Hack diary A breakthrough in confidence for Natalie Clark and Apache
Wise words in a lesson pays dividends next time Apache spooks out hacking, and Natalie Clark even plucks up the courage to do a spot of dressage
DURING THE PAST month, Apache and I have taken a giant leap forward in our confidence journey. It starts with a stern talking to from myself (as you may recall from my previous diary) and the advice I glean from fellow challengers in the Hack 1,000 miles Facebook group. But not wanting to tempt fate too quickly, my sister joins me for a few hacks. Me on Apache; Aimi on a bike. Having someone to chat to helps me forget about being nervous and I begin to relax. I find myself slipping back into old (bad!) habits, as I stroll along with one hand on the reins. More importantly, I notice how when I relax, Apache does too.
The thing about hacking with a cyclist is that they tend to go a bit faster. I find myself trotting more and Apache settles as he works harder. We even squeeze in the odd short canter up a hill. I don’t think my sister enjoys that on her bike as much as Apache and I do, though. Now it’s my turn to say, “Hurry up”.
One Tuesday evening, Apache’s owner tells me about a dressage show being held at our yard. Negative thoughts jump to the fore: “Not a chance — I can’t even get Apache into one half of the arena”. But with a bit of peer pressure (sisters, eh?) and encouragement from his owner, as well as the promise that I can trot the canter movements if I’m not brave enough, I enter.
Don’t be a passenger
In the lead up, I have a lesson and it completely alters my mindset. After a number of spooky moments, the instructor tells me to start being more proactive rather allowing myself to be a passenger. She tells me that when Apache spooks, be annoyed that he’s scared me and kick him through it rather than getting tense and taking my leg off.
These words of wisdom do wonders out hacking too. Next time we exit through the yard gates I commit to being more proactive. As we pass a house with white signs outside, before he’s even had a chance to spook I ask Apache to work forward into an outline and practise our best shoulder-in. He still clocks the signs, so I put my leg on and ask for more bend.
As we turn a corner, Apache jumps at something in the hedge and I tense. I remember the times I used to ride young Thoroughbreds and how long trots were best practice when they were feeling on edge. So I ask Apache to trot on and keep my leg on.
We veer across the road occasionally — luckily it’s a quiet road — but trot to the top of the hill. It feels like a huge achievement; just a month ago I walked up this hill after Apache spooked in the same place.
Confidence high
Dressage day approaches and my confidence is on a high. My competition gear still fits; I can just about remember a whole dressage test and how to plait — although there is room for improvement when it comes to cleaning all those white patches.
Apache is spooky in the warm up, but remembering to kick through them I am even confident enough to canter by the time my turn comes. The bell goes, I take a deep breath, and off we trot down the centre line.
I should mention that Apache is really rather good at dressage. So by the time we halt at X, I am grinning. No spooks to speak off — even in the ‘scary’ corner. As we walk out of the arena, I realise how far we’ve come. A few weeks ago I wasn’t brave enough to canter; not long before that I wasn’t keen on trotting either. We do a second prelim test too and, guess what, we win both classes! All that hacking is paying off.