Supple Mouth ~ Supple Mind
Written by Alison Short
As a judge, first impressions truly count. As I cast my eye over the next competitor, I am always searching for the perfect centre line – straight, fluent, balanced – but often all this is over-shadowed by the wriggling nose. This can be an early indication that communication between horse and rider is compromised.
Acceptance of the Contact
“The smallest of changes make the biggest of differences!”
Understanding the correct acceptance of the contact is key to obtaining both physical and mental submission and flexibility. If the horse stiffens against the rein or drops the power from leg to rein there is little or no submission. This basic requirement is fundamental, and it is something the rider should be sensitive to, and learn to develop.
The balance between leg (the power flowing forward) and contact (the ability to hold the rein, neither pulling back nor giving away) is an art not a science, it’s about learning to ‘feel’. If you’re finding it physically challenging then you are definitely doing it wrong! Having an effective image that you can relate to might help you to develop this feel:
• Imagine a river where the water is flowing freely – this is the power from the horse’s hind legs. With no restraint, the water is forward flowing, forward thinking.
• Now build a dam and imagine the power of that river starting to funnel its way through the gap as the water’s path narrows – this is the influence of the contact.
• If the dam shuts down the flow of the river completely, the water will push against this barrier, and eventually force its way through. However, if the dam allows a steady flow of water to smoothly run through it, the flow can be maintained and the structure of the dam stays intact.
So, if the contact that is applied to the horse is immediately restrictive then resistance is created, but if you allow a controlled flow then the horse learns to attain a balance between power (water) and contact (the dam) with a submissive and happy mind.
If you have ridden an excitable horse at the top of the Downs that can’t wait for a gallop, then you will know that holding it back completely can result in problems. However, allowing some of the power out in a controlled fashion will result in a controlled release of energy – this is the same balance between energy created by the leg and a correct feel in the contact.
The goal is to achieve a balance that the horse understands and becomes submissive to, leading to a feel in the rein of smoothness and acceptance. When this happens, the horse is able to move its tongue on the bit as it is now no longer drawn onto the lower palate by a restrictive contact. (The tongue appearing to the side or bottom of the mouth can often be the result of an incorrect feel by the rider in early training.)
Balance Between Horse and Rider
“Keep your bottom like blancmange and your bust line forwards!”
To test this theory about the importance of good balance between horse and rider, there is a simple exercise you can try. Whilst this exercise is not going to take you out of walk, it gives you ample opportunity to develop a “conscious competence” and ability to communicate with your horse without disturbing your core stability. To sit effortlessly in balance, the correct position of your pelvis is vital.
• Imagine when you are on your horse that your pelvis is a pail of water. Now find the neutral position where the water inside your pail sits level.
• Now tip the pail forwards and imagine you are gently pouring the water out of the front. (For upward transitions, this angle can be brought back through neutral, then tipping the pail back – you will find this particularly useful on the less forward-thinking horse.)
• Now bring your elbows to the side of the ribcage and gently nudge your sides with them – be aware of this position, and learn to ‘feel’ that this is their correct location.
• Keep the weight down in your elbows. Imagine you have weights hanging off them, leaving your forearms feeling light but located.
• Your shoulders should remain open and supple, your chin level, and your neck in the back of your collar with your eye level up.
• Now focus on the connection you make to your horse via your seat. Imagine sitting on a peg, like a Lego man. Try to keep a relaxed connection with the upper thigh, and let the lower leg hang. Keep your toes in, heels out and a straight line from hip to heel. Your feet should sit parallel to the ground without tension through the heels (as tension will lighten and tighten the connection to the seat).
Creating a Supple Circle of Contact
“A rigid connection through your shoulders to the rein is like putting a straight bar bit in your horses mouth.”
If you’re aiming to compete at the lower levels then you will need to ride your horse in a snaffle. Most of them have at least one joint; those with a double link create a more supple feel through the rein. As a rider, the connection you make to the rein (as discussed earlier) makes a big impact on what ‘feel’ you get back.
• Imagine the connection from the bit going back up the rein and through both your arms to your shoulders (visualise these as another pair of bit rings).
• Now think of your shoulder blades as the mouth piece of the snaffle.
• This entire circle of contact, from bit to rein to shoulder, needs to be a supple one. If the shoulders are tight and the forearms rigid, then the circle through the horse’s mouth, down the rein, and through your shoulder blades will create a fixed feeling, and thus a restriction in the contact.
• Remember the dam (contact) is only going to allow a steady flow of water (power) through. If your horse is against the rein, even in the lightest of contacts, don’t be tempted to wriggle your hands to get your horse to drop his head (remember the horse coming down the centre line wriggling his nose!) Once you start wriggling your hands, it’s a difficult (but not impossible) habit to get out of.
Now you have achieved your rider position and contact, let’s assess your horse’s reaction to that contact.
Inside Leg to Outside Rein
“The type of connection made to the outside rein is the difference between resistance and submission.”
Inside leg to outside rein is a term often used. The outside rein aid is constantly referred to in many books and during hours of training – that’s because it is the ‘feel’ that is achieved through this rein that is key to so much. Too much restriction in the outside rein will lead to stiffness, a restriction of the paces, head tilting, or swinging of the quarters. Equally, too little connection can lead to falling out through the outside shoulder, and a loss of engagement and balance.
Think about a speed boat with an engine on either side of the rudder. If both engine’s output is not the same, the boat will not remain straight but will veer off in one direction. This is what happens when bend is not subtly supported by the outside rein.
As an example, if you are riding a fifteen-metre circle you may start accurately but find that half way round your horse is falling out. As much as you use your outside leg, he continues to fall out – this is because your outside shoulder has slipped forward and now the connection to the outside rein has been lost.
This is why it is important to make the link between body positioning above your horse, and outside rein contact. If you know that you are prone to twisting to the inside in one direction, try making your circle have at least one straight step every quarter to realign your outside shoulder and position it back over your outside hip.
This is where the tiny adjustment of feeling the outside rein will counteract the loss of the outside shoulder, and keep the whole horse in the corridor between power coming forward from behind, into the contact, the reins subtlety acting to guide the power elastically forward.
The following exercise will prove invaluable when on the move in walk, trot and later canter. It is a tiny adjustment and will not work against the bend but it will work subtly with the bend.
• Keep both hands symmetrical and wrists about six inches apart.
• Try holding your left rein still and flex your fingers in your right hand. Try not to drastically change the flexing rein’s position in relation to your other hand. How reactive is your horse to the lightest of aids to gently turn his head to the right?
• If he is tight and against the rein, use a firmer aid but always make sure this firmer aid is achieved with an ‘elastic’ feel, not a snatching hand.
• Repeat this exercise in halt or walk to improve his reactions and to achieve equal suppleness in both directions.
• At this point you can make tiny pulses within the connection to the outside rein if your horse’s reaction to flexing goes beyond the desired point. In this way, he will understand that the outside rein creates a gentle boundary, thus aiding balance and a supple connection to the outside rein.
“A supple horse is a happy horse and with this theme running through your work resistance will be at a minimum.”
None of us are faultless, but next time you have resistance issues, reflect on your fluency between power and contact. A horse restricted in order to be prepared for a movement is held behind the contact and so will become tense and strong; a horse who understands how to stay in front of the leg in the steadiest trot and light in the rein will find each challenge stress-free.
Alison Short ~ BD Judge ~ Freelance Dressage Trainer
07719 900275 ~ alshort@sky.com
