapped up our time with the horses by showing the group some Masterson-style bodywork on Yummy, running the bladder meridian to help him stay more in his body.
The TakeAWAYS
We finished the day back at the barn, discussing our most poignant takeaways. Everyone noted something different, but the themes through each answer seemed to tie back to the central idea of relating to and communicating with our horses with the most clarity possible… Realizing that what we bring to the relationship doesn’t only apply to our horses but also life in general.
Special thank you to Kerri Lake for such an expansive day of learning and loving ponies! And for all of the riders and auditors who came with genuine curiosity and an eagerness to try new things.
Learn more about Kerri at her website and stay tuned for more events at Rancho Agave… coming soon!