Conditions: Amazing weather - high 60's no bugs no mud. able to hack both horses before and after rides. rode both in double. Rode outside in FEI ring (This ring is called the FEI ring as during the USDF dressage show, all the FEI rides are in this ring. It is a beautiful ring with great footing and 2 permanent judges booth - the actula ring is not up - so the dimensions are greater than 20mx60m

Caddymaster: OK and YIPPEE! I am sure that I am on the right track with him. I have been really interested in reading and watching the "dutch system". The ideas I have from Tineke's book "and Anky's videos is that the aids should be very simple (i.e. if you want to make a 20m circle, then only pull on the inside rein) and that speed control is the most important thing.

Soooo...with bringing Caddy back into work and staying concentrated on how his body is stretching...I have been warming up thinking about this system. So I start in the rising trot with essentially no contact. But he needs to be STRAIGHT. AND if I want a little more forward, HE NEEDS TO HEAR MY CALF. So warming up in the rising trot with straight lines 20m circles and then to serpintines - using only the inside rein to turn him and inside leg if he falls in (or whatever). Then on to 4 loop serpintines, 5 loops 6 loops. checking from time to time that he will give me a forward response to a polite touch with my calf.

Then I transitioned into SQUARE serpintines. so think a 3 loop serpintine - and remember that I am working in a regulation area that is larger than a normal dressage ring as you can go outside before the bell. So VERY STRAIGHT line in trot - clean transition to walk - 1/4 walk pirouette- walk trot transition (the quarter turns are easy for Caddy I was really concentrated on my transitions and making the aids invisable). GREAT EXERCISE and will also be fantastic with canter walk pirpuette canter transitions to help the canter pirouettes.

I then went on to the canter making transitions canter trot canter canter walk canter focusing on the purity and straightness.

this all went great

I then went on to working the trot half passes, I need more impulsion and speed control in these. He is a very appealing horse and laterally supple - but can have a decreas in impulsion in the half passes. So I made 1/2 pass - med trot - half pass using the whole arena in both directions and kept repeating this on both reins with very good results. Tomorrow, I'm going to try med trot half pass med trot transitions.