Calling BHSII, BHSI Examiners, Dressage Divas! Please help me!

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Trot_On_Dressage

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This is quite long so i do apologise!

I am preparing to hopefully take my BHSIT exam later on in the year and i have recently purchased the new BHS complete manual of equitation and the older BHSII course companion. Upon reading both of them i have found they have completley different opinions on performing a couple of movements and now my head is in a spin! Please help shed some light on this for me. :confused:

Turn on the Forehand

The BHS manual of equitation tells you to perform by:
Apply pressure with the inside leg on the girth (or with a novice horse very slightly back to encourage to step sideways. Bring the outside leg slightly further back behind the girth where it can be applied to control the movement if the horse starts to move too fast. (this is how i have been tught to ride it too)

How ever the BHSII Course Companion tells you to perform by:
The inside leg is used a little behind the girth to ask the horse to move its hind quarters over, the outside leg remains on the girth.

:confused: :confused: :confused:

Leg Yielding

BHS manual of equitation tells you:
Apply inside leg by the girth. This is the dominant leg. Keep outside leg just behind the girth. (Again this is how i have always been taught to ride it)

The BHSII Course Companion says:
Inside leg on or slightly behind the girth, outside leg at the girth.

:confused: :confused: :confused:
 
Okay, I'm only a rusty old AI, so my reply may not be valid.

For turn on the forehand you are asking the horse to move his quarters from the outside to the inside, so the outside rein asks for a slight bend, the inside rein stops any forwards movement; outside leg is used slightly behind the girth to ask the quarters to move over, inside leg on the girth ready to be applied to prevent backwards movement.

Leg yielding, the inside rein asks for a bend, outside rein supporting, the inside leg behind the girth to push horse over, outside leg on the girth.

That's how I've always done it anyway!
 
Teach it as you would ride it. If you start trying to change to teach 'to the textbook' it will show a lack of experience and conviction in your training methods and potentially undermine your teaching ability.

Remember, in leg yield it is incorrect for the quarters to lead. As such I would agree with the manual of equitation (including that, with novices, it may need to be different).
 
Thanks for both your replies. Your right Ruth, i will stick to how i have always done it as it is as the manual of equitation says but not course companion.

I guess i just find it strange that 2 BHS books can say complete opposite things for the same movements! I worry that i will have an examiner who uses aids from course of companion not manual of equitation and therefore i would be wrong!
 
Trot_On_Dressage said:
Thanks for both your replies. Your right Ruth, i will stick to how i have always done it as it is as the manual of equitation says but not course companion.

I guess i just find it strange that 2 BHS books can say complete opposite things for the same movements! I worry that i will have an examiner who uses aids from course of companion not manual of equitation and therefore i would be wrong!
Click to expand...

Providing you can give a valid explanaion of why you use particular aids then I'm sure it can't be wrong. Oh and good luck!
 
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