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Genoka Thomassy, cont.
With more time, the thing that strikes me most is that
Michael never overfaces horse or rider. You start small and
do a little more and a little more and before you know it
you’ve made quite a bit of sustainable progress with no
trauma whatsoever. It stays fun and almost easy and yet the
change over time is remarkable. I have of course heard the
"ask often, accept a little, praise a lot" axiom forever but
I’ve never seen it better applied. Michael lives it in every
lesson with horse or rider and it really does work! Whenever
I’m having trouble at home, I take a step back and try to
treat the situation more like Michael does in lessons and my
results improve. And my horses, while hardly miserable
before, are noticeably more enthusiastic about their time
under saddle. And my husband, following his recent first
lesson with Michael, has shown improvement in both his
position and his willingness to work on his riding. Michael
tells you the truth but shows you how to improve rather than
making you feel incompetent! |
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I have been blessed to take lessons from some wonderful (and
tolerant!) dressage instructors in the past. But too many of
the professional horsemen I've encountered seemed to feel
showing was the end all and be all and if you didn't show
what was the point. Yet somehow I doubt a lot of them could
keep up with me in rough country <grin>. Despite his
impressive credentials in both dressage and jumping, Michael
seems to think my approach is just fine as long as the
horses (and me) are happy and improving. And I know that I
couldn’t keep up with Michael crosscountry! It'd be like
shooting a round of golf with Tiger Woods. Michael knows his
abilities and doesn’t need me to be "serious" to feed his
ego or impress anyone. And that impresses me no end!
Genoka Thomassy
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