Getting into an outline help!

as sweet as hunni

as sweet as hunni

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So, got a fun day dressage comp Sunday and have been schooling horsey, yet i can't master her getting into an outline! i can do it whilst she is stood still but cant in walk, is there anyway way to do this? any tips/tricks/aids? I'd love to master it before Sunday but it most likely won't happen..... help :D?!
 
If you can only do it in halt you are probably just fiddling his head in not getting a true outline.

You probably need a good instructor to help you with this but I'll try to explain.
 
A true outline happens when the horse is tracking up well and engaged behind so he engages his core and lifts his back, the effect of this is that his head drops into a position where his face is vertical or just in front of vertical.

It isn't a curled up neck and tucked in nose. It is all about the energy coming from behind and the back lifting.
 
Having decided I want to really try to get my Cob working properly and truly I have decided to go back to taking expert instruction weekly, this will also involve me watching my instructor ride her so that I can 'see' the difference as well as 'feel' it. I think this is the only way I will be able to progress with this.


Brace yourself for other replies Hunni.....

xx
 
Sorry I'm on my phone so have to post in small chunks, wasn't going to leave you without an explaination!

As to how you would achieve an outline. You'd start with a nice soft contact on the reins. You'd ride nice and forwards from behind getting his quarters active without letting all the energy escape out of the front door.

You should aim for a nice steady contact with the outside rein. The inside rein should be felt a bit more, think about asking for a tiny bit of inside bend to get the feel of riding inside leg to outside hand.

To get the quarters engaged and active ask for lots of transitions, circles and changes of bend. Make sure your transitions are really crisp and immediate.

I find it is easiest to work on the "outline" in trot so would work on lots of walk trot walk transitions. Getting them really pinging off your leg.

Depending on the horse I might try halt to trot, walk to canter, leg yield, counter canter etc to get the quarters engaged. When you start to get it you will find the horse starts to make snorty blowing noises and drops his head and lifts his back. This gives you a light swinging lifted feel almost like the horse is a bit taller under you.

Hope that makes sense!
 
Billie, you will find getting on after your instructor has "set him up" for you will give you an idea of the feel so you know what you are aiming for.

Hunni remember that your horse needs to build the right muscles to work correctly so it will take time. A good instructor will help you loads, especially if they can ride your horse occasionally.
 
Thanks Kat, I know that I can achieve an outline but only after I have warmed her up and really got her going. I just don't know how exactly I am getting it and that is what I need someone to help with - identifying how I am getting it from her so I can make it more consistent.

I feel it in trot best, she stops charging forward and I feel her back end engage - she comes off her forehand and seems to bounce round. Almost like we are covering less ground but still going forward and as if she spends more time in the air? Does that make any sense at all?

Can't wait for my lesson next week, I know this is going to be the year that we really get going. This is my second year with her and I really feel that I trust her and am ready to move forward.

Hunni - sorry for hijacking!

xx
 
Hunni, if the comp is this weekend, and you aren't getting her into an outline, don't even bother trying to achieve it during your test - just worry about having her nice and forward going, listening to you, bending the right way round corners (or at least not staring to the outside), and using the school properly. Worrying about an outline won't help, and often the process of trying to achieve a proper outline can affect other things, so at this stage just play to your strengths - an outline in tests can come later once you've established it in your schooling! :)
Good luck with the comp.
 
Hehe, I was just about to ask the same thing, as I'd like to get Neddy working nicely! At the moment he works a bit like a giraffe!

Thanks for the info Kat, I'll find it useful too :)
 
Some great info here, but I can't recommend highly enough the value of a good instructor. When I got my boy I was really struggling with keeping him in an outline and just one lesson later we were working consistently in an outline. As others have said it isn't just about getting the hands right, but also riding them forwards into the contact. My mistake was not being firm enough on the mouth and also not giving the rein slightly when he takes the contact. The way my instructor explained it to me is that if I ask for a contact and he gives it, I should instantly reward him by 'giving' with my hand a tiny bit, but making sure not to give too much so that he feel abandoned. It made more sense when she explained it!
 
Ahhh the horsey holy grail. I think you'd be right not to focus on that too much as it would take quite something to get it right by the time of the compn. Relaxed and forward might be more achievable with the odd moment of outline.

I've been after a proper consistent outline for years and still haven't cracked it with my fella. But fortunately, with a good instructor and a different bit, we now get some lovely moments even if they aren't long lived !
 
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