Beth Buekema Clinic 2

I had another clinic with Beth and again the ride went great but she gave me completely opposite techniques and it became quite confusing and difficult again when I went back to lessons with Erin since each were telling me different things. This time the opposite technique was with the walk; Erin has always told me not to push with my hips since it could manufacture his walk but to just let his walk move my hips. Beth told me to exaggerate the movement in my hips to get the better walk. Both wand the same thing...temp and a swinging connected walk but two totally opposite ways of getting it. Both worked but when I use the others technique in front of the other they tell me to do it their way. I find it difficult to be able to learn a whole new technique and then suddenly have to unlearn it and learn a opposite one.
We also worked on parts of my test like figures and transitions which helped a lot, however I don't know if I will ride with Beth again since it has been quite confusing and difficult for me to make progress in my mind with the differing views...

Beth Buekema Clinic

I had as private session with Beth Bukema. This was my second time riding with her, my first time riding with her with Carino. She is the dressage coach at Johnson and Whales University in Rhode Island and is also a dressage judge for many shows in our area.
Carino came out quite nice with a nice loose big trot and listening very well, he was a little curly and not pushing as much into the bridle as I would have liked but he was still good. Also, I actually felt quite good and my position felt quite proper.
After my warm up and she was done with the previous riders I gave her a little background of Carino and I and then we went and did walk and trot for her. She made me shorten my reins quite a bit and hold a lot more on the reins especially the right than I was use to. I know he avoids contact on the right but I have always been taught to push into contact not take with my reins, especially on Carino. She also told me to move my whole wrist as the half halt instead of my fingers which I always have been told not to do. This of course confusing me quite a bit. What she had me do worked, he was straighter and more into the contact,..she said his trot changed quite a bit...which it did but only since he was straighter. My only concerns were that his neck would become too short and he would become "curly" or behind the vertical. These conerns were huge as I worked a year trying to stay away from these things and did not want to revert back to them. I was happy with the ride at the end since he did feel great and we had some wonderful quality work. However, my concerns came up again when I had a lesson with Erin a few days later and she told me to make his neck longer, loosen my reins and not use my whole wrist...
So then the confusion kinda took over...I have kinda tried to bring both techniques into my riding and use both whenever their needed but I find myself to just go right back to how I ride him and push him into the contact. Yes he might be more wiggly, but he is not curled or behind the vertical which is my main concern. I plan to ride with Beth again in a week or two and I plan to voice my opinion on the techniques, hopefully she will understand and we can find a happy medium.