|
Developing more bending in the
Half Pass
by Nancy M Smith
One of the frequent comments
from a judge about a half pass
is that it needs more bend. It
would be wonderful if it only
took more awareness of the need
for more bending on the part of
the rider, however, it is a more
long term solution than that.
First, we must explore what
conditions must be present to
allow more bend to happen. The
horse must be accountable on
three issues, simultaneously in
order to create more bending.
First, the horse must have a
forward way of thinking, second,
he must be accepting and
reacting to proper contact on
the outside rein, and third, he
must be obedient to the legs
immediately about moving left or
right. In other words, he must
be “through” or “on the aids”.
If the horse reacts to the
proper relationship between the
inside leg and the outside rein,
the rider will be able to engage
and collect him more
effectively, thus allowing him
to bend more in the half pass.
Therefore, if the rider wants
more bending in the half pass,
the riders needs to bring more
collection and self carriage to
the half pass.
The half pass can only have as
much bending as the corner or
circle leading up to it. Many
times the rider comes out of the
corner still negotiating for a
proper bend and then continues
the discussion into the half
pass. Very few riders are
capable of turning that
situation around to actually
establish or improve the bend of
the half pass if it was lacking
in the corner . Riding proper
corners with good flexion in the
jaw of the horse as well as good
bending throughout his body will
go a long way toward improving
your half pass. Start by making
it a point to ride corners that
are appropriate for the level
that you are riding and make
that a habit each time you
ride. Sometimes, having a cone
in the corner that you have to
go behind helps give you a
better focal point for
negotiating the turn. If you
can’t begin a shoulder in right
out of the corner, or a half
pass, then your horse is still
too much on the forehand.
Riding transitions and half
halts more effectively, along
with making sure your horse
remains obedient to the inside
leg, giving you a soft pocket in
his ribs, will help you create
more collection.
Everyone has heard that
shoulder-in is the gateway to
collection. But we have to ask
ourselves why the horse isn’t
becoming more collected after we
have ridden shoulder-in multiple
times. If you have a ground
person, ask them to make sure
you are on three tracks the
entire time and on the same
continuous line. You can
monitor this yourself if you
have mirrors. Every time your
horse deviates from that line or
the angle of three tracks, you
are losing collection. Riding a
good shoulder-in prior to a half
pass is an excellent way to
bring more self carriage to the
exercise, thus allowing the
rider to bend the horse more
effectively. Riding a few steps
of shoulder-in straight into a
half pass for two or three
steps, then a leg yield back to
the track is a great way to
collect the horse before the
half pass and supple him
immediately following the half
pass. If you repeat this
exercise several times down each
long side of the arena, you will
find that your horse becomes
more attentive to your legs,
establishes a better
relationship between the inside
leg and the outside rein and it
creates more collection.
Remember, your goal is to
stabilize the hind legs and
mobilize the forehand. When the
forehand is lighter and the
horse is obedient to both legs,
it is much easier to create more
bending. Many people forget that
the relationship between the
inside leg and the outside rein
must remain honest throughout
the half pass. It is very easy
for the rider to become focused
solely on the outside leg
pushing the horse over and the
inside rein bending his neck.
The outside rein is critical
during the half pass to keep the
horse collected. Once the horse
falls on the forehand, he will
be more difficult to move
sideways. If you are too strong
on the inside rein and bend the
neck more than the rest of the
body, you can actually retard
the shoulder, causing the
haunches to lead and a loss of
impulsion. This is a common
fault in the direction that the
horse bends more easily.
It
is invaluable to have a ground
person or mirrors to get a true
picture of how the horse is
evading the exercise. Many
times the impression you get
from the saddle is not as
accurate as you might think. If
you are completely alone, set up
a video camera on a tripod in a
location that will allow you to
evaluate the corner leading up
to the half pass as well as a
frontal view of the half pass so
that you are seeing exactly what
the judge will see.
One final word about what
constitutes a great half pass.
The horse should exhibit the
same rhythm, swing and looseness
in the half pass that he does in
the collected trot everywhere
else in the arena. If you focus
on creating more bend without
the appropriate self carriage
and keeping the horse on the
outside rein and the inside leg
throughout the movement, you
will lose points for a poor half
pass as well as lose points in
the general impressions for
compromising the quality of the
gaits.
May 2008 |
