Change of Rein

[Burke]

Please help me understand the following 2 expressions. (1)Looking at a few dressage tests, I've seen references to "change rein", which is required both at the walk and at the trot. Can anyone explain what that phrase means? (2)In Heather's book, she makes reference to "riding on the right rein", which may be an English expression indicating when the right rein is the outside rein.
Does the phrase "change rein" refer to changing your inside and outside reins(I notice that it is required at X in the dressage arena), so that one could say, e.g. "change from right rein to left rein", or am I mixing up two different things? Thanks.

To "change rein" means to change direction. Well kinda. If your in an arena and going in one direction say with your left rein in the middle. Then changing rein would bee to change direction so your right rein would be in the middle. Does this help???
Kristy

[Rachel R]

Hi,

If you are on the left rein, then the left side of your body is to the centre of the arena and at each corner of the arena you will turn left. Your left leg and hand are refered to as inside leg and inside hand. Vice versa for the right rein. Thus being on the right or left rein refers to the direction in which you are going around the arena.

To change the rein just means to change direction. As X is the centre point as you travel accross the arena then that is the point where the actual change of rein occurs. So you should also change things like your whip and your rising diagonal (if in trot) at X when you are changing the rein.

Hope that this is some help.

Rachel

[Burke]

Thanks to you both. It appears that I had it backwards. Being on the right rein actually means that the right rein is the inside rein, so in an arena this would mean going in a clockwise direction.