I spoke to Megan Jones by phone as she arrived in Melbourne to take a clinic at Willow Lane Equestrian Centre near Melbourne recently. I had not visited Willow Lane before but Megan assured me that it had an indoor arena – sensible protection against the sun on a possible 40 degree day that can be experienced in Melbourne in February.
She need not have worried about the 40 degree heat. By Saturday morning that weekend Melbourne was wet, wet, wet and south east Melbourne, where Willow Park is located was well and truly flooded. Some of the riders made it to the indoor arena for the first session on Saturday – mercifully the arena itself had escaped the flood waters but the paddocks and laneways of Willow Park were almost knee deep in some areas. Other riders were unable to get there – Ros Hazard managed to get there to watch her class but was unable to get her float (and consequently, her horse!) there as her property’s driveway had been almost washed away.
By Sunday lunchtime the sun appeared again but the water at Willow Park was stubbornly refusing to disappear. As we drove up the lovely laneway leading to Willow Park (fittingly lined with willow trees, which as we all know, love water!) the water was still well up the wheels of the car and float. We started to realise how bad it must have been in Queensland!
As Megan finished the previous lesson, one of the participants of the next class, Joanne Read on her lovely big grey Hercules was happily sloshing through the water as her warm-up. Laughingly, she said that it was great practise for water jumps on cross country! Of the four participants in this class Ros Hazard-Ellis, Vaughan Ellis, Joanne Read and Lisa Hart, only Joanne had been able to get there on Saturday due to the floods. Most of the combinations were competing at lower levels of eventing but all were competent and elegant riders with good horses.
Megan began by focusing on the riders’ positions, particularly a good consistent contact with the horse’s mouth. Echoing George Morris’ sentiments in his recent clinic, Megan wanted the riders to lift their hands rather than using a low and backward hand and she emphasised the importance of ‘giving elbows’. The hands can be firm and provide a consistent contact but the elbows must be soft, enabling the rider to use the elbows to dictate their speed.
The riders started with a walk-halt exercise followed by rising trot-halt but all with the riders standing in their stirrups so that they could not lean or pull back without losing balance. Through the exercise the riders were able to gradually shorten their reins, bring their horses’ heads up and create a more consistent contact. From it, it was into canter work in a light seat with changes in pace – forwards, slow, forwards then a walk on a long rein. Megan then focused on each rider in a pole exercise on a circle working on what was most challenging for each combination. They then moved on to small jumping exercises, again on a circle. All too soon it was over – with the riders wishing they could have enjoyed both days’ training with Megan.
I caught up with Megan for a quick chat afterwards and she gave me an update on Jester on the Kirby Park team. Jester is still recovering from his ordeal in Kentucky, the poor grey pony, and although he is receiving lots of TLC from Megan and everyone else, it will be a little while more before we see him out and about at competition. Luckily this is not a major championship year but Megan is obviously now focused on London 2012 which suddenly seems as if it is only around the corner! She is a little bemused that her other four-star horse, Kirby Park Allofasudden (Floyd) has not been listed on any of the National Squads and that none of the selectors have as yet discussed it with her but she will be bringing Floyd and a truck full of Kirby Park stallions back to Melbourne in the near future to compete at Tonimbuk Horse Trials. Hopefully it will be a little drier by then! Ros Hazard-Ellis and Monty demonstrate the exercise of two jumps on a small circle in this video
