02/15/2023
Some good points to ponder…
One misunderstanding about riding circles and curves is this idea that the horse has to ‘give’ to the inside bend.
This is when we see so many riders, overbending the horse to the extreme: pulling to achieve the bend, all the while pushing too hard with the inside leg.
This is wrong thinking, even though we see it a lot.
The horse bends in relaxation and lengthening the outside muscles, not by contracting the inside of his body. Until we understand this key concept, our horses will never achieve softness through their turns. Worse, when we are pulling on the inside to get the turn or bend, we will never encourage the horse to step more deeply underneath his body with his inside hind leg.
When we pull on the inside rein to get a bend, we can no longer use our outside rein effectively. We then see the common scenario of a rider pulling on the horse with both reins, all the while trying to drive him forward with ‘more leg’.
This concept of stretching through the outside is the reason why, once the horse has progressed in his schooling, the early ‘soft’ or hollow side will become the one to which his work is less straight, less correct. His habitual bend will mean that it is harder to ride him onto the outside rein without him drifting away from our inside leg. His newfound straightness will mean that he can work into the old ‘stiff’ side with just the right amount of energy into the outside rein.
We can recognize a horse with correct bend when we see a giving with the inside rein. By surrendering this rein, ever so slightly, the horse automatically relies on the outside rein for support. When we can rethink a muddy conundrum—in this case, bend and how to go about it—the answer, so often, comes clear to us.
When it comes to bending, are we allowing, or are we making? There’s a difference.
📷 Cattle Cait.
