It is now November, and I am in New Jersey, on a day off in between clinics. I have already taught in Toronto, Minneapolis and Indianapolis, and have been blessed with much nicer weather than usual - even if that still means being bundled up in ski pants much of the time! (As my clinic organisers often comment, I know how to dress!)The clinics have gone well, with some very receptive folks both riding and watching.
I left home in late October, after the usual mad dash of setting up next year's clinic dates and getting them up on the website. Then there was the publicity for the 'Naked Truth of Riding' day in February, and the lecture-demonstration tour in April. This takes a lot of work and thought, and it was coupled this year with the finishing touches to my new book, which I will have in time for the demonstrations.
The final stages of a book, in which we tie up the ends, always seem as taxing to me as writing the main body of the text. They include editing everything now that the overview is available, and organising diagrams and captions. This involves me, my editor, illustrator, photographer, cover designer, and publishers in the US and UK, so as emails whizz back and forth it all becomes quite complicated.
We are still not quite at the end of this process, so the book is still coming back to haunt me as I tour the US, but the end - which can seem 'so near but so far' for an interminable amount of time - is now very, very close. The final product is certainly going to look great, with fabulous photographs and diagrams, and I hope you will think that it 'reads great' as well!
I had quilt feelings about not updating my blog during October, but can finally raise my head above water enough to devote this bit of time to it now. In terms of my life, this is a good sign!
The teacher training courses which were held at Overdale in late September/early October were great fun, with even the basic group of coaches showing some impressive skills. We had two participants from the US and one from South Africa, who definitely enriched our experience. The advanced courses were a good forum for exchanging ideas, and the presentation that I gave on Thomas Myer's book 'Anatomy Trains' shed light on biomechanical issues that many of the coaches could not quite put together in that way. I am so grateful that I discovered his work, as it has really impacted on my thinking this year.
It was very helpful to have in mind as I was riding with Heather Blitz in Denmark this summer. My horse and I were over there for much of July and August, with Heather and I coaching each other. We made some super improvements to both of her Grand Prix horses, as well as to my horse. It is very good for me to get on a horse after she has been riding it, as I can pick up on her body pattern very well, and can sense what she does differently or more powerfully than I do, and how this has impacted on the horse. My learning process, with its emphasis on biomechanics and 'feel' equips me particularly well for this. A number of insights have come this way, and I am beginning to feel that I really can replicate her biomechanical pattern which (even though she learnt it through my work)is much more powerful, elegant and effective than my own. Bringing significant talent to the process makes so much difference!
The upgrade it requires in my muscle tone and ability to match the forces of the horse's movement is huge. I cannot sustain it for long, or do that much with it, but I know that those skills will come in time. There is a specific place where I start to feel 'like Heather' - and the horses certainly respond really well to it (I just hope that it also makes me look much more 'like Heather'!) The way it connect my arms to my body and keeps my hands easily out in front of me feels fantastic. But then, any upgrade in anyone's skills that makes it all 'come together' (for a time at least) will always be fantastic.
The hardest thing about leaving home for these clinics is leaving the horses, especially Quite, who I hope is missing me (some chance!). I get back home mid December after a short holiday in Belize, so I am looking forward to some adventures with sand sea and mountains before I hit the delights and distractions of my normal life!