Rodrigo Pessoa Teaches First-Ever U.S. Clinic in Sonoma, California

August 02, 2011 By: Erin Category: On the Line

Rodrigo Pessoa taught his first-ever jumping clinic in the United States this week, at the Sonoma Horse Park in Northern California. It was a highly anticipated event that fell between two weeks of horse shows at the venue, which is just two years old and thriving. (If you’re a regular Sidelines reader you might remember my profile of show manager Ashley Herman, pub March 2011). The facility is impressive, the scenery gorgeous, and riders in Northern California continue to flock to it for its series of excellent shows held May – September.

But back to the clinic. On the Line did spend the weekend in Sonoma, but had to jet back to Florida early, regrettably taking a pass on the clinic. I was curious to know if Rodrigo took an active interest in the riders, how he dealt with the different horses, and how the riders responded to him. On the Line memorably interviewed Rodrigo in 2010, during the height of season at WEF. On that afternoon he was understandably preoccupied, and a little bit tired from a long day of showing.

But by all reports from riders and auditors out in Sonoma, Rodrigo pulled off three two-hour sessions of five riders per day like a seasoned pro. Clinician, that is.

In a moment that surely would make George Morris simultaneously cringe and nod in appreciation – Rodrigo expressed his dismay at the majority of riders’ difficulty riding lateral movements like the shoulder in, and proceeded to focus in on lateral work, while not holding back with a few zingers, a lá Mr. Morris, along the way. But his overall message was simple; keep the horse in front of the leg, while also maintaining control. That meant control going forward, and control moving laterally. On the Line’s sources reported that at least 45 minutes of each session were dedicated to lateral work on Day 1, before Rodrigo reluctantly allowed the groups to move on to a straightforward gymnastic. Ouch.

Riders fared better on Day 2, jumping a technical course of varying heights. During a question and answer session during lunch, he suggested a few training techniques that raised some eyebrows among the NorCal crowd (jumping an oxer backwards to keep the horse alert?), but general consensus was that everyone worked a lot, learned a lot more, and enjoyed basking in the fact that for two sunny summer days, show jumping royalty graced Northern California with its presence.

Dappled Gray’s Molly Knott was onsite during both days of the clinics, and recorded more than a few noteworthy Rodrigo quotes. It’s well worth the click over and a “like” on her facebook page to check them out.

And graphic designer and photographer extraordinaire Christina Gray audited yesterday’s sessions, from which she gives us these shots: