Dressage Riders Please

[Partoow]

I always think of connection like the 'rails on which a train travels. A train is perfectly useless without the tracks , it needs two and they need to always be there.
We only have reins as our arms are'nt long onough to hold the bit rings, so for me i imagine holding the bit rather i would hold a tray with drinks on it. I dont over grip but i do hold to provide stabliity, if you then imagine giong around corners and bumpy terrain the the hold on the tray would need to adapt to maintain stability and guidance.
Apply this to the horse and that desire to maintain a still stable quiet contact it needs to be a possitive and elastic, a 'dull' or dead connection is not. For me weight is not the issue its the type of connection. Bearing in mind it is natural for the horse to want to use the neck to balance, we, by the use of the contcat are developing a need to 'find' the hind leg as an alternative method of balance.
It is therefore 'normal to have a dynamic connection that changes as training progresses and also between horses.
Like i said it is neccessary and it must be a relationship niether of you abusing it but sometimes we need to 'take' or rather hold the contact for the horse to learn to work with-in the framework of the connection, that is appropriate for the age and stage of training.
Another old saying is 'what you feel in your hand is a symptom of what is / not happening behind you'
I ride GrandPrix and have been international Small tour.

 

[bandit]

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Bossanova, you don't train at the TTT do you, all this talk of Biomechanics??

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How did you guess?
Yep, very involved with the TTT

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My trainer is TTT too! I really like that way and she also teaches me to jump - and yes, it's like having dressage lessons with fences in between! Quite exciting!!!

As for me, my mare doesn't have a naturally up hill confo, so i have to work really hard to get her into an uphill contact, and once she's there, then I can lighten my hands and the contact becomes soft, and she goes in self carraige. We're working at Novice at home, but competing Prelim still. She's an honest mare who tries her heart out - just not the natural outline the WB's have.

Bx

 

[not_with_it]

I know a lot of men who have trained horses that women cant ride. They are so much stronger than women and naturally ride with a stronger contact, probably with out realising. I personally have to ride my mare with a very light contact. If she could she would take hold and lean, pulling me forwards out of position. She knows that if she does this she can get away with not working properly. I dont have the strength to hold her up so that isnt an option for me.

I used to ride a horse that went for a weeks training to a top male rider. When she came back I couldnt ride her for a week, he had obviously used his strength to hold her up. Im not saying his method was wrong as hes had fantastic results with the horses hes been riding. He just did it differently and got the same result.

 

[Sal_E]

I aim for light (but not so light that you are discouraging the horse from 'seeking' the contact) but it does depend on the horse - some horses seem to take confidence from more on a contact, including a puny little nervous TB I once had - he needed the security of the hand but you had to be careful not to let him lean...

 

[evenag114]

I agree that often it is down to the individual and or the horse. I have three, all of a similar stage but all extremely different in the hand. Micah (ex american racer) prefers a stronger contact at first but after ten mins he's likes me to give a little, this may be because he lacks confidence and is very spooky, My mums horse razz is welsh x and likes a firm feel all the time, you really feel you have to contain his energy or he will explode! Spritely I have to ride with a very light contact as he tends to think backward (those reading the rear/buck post in lounge will know what I'm talking about) Its funny how you don't really think of these things you just do it

evenag114

 

[kizzywiz]

partoow I'm really gonna think about your little phrase, what you feel in your hand etc etc, that's really useful, thankyou.

 

[Caritas]

Id like to thank you all for your comments and would like to say what an interesting post this has turned into.