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After my surprising New Year's Day ride on Saturday, I took a virtual lesson with Sean Cunningham, owner and trainer at STC Dressage on Sunday. As usual, the lesson was about as boring to teach as helping a teenager add to ten. I mean, you have ten fingers, how hard can it be? Sean insists that the lessons aren't boring, but I am a teacher, so I know remediation is not usually the highlight of your teaching day. He'll disagree. Why was it boring? Have you ever watched a rider do 20-meter circles for 45 minutes? Yes? Then you know what I mean. It's really only interesting for the rider. Not only is the trainer hoping something jumps out of the bushes to liven things up, but so, too, is the horse. I am kidding. Sort of.  When I whine about being back at Introductory Level, Sean tells me to get over it because the best riders spend most of their time working on firming up the basics. I always laugh and say, you're right, but I know it still must be pretty boring to teach us as round and round we go. For this lesson, I wanted to continue on with the idea of making my aids as light and quiet as possible. Even though Izzy is much more businesslike now that his neck isn't hurting, and he can handle a more solid contact, I liked what we had done over the past few weeks when we asked him to carry his own weight rather than having me to lean on. Sean helped me figure out two new feelings as we worked with all of that in mind.  Izzy does pretty well as long as we're circling. One of the things we've been working on is his tendency to push against me as we cross the diagonal, use the long side, or come down centerline. By being straight, he feels the needs to brace which suggests he's worried about losing his balance. When he leans, I do a small circle. Since I can't throw in a 10-meter circle every time he leans on me during a test, we need to show him that he can carry himself into straightness. As we come through a corner and approach the long side, Izzy gets really heavy and braced. My inclination is to user a firmer outside rein to keep his shoulder from falling out. When that doesn't work, I over-use the inside rein in an effort to get the bend. Sean suggested I get Izzy between my aids by asking for flexion before I get through the corner. I may need counter flexion or a true bend, but if I can get him better between my reins, he'll be better balanced as we come through the corner. Without him pushing against me, we can either continue straight or cross the diagonal in a much more harmonious fashion.  For the walk to trot transitions, another straight moment where Izzy likes to push against me, Sean suggested I not only ask Izzy to be rounder, but to flex either to the inside or outside - a little like approaching a corner. This worked amazingly well. When only asking for rounder, Izzy can still lock his poll and jaw. By asking for both lateral flexion and roundness at the same time, there's not anything to push against. Of course this isn't a long term solution, but as Izzy discovers that he doesn't need to push against me to make the transition, I won't need to ask for lateral flexion. Both of these ideas are works in progress, but we ended the lesson with me having yet even more tools to add to my list. Riding Izzy is hard, and it takes a lot of different strategies to keep him happy and with me. What works one day might not work the next. Being able to pull out different techniques for helping him stay balanced helps alleviate much of his anxiety.  Some days, I am amazed at the progress we're making. Other days, I am pretty discouraged that we're still working on being on the aids in a 20-meter circle. It's important to trust the trainer's program though, and since Sean has been right every step of the past year, I can only continue trusting his plan for us. I don't know when we'll show next, and I have no idea at what level we might come back out at, but for now, I'd rather ride well than show terribly.
I have high (medium?) hopes for 2022. During my lesson on Saturday with Sean Cunningham, owner and trainer at STC Dressage, we came up with a new theory about Izzy's recent anxiety. Sean is always very diplomatic when talking about a rider's or horse's weaknesses. He never calls Izzy names. He never says Izzy was a bad purchase or that I should cut my losses. Instead, Sean explains that Izzy is complicated and a tough nut to crack. He constantly reminds me that with the right tools, we will get to the root of Izzy's anxiety and tension. It's just going to take time.  September 2020 Through all of the yeas that I've owned Izzy, we've been through this up and down thing dozens of times, probably more. We make great progress, and then the wheels fall off the bus. We spend months working on the tension, and then comes another period of wonderfulness. Each time we find ourselves back at the tire repair shop dealing with those missing wheels, I write imaginary (and sometimes real) for sale ads. Last Friday, I replaced the For Sale sign with one that read Free to Good Home. When Sean joined me on Pivo Cast on Saturday, the first thing I did was let him know how frustrated and discouraged I have been feeling. There are so many things I appreciate about Sean's training style, and one of them is how even-keeled he remains no matter how close I am to throwing in the towel. Rather than agreeing with me, Sean just listens and watches. Then he reminds me that this is a process, and it's one in which we're making progress. Since I know his methods work, it doesn't take much to bring me back to center. Just as an aside, if you can't find a trainer in your area, invest in a Pivo Pod and find a trainer willing to work remotely. I can give you the name of two, Sean Cunningham and Cassandra Rabini. I can guarantee that there are a lot of other trainers who would happily give you a lesson from their computers.  Also Septemer 2020. As soon as I put Izzy to work, the spooking started. He spooked so hard during the first few minutes that I was 100% sure I was about to hit the ground. I am knocking on wood as I write this, but so far, Izzy has yet to dump me despite some massive efforts to do so. That spook was so hard that I lost both stirrups and the reins. I don't know if gravity just took a coffee break or if my guardian angel had a hand in it, but either way, I stuck the spook. What made it so frustrating is that those really hard spooks come when I give the reins forward or when I give Izzy a walk break as a reward. I explained to Sean that it feels as though Izzy is waiting for those moments when I've let down my guard. It's as though he sees his opportunity to escape and takes advantage of those moments when I am rewarding him or giving him a break. Sean thought about what I said, and suddenly a new thought occurred to him. We both know how trapped Izzy can feel which is why I am constantly looking for ways to give him as much rein as I can.  Proof. Thinking out loud, Sean wondered if Izzy is feeling more trapped than we know. It might be that he uses those breaks to escape because he is feeling confined and truly does see a moment to get away. On the spot, Sean proposed a new strategy. He asked me to make my corrections as small as I could while still being safe. Instead of asking for three inches of give, he suggested I ask for a single inch and then release the rein immediately. Sean hoped that this strategy would keep Izzy from feeling so "trapped." I work very hard to ride with elastic elbows and soft hands, but Sean wanted me to be even more subtle with my aids. The thinking was this: if my corrections were very small, they became much more of an ask which would make the decision to join me, Izzy's idea. It wasn't easy to ride a spooking horse with only the most minimal of aids and contact, but it did seem to work. We started at the walk with me just barely asking for anything and then immediately giving the rein. Izzy tried to avoid working by evading the E side of the arena. Rather than muscle him over with my inside leg and a firm half halting rein, I let him avoid the rail, but I asked lightly for him to yield just that little bit.  More proof that I want to give him the rein. The longer we worked with me making only tiny corrections, the more relaxed he became. Instead of violent sideways spooks, he started squirting forward instead. Both Sean and I recognized that the change in the degree of his spooks showed that we had the right idea. We moved on to some trot work with me doing the same thing. Keeping my corrections super small was very challenging on a horse who wants to bolt forwards or sideways. Each time he tried, I kept control without really correcting him. It wasn't pretty to look at of course, but like Sean said, we're not really working on the dressage movements right now. Instead, we're working on getting Izzy to accept the work without feeling trapped. The more we talked about it, the more it started to seem that the past seven years have been about finding the root of Izzy's tension and then dealing with it. I think that for so long, I've ridden without knowing where the problem was coming from. When I started riding with Sean, he started cracking through Izzy's tough outer shell and has been able to find the first hint of the origin of the tension. Rather than getting better, things have been getting a bit worse as we dig deeper into Izzy's issues. It's an abscess of sorts. Once you find the sore spot with your hoof testers, you dig down following the track of the infection. Once you get deep enough, the abscess is revealed and drains.  July 2020 It sounds gross to compare Izzy's anxiety to an abscess, but I truly think Sean is finding the root of the problem. It is Sean's belief that we are getting closer and closer, and once we get there, Izzy's talent will take over, and I'll have a horse to ride. That's hard to believe of course, but I am an optimist, so I am willing to keep working on it. Sean reminded me that this horse is making me a much better rider, and that's really why I do this. It's all about learning and improving.
I guess I can take down that For Sale add - today anyway. Since I've been riding weekly with Sean Cunningham, owner and trainer at STC Dressage, I've only used my Pivo Pod for Pivo Cast (Pivo's version of a Zoom call) and not for recording video. I am sure the day will come when Pivo Cast will be able to both record and manage a video call, but for now, it's one or the other.  Pivo Cast On Sunday, I decided to set up the Pivo Pod and record a ride. Izzy has made so much progress in the past six months that I wanted to see it for myself. I keep all of my Pivo equipment in a mini backpack. I've got the Pivo Pod, charging cable, and remote in its case. I have my Powerbeats ear buds and their charging cable in a mini carry bag. I also have my solar charger and its two cables. I also keep a reusable jumbo twist tie for attaching the solar cable to a fence if needed, and I keep my bendable tripod in the backpack as well. Keeping all of that stuff charged up and ready to go is a bit of a pain, but having it all in one convenient bag makes it manageable. I got to the barn, and pulled up to the arena to set everything up before I even saddled Izzy. As I put my truck in park, I reached into my purse for my phone, and rolled my eyes in complete exasperation. I had the Pivo and it's many accessories, but I had forgotten my phone at home. Whomp, whomp.  Wow. this is an old photo. Of course, I had a great ride. In the middle of the ride though, Izzy tripped and almost had us both rolling in the dirt. In the canter, he stumbled, throwing me over his right shoulder. He leaped up from the dirt, further unseating me, and bolted to the side. I scrambled hard to get my butt back in the saddle and my feet back down where they should be.
Once I finally got him back under control, the poor guy was super worried about the near fall, so we walked for a few minutes until he felt more sure of himself. I really wish I had caught that save on video. Then again, it's probably better not to see how near death we all come when we ride. Ignorance is bliss! Technology is great, but only if you remember to bring it with you. Over the weekend, I tried to re-watch the Sandra Bullock movie, The Net, but it just didn't ring true enough for me to finish it. It's from 1995, so the techno-jargon was more than a little dated. If you haven't seen it, Bullock's character, Angela Bennett, stumbles onto a conspiracy. She's a hacker, so to prevent her from revealing what she has discovered, her identity is erased. Since she works from home and has no friends in real life, no one believes she is who she says she is. You can figure out what happens next.  Some of the movie is pretty prophetic though. There is a scene where she orders a pizza online - that was not even a possibility back in 1995 and probably not even available in 2005. Like Angela, I find that I am living more and more in a virtual world. As we did last year, my students are once again enrolled in my virtual classroom. While I have briefly met some of them, our relationship is being nurtured through the chat feature in Google Meet/Zoom, the Canvas Inbox (a type of email), and Parent Square (a Facebook-like interface). I've mentioned before that I am the vice-chairperson for the Tehachapi Mountain Chapter of the California Dressage Society, my USDF Group Member Organization. We now run our monthly meetings in-person for those who choose to attend and virtually via Zoom for those members who either don't live nearby (me) or who don't want to meet in person.  Over the weekend, Sean Cunningham, owner and trainer at STC Dressage, gave me another lesson virtually. While we've tried before, this time, it went perfectly. For our first attempt at using Pivo Meet, we did it at STC Dressage during an in-person lesson just so we could trouble shoot. For the second attempt, my iPhone over-heated before the lesson really even got going, so we tried again the next day. That worked for most of an hour, but again, my iPhone over-heated. I bought a new phone, and we scheduled another lesson. The Friday night before, I got a notification that I was nearly out of data, so I had to cancel the lesson. It took a full week, but I was finally able to upgrade to a plan with unlimited data, so Sean and I agreed to meet virtually on Saturday morning. With a brand new iPhone 12 Pro, unlimited data, and an umbrella to keep my phone from over-heating, I was ready.  To my relief, everything worked perfectly! For those who may be considering doing virtual lessons, here's a run down on what you'll need. Materials:
 Pivo on a tripod on a muck bucket on a tree stump. It woks! Launching a Pivo Meet: It helps to have some experience launching virtual meetings, but if you're brand new to Zoom-like calls, you'll be able to figure it out.
 At the end of the lesson (more on that in a day or two), Sean and I discussed the technology. We both felt like the iPhone 12 Pro gave us a better experience than we had with the iPhone 7 Plus. The video and audio worked seamlessly. We didn't have the delay that we had seen and heard with my old phone. Our communication felt instant and we could both hear without any delay or lag time. From Sean's end, he reported that the Pivo tracked me perfectly without losing me once. I couldn't see the video of course, so I don't know how well he could actually see me, but he didn't have any complaints. That evening, I checked my data usage. Since the new plan had only gone into effect on Friday evening, I was able to see approximately how much data the Pivo Meet took. My hour long Pivo Meet used 1GB of data. My old plan was for 5 GB of data, so it's clear that plan had to go. If you're planning on doing Pivo Meet lessons, check into how much data your plan allows.  Overall, Pivo Meet is going to save me a ton of money. Diesel is currently $4.00 a gallon, and at 13 miles per gallon, that comes to $80 in diesel for each lesson. The Pivo itself cost $170 (case, remote, and extender thing) and the Powerbeats were another $80. I also bought a tripod for $24. I did buy a new phone and a pricier data plan, but I would have done that anyway. I've had the Pivo Pod for nearly a year and used it long before I even thought of doing a virtual lesson. Even so, my expenses come to $275. I've taken two virtual lessons that didn't require any traveling or diesel, and after the next lesson or two, what I've invested in equipment will pay for itself.
If you're thinking of giving Pivo meet a try, my advice is to go for it! I bought a Pivo Pod in September of 2020, and it has far exceeded my expectations. I know some riders use it every time they ride, but that's too much work for me. Setting it up is fairly simple, but watching an hour of video is way too time consuming. Instead, I like to limit its use to lessons and clinics.  Chemaine coaching instead of being videographer. When I was riding with Chemaine Hurtado, owner and trainer at Symphony Dressage Stables, it worked brilliantly. Chemaine is loud, and she talks to you throughout the whole lesson. After the lesson, I would make a cup of tea, grab a notepad and pencil, and watch the recorded lesson as I took notes. It was like getting two lessons for the price of one. Now that I am riding with Sean Cunningham, owner and trainer at STC Dressage, I've been using the Pivo a bit differently. Sean uses the Cee Coach, a two-way communication system which means I can hear him while I ride, but the Pivo Pod can't. Since I can't hear Sean on the Pivo's recordings, I skim through the video looking for moments that I remember, and I watch those.  Pivo recording while Sean communicates through the Cee Coach. I've been riding with Sean about every other week since the very end of March, exactly four months. During that time, I've made the nearly six-hour round trip drive at least nine times. It has been worth it, but it has also cost a small fortune in diesel, and the wear and tear on Newt's tires is no small thing either. That girl is HARD on rubber. With the start of school just around the corner, I knew that two or three trips a month to Ventura County just wasn't sustainable. When I first started working with Sean, he was the one who suggested virtual lessons. That's how he works with David Hunt, president of the International Dressage Trainers Club (IDTC) and FEI Judges' Supervisory Panel member. They use a Pixio for Sean's weekly lessons, but Sean was more than willing to give Pivo a try.  Pivo Meet at STC Dressage A few weeks ago, we gave Pivo Meet, Pivo's version of a Zoom call, a try while I was at STC Dressage. We wanted to see if the Pivo Meet would actually work, and, after a bit of trial and error, we found that it did. This past weekend, we gave it a try for real. Sean worked from his laptop at STC Dressage in Ventura County, and I worked from my ring here in Bakersfield. Technology is a marvelous thing. I set everything up and waited for Sean to join in. To my surprise, I suddenly heard him in my ear, and we got to work. Sadly, the lesson lasted less than ten minutes. One second Sean was offering feedback on the leg yield I was riding, and the next, I heard a very empty silence. Sean ended up calling me on my phone. He wasn't sure what had happened, but he had been kicked out of the Pivo Meet. It took me a few minutes to figure out that my phone had overheated in the sun. I repositioned it, but the magic was gone. My camera just wouldn't work. While I was super frustrated, Sean wasn't put off at all. He explained that it had taken him a few tries to work out the kinks for his remote lessons. That made me feel a lot less like his biggest waste of time. We rescheduled for Sunday morning.  Working on how to keep my phone from over heating. The way Pivo works is that it tracks the horse's outline. If the Pivo can't really "see" the horse because of shadows, poor contrast, bright sunlight, or whatever other reason, it has trouble following. Putting Pivo in the early morning shade would mean it would be looking directly at the sun as it rises, that wouldn't work. I scoped out all four sides of the arena and noted that from the A end of the arena, which looks mostly north, there was some shade from a big cottonwood tree, but not enough to totally shade my phone. I've seen other riders use small umbrellas to keep their Pivo Pods dry, so I thought an umbrella might shade my phone. If you have horses, you'll already know that umbrellas are quite often terrifying for our four legged friends. Fortunately, one of the ladies at the barn had an umbrella in her car, so on Saturday, Izzy met an umbrella. He glanced at it, gave it a "meh," and went back to grazing on the lawn. I brought it nearer. I twirled it. I raised it over my head. Izzy never even glanced my way.  OH. MY. GOD!!!!!!!!!!!! You already see where this is headed. On Sunday, I set up my Pivo Pod, attached the various cords and cables, and looked around for something on which to attach the umbrella. I grabbed a discarded jump standard, and attached the umbrella with a jumbo twist tie. It turned out to be the perfect solution. My phone and the Pivo Pod were nicely shaded, and the whole thing was sturdy and mostly unobtrusive. I went back to the barn, bridled Izzy, and started the walk back up to the arena. When we turned the corner, Izzy SLAMMED on the breaks. His head shot up and his hooves backpedaled. I could hear him shouting, OH, NO YOU DON'T. Uh-uh, ain't gonna happen, no way, no how. Seriously. The umbrella from the day before had been black with polka dots. Mine was plain black with nothing distracting on it. Apparently, Izzy had not been paying attention the day before when I twirled the umbrella in front of his face. There was no point in arguing with him, so I just stopped. I patted his neck as he moonwalked to nowhere. We took a step forward. And another. And another. Eventually, we walked past the umbrella and approached it from the other side. We crept up towards it until we were right next to it.  Oh, why all the drama? And again, I am sure you know what came next. I reached out very quietly to turn the Pivo on and send Sean the meeting link. While I was busy with my phone, Izzy reached over my head to sniff the umbrella. He touched it with his nose, and then started to nibble it. Suddenly, the umbrella that he felt SURE was going to kill him 10 minutes ago, was now his best friend. I had to elbow him backwards before he ripped it, or worse, broke my shadow "machine." For the entire lesson, he forgot the umbrella was there.
Pivo Meet was finally a success. Everything worked, Sean could both hear and see me, I could hear him, and Pivo only lost me once. The only problem was that the Meet shut itself off after an hour. I think there might be a time limit on how long you can keep the Pivo Meet open. An hour is plenty of time though, so I think we can work around that. Besides the Pivo Pod case, remote, charging cable, solar charger and its cables, PowerBeat wireless ear buds, jumbo twist tie, and tripod, I now have to add an umbrella to my list of Pivo Pod accessories. Still, when I add up the cost of the Pivo Pod, the earbuds, and a few of the other smaller pieces, it's all a lot less than what I spent in diesel (and time) over the summer. Being able to ride every week with Sean will do more for my riding than any other thing. I am so happy he's a techie kind of trainer! |
About the Writer and RiderI am a lifelong rider.
I began endurance riding in 1996 where I ultimately completed five, one-day 100 mile races, the 200-mile Death Valley Encounter, and numerous other 50, 65, and 75 mile races. I began showing dressage in 2010. Welcome to my dressage journey. 
Photo by Lori Ovanessian
About Speedy GSpeedy went from endurance horse to dressage horse. After helping me earn a USDF Bronze medal in the summer of 2020, he is now semi-retired. Speedy is a 2004, 15'1 hand, purebred Arabian gelding. His Arabian Horse Registry name is G Ima Starr FA.
July 2020 (PC AJSK Photography)
About IzzyIzzy was started as a four-year old and then spent the next 18 months in pasture growing up. I bought him as a six-year old, and together, we are showing at Second Level. He is a 2008, 16'3 hand warmblood gelding. His Rheinland Pfalz-saar International (RPSI) name is Imperioso.
March 2021 (PC Tess Michelle Photography)
Bakersfield Dressage approved!
FOR THE SMALLER EQUINE ATHLETE
I love her stuff!
National Rider Awards
USDF Bronze Medal - 2020
USDF Second Level Rider Performance Award - 2018
USDF First Level Rider Performance Award - 2015
USDF Training Level Rider Performance Award - 2013
State Rider Awards
CDS Ruby Rider Award - 2018
State Horse Awards
Speedy G - 3rd Level Horse Performance Award - 2020
Speedy G - 2nd Level Horse Performance Award - 2018
Working Towards:
CDS Sapphire Rider Award Third Level: 63.514% Third Level: 62.105% Fourth Level: Fourth Level: 2021 Show Season
Show Rating (***) CDS/USDF/USEF (*) CDS (s) Schooling (c) Clinic (r) Ride-a-Test Clinic (Q) Must Qualify 2022 Pending …
2021 Completed … 10/24-25 SCEC (***) 11/7-11/8 SB (***) 4/10-11 SCEC (***) 5/16-17 El Sueño (***) 6/26-27 SCEC (***) 7/17-18 El Sueño (***) 8/7-8 SCEC (***) 10/30-31 SCEC (***) 2021 Qualifying Scores
Regional Adult Amateur Competition (RAAC) 2nd Level Qualifying 3 Scores/2 Judges/60%: Score 1: 60.610% Bhathal Score 2: Score 3: CDS Championship 2nd Level Qualifying 5 Scores/4 Judges/61%: Score 1: Score 2: Score 3: Score 4: Score 5: Stuff I ReadBy Topic
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