And we're off!

This weekend I finally had my first jumping lesson on Spirit with my new trainer! She discovered how stiff Spirit is when asked to bend to the right, but was very complimentary about her jumping. Here's a picture of our careful approach to a crossbar:

It was a gorgeous day and I had lots of fun, though it was a bit scary to get some "re-training." Anyone who changes trainers could expect to take a step or two backwards before moving forwards again, to allow for different styles and time getting acquainted. But I was specifically learning to no longer "support" before the jump (ie, help keep the horse off of the forehand by use of legs and hands), to now going to loose reigns to let the horse figure out how to get herself off of the forehand when jumping. Not only were my reigns flopping, but I was told to add more leg! And a tap of the whip! There was definitely a moment when I thought "Are you crazy?" Apparently I even started putting both reigns in one hand so that I wouldn't hold on too much. Don't really know where that came from, but oh well - it worked! Can't wait to do some more work on her, and start making plans for our first horse trials!