The Parelli Level 2 Clinic was instructed by Linda Parelli on July 18, 19, 1998. There were 20 horses/riders in attendance. It was held in Flagstaff at the Flagstaff Riding Club which has a beautiful indoor arena with wood chips as topping on the arena floor.

For the Saturday morning session, horses and riders started at 9:00 a.m. with groundwork on the 12' lead. Linda said that Level 2 works on positive reflexes and harmony.

The following are exercises performed:

~Kneel and play yo-yo with eyes closed

~Kneel and play circle game with eyes closed. Riders were to see how little it takes to perform these tasks. ~On the yo-yo, bring the horse in 4 steps then stop him.

~Lead horse from the end of the lead rope. See if he follows at the walk, trot, reverse.

~Sideways game ("Don't avoid things you're not good at.")

~Squeeze game--also practice backup squeeze.

~Porcupine Z1 across the arena. Level 2 is the time to up the phases, so if the horse does not backup with respect and impulsion, go quickly from pressing the hair, skin, muscle, to digging fingernails into bone.

~Place the lead rope around the horse's front leg and ask the horse to step forward.

~Lower the head to the ground.

~Move forehand/hindquarters with porcupine.

~Drive horse backwards.

~Place your foot on the end of the lead rope, back the horse up, then bring the horse in. At this point you need to balance drive and draw. Linda said that Drive ruins Draw, it's easier to get the horse to move away from you, and harder to get him to come to you; therefore drive and draw need to be balanced. To get a better draw, you need a better hindquarter yield.

~Drive hindquarters then walk backwards fast to draw horse in.

~Friendly game--can you approach your horse by flailing your arms and/or jumping up and down. Practice slapping rope on the ground. At Level 1 you learn to "play" the 7 games; at Level 2 you learn to "work" the 7 games. If your horse gets nervous while you spank the ground firmly with the stick/string, turn your back to him and continue spanking (desensitizing). Some horses run into pressure, so some horses may actually run into the slapping stick/string. Keep slapping and wait until he stops moving and puts his head down. If you see a blank stare, he will be processing the information.

~There are 4 phases of friendly firmness. Hair, Skin, Muscle, Bone.

~Practice backing your horse by phase 1. Move quickly to phase 4, then return to phase 1. Horses get dull by not using the phases. Use phases in quick succession. The instant the horse responds, go back to phase 1. Horse "jawing" is emotional.

~In every case, rub away the pressure.

~Put the rope halter around the horse's neck and practice lifting the horse's head as high as possible, then moving it to the ground using Z1 only. Use a steady pressure, but quick release when the horse responds.

~Practice lateral flexion from the ground with no halter. In bringing the horse's head to the side, the horse should be soft. We want the horse to fall in love with "release". Your job is to show him where it is. His job is to find it.

~Lead the horse forward with two hands on Z1. It's easier with one hand only; there is a purpose for two hands. Make right and left turns. Mix with backing and lifting/lowering head.

~Sit on the ground with the horse's head in your lap (for a long time).

~Backing--for a horse that is not responsive, squeeze the trapezious muscles.

~Driving the horse to face up. Drive the hindquarters to have the horse draw and face up. Walk a wide arc from the end of the loose lead rope around the horse aiming for the hindquarters, asking the hind to move away from you. You may have to firmly tap the rear. Don't look at the horse while walking the arc unless he doesn't face up. Don't move the horse's shoulder. (longer explanation under Yo-Yo section).

~Draw happens when you back away.

~A horse disrespects you by looking away. Do nothing until the horse relaxes and looks softer.

~When the message gets to the horse's feet, don't be too critical at first. Accept movement then refine as you go along.

~If horses don't pay attention in their herd, they get nipped.

~At L2, you're looking for positive reflex. The horse goes with life, ears forward, at phase 1 or 2. The phases in the back up are Finger, Wrist, Elbow, Whole Arm. The lead rope does not move at phase 1.

~Phases need to be upped quicker at L2.

~Smile when you're asking for the draw. Scowl when sending horse away.

~Backing straight--A horse can curve away and still be looking at you. One way is if he cocks his rear end out, but keeps both eyes on you; another is if he only looks at you with one eye. (1) If his rear turns, correct Z4. (2) Correction for the head is 3 bumps to the lead rope. Be sure to correct the proper zone. In working on straightness, don't try to get fast and straight at first. Progressively try to get fast and straight at the same time.

~Keep your hands moving while drawing the horse in.

~How to win the Circle game. Components: Send him out, allow him to go, bring back in. (1) The horse needs to be straight for the send. Lead, lift, swing, touch (in front of drive line) and this "touch" will be much firmer than L1. You're looking for no resistance when he leaves. (2) Allow him to circle by no tension on the rope. (3) Bring back--As the horse moves on the circle, cross under the lead rope with stick/string and stop Z4 with a slap to the ground. For a better face up, put a lot of pressure on Z4. If the horse keeps moving on the circle because of the slap on the ground, shorten lead, slap again. Continue this as needed. Don't watch the horse all the way around the circle. Linda said there was an old Chinese proverb: Horse who disappears on left will reappear on right. Suggestion: even if your horse disengages without much pressure, at least try it with a lot of pressure to see if there's any braciness there (or any other type of "holes"). Some horses get bracy when you bring up life.

~Yo-yo

First was the Yo-yo with your eyes closed and kneeling. This was to help with your feel and release. When you're looking at the horse you have a delayed response to release for the yield. Your release is better when the yield is felt rather than seen.

Practice the Yo-yo asking your horse to come in 4 steps then go back out again. Vary the number of steps. The variety will cause your horse to pay more attention to you.

Lead the horse from the end of your lead rope to see if he follows (walk, trot, backup). Looking for resistance.

If you feel any resistance, use this exercise: Ask the horse to back out 4-5 steps. Set your body in a leaning back position. Slightly comb the rope with one hand (horse recognizes what happens before it happens), then grasp lead firmly and pull slowly. If the horse leans on the halter, be ready with carrot stick/string in the other hand, to slap the ground toward Z4 and start moving backwards. "Draw happens when you back away."

Practice the backup with upping the phases from 1-4 much quicker than in L1.

This last exercise seemed to help the horses the most to better the Yo-yo. Linda said "It's easier to send the horse away, more difficult for them to come to you." She also said "Moving the hindquarters will cause the horse to draw to you." Practice driving the hindquarters by:

(1) starting at 1/2 way down the lead rope, and the horse faced-up.

(2) Walk a wide arc around the horse using the mother-in-law look (scowl); don't get close to the shoulder or you'll drive the shoulder away.

(3) Keep horse faced-up to you with hindquarters moving away.

(4) If horse doesn't move the hindquarters, use the carrot stick to firmly encourage the hindquarters to move.

(5) At this point of the exercise, if you're staying on a loose lead, and the horse is moving the hindquarters as asked, when you stop asking for the movement, and you stand still, you should see the horse take a step to you (or at least you should notice that he wants to). Several of the students at this clinic took a step toward the horse at this point which stopped the forward movement of the horse. (6) Finally, when all of the above is working well, when the horse is correctly facing up as you ask the hindquarters to move, proceed to back up combing the rope. This combination of movements should be nice and smooth with no leaning on the halter by the horse. You want the horse to be saying at this point "Oh, you wanted me to come to you!"

Remember to scowl when asking for the back-up and smile for the draw. Also bellybutton out for backup and in for draw.

"What you're looking for is a backup/draw that is respectful with impulsion."

End of Part 1

This is my interpretation from reviewing my notes and the video of the material presented. Let me know if my interpretations are not correct.

~Bend to stop--One hand asks for the bend; the other hand holds the center of the rein and is placed at the pommel (or horn) and braced again it. This is the power position. This helps you stay centered. When you release your reins, you already have the center. The side of the rein that has asked for the bend should have slack in it (given by the horse).

~When asking for the stop, keep your life down. Keep your head down.

~Keep the horse in the bend for longer times.

~Wait for the horse to sigh before releasing bend. Hold until you feel the change from high to down.

~Practice passenger lessons. Don't be a control freak. Get in harmony with your horse. Let the horse go where he wants to. If he stops, just ask him to go again. Do not direct him, just keep moving. Do not look at the horse since this trains your focus to be in the wrong area and changes your balance/independent seat. Do not steer. If he gets too fast, bend to stop. These passenger lessons work on your independent seat.

~Bend--there should be no life in your lower body when you ask for the bend. The only life in the upper body will be if you have to match the horse's hold on the rein. Practice bend and hold for varying times; the horse should be o.k. with it. Teach the horse that being bent is a safe place.

~Lateral Flexion--use the 7 steps, close fingers individually, use other hand at center of rein (power position). Bring bending rein to thigh at #7. Wait til horse is soft before release. Don't grab rein--start feeling for the horse as each finger closes separately.

~Indirect rein--for hindquarter disengagement. Bring bending rein to belly button at #7 with fingernails up, #8 look to hindquarters (may have to tap butt if it doesn't disengage). #1 thru #7 have a lifting action. Put leg on horse to ask for hindquarter disengagement. Release when horse responds.

~9-Step Backup--Close fingers individually. Backup comes at #9. Release reins quickly when horse responds. If the horse does not back--HOLD, HOLD, HOLD waiting for slightest give.

~Canter Passenger Lessons--canter (using info below) letting it become the horse's responsibility to maintain gait and direction.

~Canter Exercise--The instructor had all the horses/riders make a circle in the middle of the arena (butts to the center). Each horse/rider took a turn going a few times around the outside of the circle each way. Object was to get a nice smooth canter on the correct lead. The four phases to ask for the canter are: Smile, Squeeze, Spank Yourself, Spank the Horse. It is the horse's responsibility not to change gait or direction. Don't forget to lift up on the rein with straight elbow of leading arm. If you're asking for the right lead, put yourself on the right lead--right arm out straight--other arm behind. Bring life up. Start squeezing with your cheeks (like you're holding a quarter with your cheeks). Squeeze down leg. The instant the horse responds, release the leg. Allow the horse to make a mistake then correct him. Don't correct him before he makes the mistake. Allow the horse to break gait--use the phases to get it back. Don't bother your horse unless he breaks gait. The horse may have to break gait to correct a cross-fire or incorrect lead. When the horse gets the idea of responsibility of gait, his self-carriage will get better--he will be more on the rear than on the fore. If you can get your reins over your neck, they are too long. They should only go to your sternum. You will have direct contact with the horse if the reins are of proper length. Reins at the correct length will require only a slight lean-back to request a back up. If your reins are too long, you can "bridge" them (hold both together--in an X--letting the center hang down). Don't make an issue of things--the more practice you get, the more harmony you will have. Some right-handed people have trouble with the right lead because if you ask for the right lead, you're pushing with your left (less dominant) side. The instructor asked for the stop on this exercise to be: hold center of rein up with straight arm then proceed to back up after the stop.

~Canter Lead Changes--The arena was set up with 10 horses/riders at each end and one rider at a time took a turn practising lead changes in the following manner: at 1/2 of the arena the riders did a couple of circles on the left lead, then heading to the center of the arena, the rider was asked to bend the horse to the left, disengaging the hindquarters to the right. When the rider felt the hindquarters drift to the right, the rider was asked to set up for the right lead heading toward the other 1/2 of the arena. So in effect, you're doing a figure 8, but with a little squiggle in the middle (or it might even be a whole little circle depending on when the horse's hindquarters get soft and drift). Hindquarters must be propertly disengaged for this to work on lead changes. Lift rein UP for stop and back up when done. Use the power position when asking for the bend. If the horse is bracy, wait for the stop.

Last couple of notes: While you're doing these exercises, you're learning muscle memory. When you're at L3, your L1 will be perfect.

Judy in AZ