bending

[EventPony]

I cant get Maya to bend! She bends her neck, but not her whole body. And I especially need help at the canter. She flys thru corners and I feel like she is going to fall on me! If I try to get her to go deeper into the corner she either speeds up a lot or breaks to the trot. Any ideas? thanks!

[Dizzy]

I've read all of your posts, and all your problems suggest that your mare doesn't accept/understand your leg aids. Instead she is rushing forward and not understanding what you mean.

Teach her to go forward on a soft contact in walk, tune into her back legs with your seat, and ask her to go forward with your legs into the the rien, if she rushes, close your seat and rien and instantly release it. Keep changing direction, mixed with plenty halts and half halts.

Don't create a viscious circle, where you push with your legs into a closed rien, its totally confusing and unfair to the horse - if she rushes off your leg, allow a couple of strides then close your seat and hand. Get her going happily in walk where she accepts your legs. Then do the same in trot, work on it until she's responsive and relaxed.

With your horse being 19, she'll be quite fixed in her ways, but I definitely wouldn't say impossible to school. But to bend or collect she must accept your legs and seat.

Lesley

[lamprellsarah]

yeah also you could work on the groun, long reining, lunging with two lines, and just free schooling, will properly help her, she will be able to concentrate on it, without a rider being a extra, maybe throwing her off balance, she will find it a lot easier!!!!!
normally horses, rush or break back into trot when they haven't got the flexibality, or not supple enough to do it!!

i never ask for a canter in our school, because she is long backed, tall, and our arena is small, instead i school in a field where i can make bigger circles!!
i did get them smaller as she became for supple but still i do not do it in a small area!!!

[galadriel]

You might want to try warming up for a looong time every ride. Spend at least fifteen minutes flexing both ways.

When you turn, use both legs. Use your inside leg at the girth, and your outside leg behind. The outside leg will bring the haunches around and flex the body; the inside leg will provide a "pole" to bend the body around.

After doing round circles for about five minutes in each direction, ask the horse to open and close the circle. Do this by pressing more firmly (sometimes press-release-press-release, depending on how yor horse reacts) with the inside leg to open the circle, or more firmly with the outside leg to close the circle.

You will know you are getting somewhere when the horse crosses her legs as she opens or closes. For example, as you open the circle, she will take her inside leg and put it almost in front of her ouside leg as she widens her turn.

Don't even think about trotting until you can get a smooth turn, open, and close, both ways. Don't even think about cantering until you can flex smoothly at the trot :) Your horse will be much more balanced and more responsive to your leg aids.