Rein Aids: An Introductory Word

Thus far I have deliberately left out a discussion on rein aids for the simple reason that I believe the system of managing the horse needs to be solidly based on the seat. Once the horse can feel the rider 're-fueling' him with his own energy, freeing him from the confines of the hand and vice-like grip of the legs, and once enough channels are open to support and allow better energy flow, then we can begin the business of shaping finer pathways through specific qualitative and quantitative use of the hands.
Rein aiding is not for the execution of a movement so much as it is for helping the horse as he NEEDS it! Some books will give rein aids one way and some another but these are only guides. It is up to the rider to educate himself on what various rein actions do and then for him to feel what is going on in the horse, feel where the hindquarters or shoulders are positioned and how well they are linking to the horse, decide what needs to change, and then determine how much and what kind of rein aid is needed. Riders make the mistake of turning rein aids into a blur without considering the incredible sensitivity in the mouth and neck of the horse. The horse is capable of quite sophisticated understanding of these aids if the rider will take the time to introduce them and to clarify them without losing patience when the horse feels out of balance and then it is back to a blur again. There are 2 reins(and sometimes 4 to coordinate) and each can have different actions in the mouth and on the neck.
In order to clearly carry out the intent of the mind through the hand, the hand cannot in any way be concerned with the rider's stability and balance in the saddle. So before teaching the rider to steer round, curve or mold the horse with the hand, I insist the rider patiently discovers first the power of the seat and learn to direct wayward energy that tends to unbalance into a simple steady hand that has but one job---to allow and send forward. Turning can be accomplished with the seat, as can rounding and connecting the horse back to front.
After establishing this it is then time to introduce rein aids, which cannot be properly appreciated outside the context of the seat or the dynamics of motion. Only when the rider learns to send energy forward and create a steady form with the seat can the horse's head and neck hang free and develop better musculature and fewer contractions from minimized interference from the hand. It is so easy for the horse to build resistances to the hand and ways to escape its proper effect. One example is the 'rubbery' neck that lacks a strong muscular base. Too much turning and bending of the neck does not render it better at accepting the rein aid!! Similarly, for the neck that is tight and resistant, bending more only sets the horse up to require stronger aiding! We know 2 wrongs don't make a right! So I suggest we keep rein aiding to a minimum and for as long as necessary until the action of the seat, through the directing of the horse's energy, establishes a more stable form in the horse and the rider has developed sufficient tone and stability. Then the neck and head of the horse will hang free and be more open to the subtle finesse of the hand.
I am not trying to malign the hand. Instead I am trying to impart the significance of it. Something so VITAL to the dance is how we talk with our hands. When we come to the dance we must shake off the crudeness of our 'handiwork' from the other areas of our lives. Think of your horse like a lover.....the hand, a caress.

Affecting Energy Flow

It is common to assume that if you are trying to move something that you should push it. That is certainly one way---provided you are strong enough! I'm thinking about moving a blockage. So let's say, eg., that there is a blockage in a pipe(or conduit). First we must look to see if there is a problem with the pipe itself that is inhibiting flow. Is the pipe bent, crooked, kinked or does it have a hole in it? Next we might see if we can figure out if something is actually stuck inside the pipe or perhaps there is a buildup of some substance inside the pipe. In these cases it may seem reasonable that to increase flow, one might need to apply greater pressure to either break apart the blockage or to deal with the narrower passageway, respectively. But let's say we cannot find anything wrong and there is still poor flow. What could we try? Yes, more push! But other ideas might be more helpful. We might put a vacuum at one end and draw the flow! We might try sending some of the same substance through from one end to try to meet up with what we want flowing better...touch it...join with it...and by one substance moving we might cause the joined up one to move along too!
There is something else we might try! Perhaps coating the pipe with yet another substance would have the effect of facilitating what we want to get flowing to zip right through!!! What a great idea! Sorry...not mine...I saw a doctor demonstrate how olive oil can improve blood flow through arteries! But if we had a substance that might enhance energy flow this way we might save ourselves and our horses a lot of trouble. I think we do have something. Ever notice what happens when a special person consoles us with a gentle touch when we are all tense with sadness or despair? What is in that touch? I think it's LOVE! I know this sounds strange to say but I think we need to touch our horses with love---through our mind, our heart and our body. Very often it will cause a horse to let out a huge sigh of release! That release just may be the one thing to restore the flow we are looking for! TRY IT!

REMEMBER THIS(I Corinthians 13:4-7): Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.....It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

About Development

Breeders spend much time arranging matches that will produce individuals with the best chances of reaching top potential. But more people are learning that some backyard horses do as well as or even better than some who are well bred. Why might this be? I think the answer is in better energy flow. Inside every horse is a God-breathed free spirit, born to dance and fly. Whether the horse expresses his joy with his pasture friends or you depends upon how well the footsteps he takes pass their effect through the body.
It is not news that horses should be worked with as individuals but what might be news is that a highly experienced trainer is not necessarily the answer for a horse. Training wisdom is what is essential. A famous prayer applies here. Some things we can change, some we cannot, but it is up to us to decide not only what can and cannot be changed but also what avenue to take to affect change.
Affecting change through work with energy flow is one avenue that can prove fruitful and which does not require superior training expertise to understand. One example of misunderstanding about energy blockage is in the concept of the square stance. Trainers strive for straightness and squareness but what we may be missing in all of this is the horse's own perspective on what feels square, even and balanced to him. You may be of the opinion that the horse doesn't know any better what is good and not good for him and so what he feels doesn't matter in the equation. So what am I saying? I am NOT saying that we should adopt the attitude that if he is not straight we should overlook it as long as he is content. NO! This is not my object. What I think so many of us fail to do is really grasp how hard horses will try to BE 'square' and TRAVEL 'straight' because we insist. Like it or not, a living creature has an outward as well as an inward manifestation of posture and the two are not necessarily physiologically in agreement. Is the horse deceiving us? No! On the contrary he is very likely obeying us outwardly while inwardly he may be cramped, loose, twisted and holding himself on the verge of his own breakdown.....all in the name of meeting our demands. How does the energy flow sound in a picture like this? Poor at best. So what do we make of this problem? There is a discrepancy between appearance and energy flow on the inside. We absolutely must educate ourselves to recognize this----to recognize the feel of it.
Interestingly, many judges are oblivious to this discrepancy. So be it. But equally interesting is the FEI's interest in seeing 'happy' horses in the competitive arena. How ironic is this! Happiness!.....How do they define or identify 'happiness'? I personally think that there is a particular quality of a 'happy' horse. It is excellent energy flow. The muscles will look soft, the mouth easy and calm, the tail will swing softly and not swish, the footfalls will be as quiet as silk slippers and the rider will not appear to work hard and his face will reflect the horse's face in depth of union.
The direction we should take in developing a horse then is to fully observe the horse as he moves in his more natural world---how he stands, eats, moves off, plays and relates to the ground beneath his feet and obstacles in his path, how he breathes and how he sleeps. Exercises should include considerations of simple steps and moments of quiet rest in stillness, simple reactions to leg and hand, variations of pace ridden and free, spacial relationships between the rider and horse on the ground, movement at various paces over and around objects, play and socialization, touch and even massage. All these things work together to awaken the horse to greater awareness and use of the whole of his body, especially the inner parts we cannot see....inner skeleton, musculature, horizontal and vertical motion and combination of such, neck and tail balancing effects as well as his visual experience and his inner 'eye' that feels for how he arranges his posture on the inside.
In this way we give the horse a sense that we appreciate how he feels and the chance to perhaps change the way he habitually carries himself if there is a better way for him that permits and fosters improved energy flow.
This is the course that development should take. 30-45 min in an arena drilling and perfecting movements and gaits has drawbacks when we consider the potential blockages which never get released or the chance to be addressed. There is nothing wrong with schooling! But some horses do not need to be schooled!.....they might only need to learn to let go of anxiety and feel freedom. Others may need a specific type of exercise only but not others that turn around and dismantle all the good that the specific exercise helped!
You see dance is about relationship. This can be joyful or drama-filled but the picture is a happy coming together. No matter what goals you have for your horse's development always remember that when you act in your partner's BETTER interest it will ALSO be for your own!

The Hip Rein

One of the things I aim for in dressage riding is a state of collection that is appropriate for the horse's self-carriage and fair to him at all times. This is so that he is in the easiest position to respond to my signals and shift balance more naturally with minimal loss of forward impetus. An important part of maintaining this collection is through the use of what I call the 'hip rein'. The hip rein is an imaginary rein that runs from the horse's mouth and attaches to the hips of the rider. Both the hip rein and the actual rein(that your hands hold) are operating at all times, whether you know it or not. Each rein has its own tension. The actual rein tension should always be less than(or equal to) the tension of the hip rein. Increase tension on your actual rein and you will need to 'shorten up' your hip rein. Increase your hip rein tension and you will feel lightness in the actual rein! Lightness then is not so much a product of how you handle your actual rein but of how well you connect the horse back to front through the hip rein.
How then does one work with the hip rein if it is imaginary? It is through the feel of the energy flow as the horse responds to the rider with positive feedback! As I have touched upon in other articles, the rider takes and moves the horse's energy, in specific amounts in specific directions(namely forward), and deposits it down into the wither area. This activity is repeated continuously in a rhythmical manner that is agreeable to the horse and the effect is a recycling of effort which refreshes the steps of the horse over and over again without the need for constant input from the rider's legs. This happens by a natural pathway of connection. Equestrian, author, and equine researcher Christine Sander describes this complex connection with elegant simplicity in the following link: http://otherideas.typepad.com/elements_of_equitation/2008/07/2-i-struture-b.html
This connection, which is situated beneath the rider's seat(particularly the upper inner thigh muscle), not only unites the ribcage between ribs 5 and 18(via the overlap of the cranial and caudal end of the dorsal serrate---see Christine Sander) but also allows the rider to stimulate longitudinal bending through the seat's energetic pulse into the lower back muscle(iliocostalis---see Christine Sander).
When the rider inputs what he receives from the back end of the horse into the withers through an energetic 'ether-like' conduit, he successfully connects up the hip rein! So by using what the horse offers(even if there is unevenness) and combining this with his own torso muscle core efforts, the rider starts to shorten up(or tighten up) his hip rein. The rider's efforts are in some proportion to how much lift and roundness(AND evenness!) the horse then responds with. But the horse's positive response then increases what is offered up to the rider to send forth! This is the beginning of dance! The partners(horse and rider) almost become lost in their efforts as dance takes on its own life(and effort).
As the rider feels this lift and roundness come about he needs to sensitize himself to the tiny beginnings of loss of tension on his 'actual reins'. The more the rider nurtures this loss of tension, the more sweet and responsive and appreciative the horse becomes. Now isn't this a nice way to do business with a partner?!