Riding with Good Hands Tip #1: Go Forward

The first tip in riding with good hands is to make sure your horse is moving forward. It’s important to first have your horse moving forward in front of your leg before you work on contact.

Your horse should move forward without you needing to kick him every step. After he understands to go forward in a consistent rhythm, then you’re ready to introduce some contact.

When you ask for contact with your hands, your horse should give to the pressure. He may not understand what you want, so it will take time to teach him. If he isn’t responding, you may have to perfect your technique so that he clearly understands what you are asking.

Tip #2: Elastic Elbows

The second tip in riding with good hands is to make sure you have elastic elbows. Imagine your elbow is a rubber band. The pressure is not stiff or harsh; it’s an elastic contact.

Your horse’s head moves with each stride, so you will need to move your elbows to keep the contact consistent. Otherwise, you’ll be jerking on his mouth with every movement of his head, and he won’t understand what you’re asking. Allow movement with your elbows while still applying pressure to your horse’s mouth. When he gives to your pressure, relax your elbows. Imagine the rubber band is relaxed.

You can practice elastic contact with a friend using an extra pair of reins. Your friend will mimic the motion of your horse’s head so that you can practice allowing the movement. You can also practice taking elastic pressure. When your friend gives to your pressure, practice relaxing your elbow.

This is a complex idea and takes lots of practice to master. Start at the walk, then once your horse understands, move on to the trot.

Riding with Good Hands Tip #3: Pulling Problems

If you find that your horse is resisting or pulling against you, it means that you are pulling too hard. Taking contact should not be a pulling match.

Keeping the rubber band in mind will help you ask your horse to give to the contact without creating a pulling match.

Tip #4: Position Problems

The next tip in riding with good hands is to make sure you have correct position. Your hands should be positioned with your thumbs up and fingers closed gently around the rein. There should be a straight line from your elbow through your wrist to the bit.

Common problems are “piano hands,” loose fingers, and holding your hands too high or too low.

Piano hands are when you don’t keep your thumbs on top, letting them rotate down instead; it looks like your hands are positioned to play the piano. This is sloppy equitation, but also affects the contact.

There is a simple trick to help you correct this: Hold a crop across your hands with your thumbs on top. You will unable to make piano hands, but will still be able to control your mount. Soon, correct position will take the place of your old habit.

Loose fingers create a problem because they allow your horse to work the reins out of your hands until they’re too long and contact becomes ineffective.

Riding with Good Hands Tip #5: Hand Habits

Every few strides, take a mental check of your grip on the reins to turn your bad habits into good ones. Eventually you won’t have to think about it, and the correct way will become second nature.

Some riders try to lower their horse’s head by pulling down with their hands. This is counterproductive and will not help you establish proper contact. Others try to get their horse’s head up by holding their hands up. Both habits cause a broken line from your hand to the bit.

Learning to take contact correctly takes a lot of practice, but the results will be worth it. Your horse will have a soft mouth and will develop a stronger topline and supple body.

If you have a bad habit with your hands, it takes some effort to fix. With practice, soon it will be a thing of the past!

This article originally appeared in the March/April 2017 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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First Dressage Show: Learn About the Arena

You will ride your test in either a large (20 meters by 60 meters) or small (20 meters by 40 meters) arena. The size of the ring will be written on your dressage test, so be sure to take a look at the dimensions before show day so that you can practice for the correctly sized arena.

Sometimes a dressage arena can feel a lot smaller than you expect, so it is helpful to try riding in one when you are practicing. You can use poles and cones to construct the outline of the arena if you don’t have one already set up.

Next, learn the letters around the arena. Knowing where these letters are will help you ride your test accurately with correct geometry. You can make your own dressage letters on milk jugs filled with sand and position them around your arena to help practice your accuracy.

Accuracy

Accurate figures are important to focus on. You’ll earn extra points if you make sure to ride all the way to the letter and make your circles the right size and shape.

Your test will state how large your circle should be. Look at diagrams of the test so you know where the four points of your circle should touch so that your circle is the correct size.

The circle might touch the rail at a letter, between letters or on an invisible letter. Take mental note of these locations before you ride the test. When you’re riding, aim to get to these marks perfectly.

Check the Directives

The test states what the judge is looking for at each movement. Look at these when you’re learning the test. Pay special attention to follow these directions at each movement to get the best score possible. For example, if the test directs the judge to look for proper bend in a circle, be sure to bend your horse on the arc of the circle.

Look to see if any movement or collective mark will be scored as a coefficient. This means that the score you get on this movement will be doubled before your score is added up. Making this movement your best can dramatically improve your score!

Practice Your Test

When preparing for your first dressage show, and any more that you may have in the future, it is important to practice your test. In a dressage test, movements come up faster than you may think. It is easy to get nervous and forget the next movement. Practice the test often. Knowing your test inside out means you can focus on preparing your horse for the next movement instead of trying to remember what comes next.

If your horse begins to anticipate the next movement when you’re practicing your test, try walking through the test on foot or drawing it on paper. This way you can learn the test without teaching your horse to anticipate the movements, making them too early.

While you’re practicing, think about how you can make each movement better. Are you allowing your horse to cruise around the corner on the forehand, or are you half-halting and setting him up for his next movement? Is his body straight? Are you keeping the rhythm consistent? You want to make sure you are getting the highest score you can at every movement, so you should practice riding your best.

First Dressage Show: Ride the Horse, Not the Test

Since you’ve practiced so much at home, you know exactly which movement is next. You’ve focused so much on the geometry of the test that you know exactly where everything needs to happen for accuracy. Now, it’s time to focus on your riding.

Remember that your horse is likely to be more tense at the show than he is at home. Focusing on your rhythm can help him relax.

Use circles to your advantage. Don’t just steer around the circle, but make sure that you’re riding inside leg to outside hand to establish the bend. Use your corners to half-halt and balance him.

Look at the Judge’s Remarks

After you’ve checked your score, don’t forget to pick up the test! Once you have finished your first dressage show, look at the judge’s remarks. This can give you valuable information for improving your riding.

For example, the judge may have remarked that your horse needed to be more round in a movement. When you’re practicing the test for the next show, practice keeping the roundness through the movement.

Don’t be discouraged if the test isn’t as good at the show as it is at home. Remember that the atmosphere at the show will be different. You will be excited and nervous. Your horse may be nervous or distracted by the change of location.

Give him a soft, relaxed, and confident ride, and with time, he will be soft and confident as well.

This article originally appeared in the July/August 2017 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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