Advanced English Riding. Sharon Biggs

to you. If you can’t get it, ask a knowledgeable friend or instructor for help.

      A rider avoids overthinking the half halt by paying attention to how the horse feels.

      Forgetting to customize the half halt. Riders must keep in mind that every horse is different. They may think that they are doing the half halt correctly, but it may not be effective for that particular horse on that particular day—or in a particular situation or even at that moment. Sometimes the half halt has to be incredibly subtle to avoid ruining the (particular) flow. Sometimes it has to be repeated in a more emphatic way until you get a response.

      The half halt is principally the same no matter what style of rider you are. Although hunter and jumper riders don’t sit the same way as a dressage rider does, the theory is still the same. The legs engage, and a split-second resistance through the rider’s body is carried into the reins. The horse still feels the momentary lack of flow through his rider.

      Riding Within the Gaits

      Riding in the beginning stages is all about the working walk, the trot, and the canter, but as you advance in your skills, everything becomes more complex. For instance, you must learn how to move seamlessly from one gait to another. You need to include paces in your repertoire; for instance, the walk paces include the free walk, the medium walk, the extended walk, and the collected walk. While jumping, you must learn to adjust your stride within the speed of your canter, hand gallop, or gallop, depending on the style of fence. Advanced riders also need to learn how to advance a horse’s knowledge with a method of training. In dressage, this is primarily the training pyramid or scale. Because this is a universal, integral concept among riders of all disciplines, I urge you to incorporate this technique into your own training sessions.

Transitions

      A well-ridden transition seems a simple thing. After all, in essence you are only switching gears: walk to trot, trot to canter, or trot to walk. But many things that appear easy are in actuality very hard to do. What people see in that easy transition is a horse that smoothly changes rhythm; for example, from a one-two, one-two beat in the trot to a one-two-three beat in the canter. Nothing else changes: the horse should continue to move forward with the same energy (unless you’ve halted), remain on the bit or accepting the bit, and stay balanced. But what brings about the shift in gaits is indiscernible to observers. That’s the rider’s job, to make his aids invisible to spectators and obvious only to the horse—to make the whole thing look easy. A great transition is one that is prepared and well trained, but most of all one that shows the true harmony and partnership between horse and rider that has developed over time.

      If you’re a dressage rider, bad transitions will keep you stuck in Training Level because the further you advance in the levels, the more important transitions become. If you’re a hunter or jumper rider and you can’t pull off a transition on the flat, you’ll be in trouble when it comes to jumping because you won’t be able to gauge your distances. You’ll come into the fence too deeply or chip in an extra stride. Your hunter won’t make the proper strides between fences, and your jumper will most likely pull rails.

      A common fault in the downward transition is that the rider leans back and braces against the horse and uses his stirrups as brake pedals. Or he leans forward and lightens his seat. Because there is no preparation, the result is an awkward transition, or the horse either braces back and ignores the rider completely or responds by going faster. When riders brace and fall to the back of the saddle, their seat drives the horse on and makes her go faster. Everyone instinctively leans back to stop, and that’s good if you’re a beginning rider and you’re going to fall off, but not at this stage in your riding. The answer is to keep your position through your transition.

      Using the bit for a brake is another common fault. If this is your issue, go back and review your half halt and make sure you are applying it correctly.

      Making an upward transition by chasing the horse until she reaches the required gait is also a common error. For example, instead of simply moving from the trot to the canter, riders gun the horse forward from the walk to a fast trot and then to the canter. In this error, the rider’s seat has shifted too far forward, and he has not started with his horse balanced and accepting the bit. In the upward transition, keep the energy flowing from behind. Ask when your position is correct, and don’t ask for the canter if your horse begins to run. Bring her back and try again, this time with better preparation. You may have also used too sharp an aid to jolt your horse forward. Ask with a softer cue.

      This balanced rider has her horse moving in a controlled canter, ready for a smooth downward transition.

      If your horse doesn’t respond to the upward transition, chances are she’s ignoring your aids. Instead of beating a tattoo against your horse’s ribcage, reschool her to a light leg aid. Bring your horse back to the walk, and ask her to trot on. If she won’t go, pair your leg aid with a touch of your whip. If she trots on, pet her and bring her back to a walk. Then ask again with a lighter aid, turning up the volume with your whip until you can put your leg on lightly and she will trot off.

      A rule of thumb for hunter and jumper/riders: If your horse is rushing and dragging you to the jump, go back and work on your transitions from the canter to the trot. If your horse is too slow and you feel that you keep getting left behind at the jump, make sure your canter departure from the walk is correct.

The Training Pyramid, or Scale

      The training pyramid (also called training scale) is an important concept in dressage training. Failure to understand the dressage pyramid when training or not taking each step into account is a very common rider error. The dressage pyramid is a logical training method: each new step builds on the previous step. It begins with rhythm, followed by looseness, contact, straightness, and impulsion and ends with collection. Skip one criterion, and you won’t be heading up the scale and will have difficulty advancing.

      Rhythm: A pattern of steps or strides for each gait, such as the one-two-three in the canter and the one-two, one-two in the trot. The beat should be regular, and each pattern should cover equal ground. To achieve a good rhythm, your horse must be free from any soundness issues and must be able to carry the rider while staying balanced.

      Looseness: Physically and mentally free from tension. The horse accepts the rider’s aids and moves forward correctly at the tempo (speed) that the rider requests.

      Contact: The horse moves forward toward the bit without apprehension or fear of the rider’s hands. (See chapter 4, Putting Your Horse on the Bit.)

      Straightness: The forehand is in line with the hindquarters, and the horse’s weight is evenly distributed on both sides. If your horse is not straight, you will have trouble turning, making circles, and doing lateral work. You can feel the straightness in the ease of accomplishing all of the above.

      Impulsion: Thrust or pushing power of the hind legs in the trot and the canter (the walk has no impulsion because it has no moment of suspension). The horse pushes herself through the arena instead of pulling with her front legs. With impulsion, you feel the horse taking a bigger step as you apply your legs. The gait feels stronger and more purposeful.

      Collection: Increased bend of the hind legs, with the horse carrying more weight on the haunches and less on the forehand. The horse’s movements are easier to ride. (See the following section.)

Collection

      When a horse is collected, she brings her hind legs farther underneath her body and carries more weight in her haunches. The working gait does not require the horse to do this. The working gait also