Holding the reins

[Cheryl]

Hi Guys,

I am really lucky to have the opportunity to ride a schoolmaster horse over the winter and hopefully further improve my riding.  He is very responsive and used to being ridden correctly in a rounded outline.  Up until recently I have always ridden with quite loose reins in order to ensure that I am gentle with the horses mouth...and have also ridden with fairly low hands-this is because my last share horse was an arab x with a naturally high head carriage and I was trying also to encourage him to relax...but I guess I was really giving the contact away and inadvertantly not encouraging a rounded outline because of this?  With this new schoolmaster I have taken up a shorter rein and have lifted my hands slightly, as he used to doing dressage and being ridden like this... I still have a habit of just holding the reins with my thumb and index finger and alllowing my other fingers to uncurl...my instructor has said that i am effetcively giving away the contact/giving inconsistent contact...I guess I am struggling to make the move to this more 'classic' way of riding and may be uncurling my fingers to remain light and kind as I am afraid of going to the opposite extreme of being heavy...

I will get to the point:
1) Should all fingers be wrapped around the rein...even when you release with the hands?
2) Should your hands stay at the same place on the reins?  I find that i keep reajusting from time to time...e.g. sometimes on a circle I amhaving to shorten the reins as the horse takes more of an outline? I worry that I am fussing too much and really want to develop 'stillness' or at least the appareance of it when riding...
3) How long does it take to develop 'feel' i.e. to know when to release the reins and when to 'play' to encourage an 'oultine'?  At the moment i find that i am having to look down at the horse to see whether he is carrying himself correctly - i.e. whether his nose is vertical (i know the movemt should come from his back raising and rounding but don't quite trust myself to pick up on this yet and am concerned that i am not going to release quick enough when he is working well.
4) How much 'release' of the rein should there be...is it a matter of millimeters?
5) When asking for an outline is it a matter of alternating squeezing the reins with the use of the legs?  If so both legs alternating?  when is the correct balance/ratio of legs to hands?
6)Also, how early is each schooling session should i be shortening the reins and be asking for an outline/picking up a contact...

Sorry for all the questions and if i have got some of the ideas wrong...any tips/advice needed and much welcomed I just wnat to make sure that I am riding this horse correctly and also reinfrcing and building correct riding habits

Cheryl x

[SuzieP]

Thanks for asking these questions - I'll look forward to reading the answers too.

Lucky you to have a schoolmaster to ride - they're such good teachers!

[Heather]

OK, Cheryl. You have to be careful not to uncurl your fingers too much, but holding the reins firmly between thumb and first finger is classically correct. 'Giving the reins' by a slight uncurling of the fingers, is how I was taught to reward the horse. Your instructor sounds to be one of the 'press him up to the bit' brigade, then they usually wonder why the horse wont go forwards, but doesnt seem to occur to them that it might be because you are riding with the brake on!

So,
) Should all fingers be wrapped around the rein...even when you release with the hands?

Yes, but with no tension in the finger muscles. I tell riders to hold their own index finger with the other hand- squeeze the finger, even tightly, but now, just release the tension in the finger muscles. This is the 'give' in the reins.

2) Should your hands stay at the same place on the reins?  I find that i keep reajusting from time to time...e.g. sometimes on a circle I amhaving to shorten the reins as the horse takes more of an outline? I worry that I am fussing too much and really want to develop 'stillness' or at least the appareance of it when riding...

If the horse is relaxing his jaw, he will bring his head in more towards the vertical of his own volition, and you will need to shorten the reins accordingly.

3) How long does it take to develop 'feel' i.e. to know when to release the reins and when to 'play' to encourage an 'oultine'?  At the moment i find that i am having to look down at the horse to see whether he is carrying himself correctly - i.e. whether his nose is vertical (i know the movemt should come from his back raising and rounding but don't quite trust myself to pick up on this yet and am concerned that i am not going to release quick enough when he is working well.
Now this is a tough one, how long is a piece of string? The hands merely ask for the relaxation of the jaw, the legs ask for the continuation of this, and the better educated the horse, the less the legs need to do to maintain it. It really is something that can only come with experience. Timing of the aids is extremely difficult to teach because the moment will have passed by the time the teacher gets the words out!

4) How much 'release' of the rein should there be...is it a matter of millimeters?

Merely releasing the tension of the finger muscles will release enough rein to slightly loop. That is plenty, and can be ‘taken’ back again without moving the hands, by merely closing the fingers again.

5) When asking for an outline is it a matter of alternating squeezing the reins with the use of the legs?  If so both legs alternating?  when is the correct balance/ratio of legs to hands?

Again, this is so hard to explain/teach. It is so much a matter of timing and feel. Ask first with the fingers, then back it up with the legs, and there is no correct ratio, to be honest, it is so individual to each horse and the level of training. But so not think about alternating hands and legs, as this would be too mechanical by far. It is such a judicious balance, and probably one of the hardest things in equitation to learn!

6)Also, how early is each schooling session should i be shortening the reins and be asking for an outline/picking up a contact...

I would want the horse stretching forwards and down to begin with. If doing lateral work in walk, then I would pick up the contact as soon as I intended to do it, but then let the horse stretch forwards/down/out for a period again once I had completed the lateral exercises.

Hope this helps!

[Cheryl]

Thank-you, Heather that is very helpful

When you say squeeze and release with the finger muscles does that include squeezing and releasing with the thumb and index finger grip (obviously not dropping the reins but lightening any tension)? or should thumb and index finger grip always remain the same and the other fingers release their tension? (sorry if this is dumb question but just want to clarify)

you mention that the reins should 'loop' with the release is this only minimally?  as i was wondering if i should aim to maintain the line from elbows-hands-to horse's mouth/bit??

Also, I know to use the legs to back up the hands when encouraging a correct outline but how does this differ from nagging with the legs if this is something a rider needs to keep encouraging a horse to do??? (I only ask because I have gotten into a habit of 'asking' with my legs when riding aka 'nagging'-i want to break this habit but unsure how too differentiate this from 'asking' for an outline)

Cheryl x

[Heather]

Hi Cheryl,

There will not be any tension on the reins caused by the thumb and first finger which merely holds the rein firmly to stop them slipping through your fingers. So yes, thumb and index finger do not release their grip, the tension is brought about by the other fingers, so you release tension in the muscles of the other fingers.

There is a huge difference between 'asking' with the legs and 'nagging' - in the latter case the rider uses the legs with heels drawn up and back, and constantly niggles often twice at each stride, which irritates a hot horse, and switches of a phlegmatic one.

I use the legs with an inward and forwards slight squeeze or nudge, the leg never leaves the side of the horse. I think I showed it somewhere on the videos from the Quob demo. I think of lowering the little toe, and release the knee. The knee will not stick out with light seen between it and the saddle but the knee cap will point outwards to permit the lowering of the little toe. This is horse shape! So often the rider is pulling the thigh muscle out behind which rotates the knee inwards and brings the lower leg off the horse. This weakens the seat considerably as the legs are only on the horse half way down. If you have to sit the sort of spooks my Iberians can come up with, even to the point of my head touching Sudi's butt when he was at his worst!-the more lower leg you have on means that you will not fly out of the side door too!

[Cheryl]

Thank-you, Heather...your explanations really help 

[Heather]

There will also be video to help if I can ever get my broadband stable enough to upload it!!