What does straightness in 'shoulder-fore' actually mean... and how do we ride it?

If you look at a horse standing next to the fence, you will see the hind is wider than the fore. This is a problem, as you can see, the inside hind leg is on an inside track - but it can't carry weight effectively in that position. Therefore, our aim is to get that hind leg underneath the horse’s body where it can then 'carry' us and improve balance.

So how do we do this? First we need to bring the horse’s shoulders in slightly, then you will be able to influence the inside hind leg, and swing it under you. Looking from directly behind, you will see the inside hind leg tracking between the two fore legs.

This 'shoulder-fore' positioning is hugely important as a pre-requisite for the medium paces, as only once you are straight can you then build up those 'big lofty' strides - you can’t achieve anything with crookedness!

Believe it or not, basic canter straightness is one of the hardest movements in dressage!

In the previous lesson we learned what ‘straightness’ really means, and due to the the horse’s hind being wider than the fore, it is a continual issue. Due to the nature of the canter sequence, the horse’s spine is predisposed to curling up towards the inside, so the issue we have with the hind sitting to the inside is exacerbated.

This is why judges often comment that a horse is ‘quarters in’ in canter - and this becomes an even bigger issue in 'counter-canter' as we see so many riders struggling to keep the balance, so their horses break into trot - which is an expensive mistake in a test!

In this lesson you will learn how to use the 'shoulder-fore' positioning to help your horse stay beautifully balanced in counter-canter. The secret is to keep your horse's shoulders towards the fence!

Learn how to develop the medium trot - without kicking your horse!

This is the question I am asked the most by my clients. There are two key ingredients for developing medium trot - firstly physical pushing power and also the second part, that is often overlooked but really important, which is confidence - your horse needs to learn that they can really let go!

In this lesson we start using pole work to physically develop the power for the lengthened strides, and also teaching your horse to ‘mirror you’  as you ‘change the attitude' of your rising in the trot.

The poles act like a prop in the beginning - they are not only developing your horse physically, but they are also helping to explain the aids to your horse, so they will learn to respond and lengthen just by you adjusting your rising.

Finally ‘potty training’ takes on a whole new meaning as we raise alternate ends of the poles and really start to see the medium trot developing beautifully... like magic!

Learn how to build confidence in medium trot with one of our favourite exercises; ‘Road Runner’.

In this lesson we are working on a large figure of 8 taking in the whole arena. We start off in working trot simply explaining the pattern to your horse. Imagine if the trot was scored out of 10 this would be a 6.  Then we gradually build up to a 7, and then an 8. As soon as your horse offers a just a few strides of lengthening, ‘TSK’ and reward with a walk break. Then repeat the exercise, and soon you horse will begin to recognise the pattern and become super motivated, and fun - for both of you!

If you asked your horse at the end of the session ‘what have you learned today?', the answer should be clear; 'when I lengthened my strides I got a reward!' It’s not about getting all the way across the other end of the diagonal line, it’s all about spotting ‘the smallest try’ in the beginning and building on those first few strides. Horses are clever and willing to try for you - so long as you are clear about what you want. Very soon you will feel what we call the ‘break over moment’ in the medium trot, where it feels like you are setting sail across the diagonal.

Our season finale test analysis is Novice 37 which Raffles won scoring over 70%  - well done Maz & Raffles!

'Shoulder-fore' on a circle might sound challenging, but it is the key to accuracy and good balance!

In the previous season we learned how to ride 'shoulder-fore' on straight lines. In this lesson, first of all we will ride our straight lines in 'shoulder -fore' on a diamond pattern, and then we will work on 'creating the bend' - so then all we need to do is put all the parts together and we should end up in 'shoulder-fore' on a lovely 20m circle.

Let's recap on what we need for a correct shoulder-fore:

- The horse’s forehand is brought slightly in from the track so that the inside foreleg travels slightly to the inside.

- The horse’s inside hind leg tracks between the prints left by his two forelegs.

- The outside hind leg follows the track of the horse’s outside foreleg.

- When in shoulder-fore, the horse should be flexed very slightly to the inside.

- Shoulder-fore should be ridden at a very shallow angle, just enough to displace the horse’s shoulders very slightly to the inside of the track and bring the inside hind leg more underneath his body. 

Remember the purpose of 'shoulder-fore' is to bring the horse’s inside hind leg more underneath his body, to improve balance and also to help with straightness, especially in the canter. When ridden correctly it is very subtle - it's more about getting the right 'feeling'.

Have you ever wondered how to make your canter transitions beautifully balanced and effortless?

In this lesson you will learn the secret to preparing canter transitions by using your seat effectively. I will also address an issue which keeps cropping up when I’m teaching, which is poor rider preparation for the canter transitions. The most common problems I see are:

- the trot becomes hurried so the horse is running into the canter transition

- the horse is behind the leg and not reacting the the aids

- the horse throws their head up hollowing into the canter transition

All of these cause problems with the balance and you will lose lots of marks! We will start by alternating between 'sitting' and 'rising' trot, and meanwhile I will be explaining what I’m doing with my seat in the sitting trot; I’m thinking of my boots being filled with cement - I call this ‘heavy boots’.

At the same time I’m thinking of pushing Raffles' hind quarters down - so if the hind is pushing down, then the front end will feel lighter like the shoulders are lifting upwards - like a see saw!

Once I get that feeling, only then will I ask for the canter. Then we can proceed with the canter in 'Shoulder-fore'  positioning on the circle in the same way as learned previously - working on our diamond pattern on straight lines between each cone first, and then adding the bend to create a lovely balanced canter circle.

By the end of this lesson your circles will be foot perfect and you will be starting leg yield!

In the previous lessons we learned how to ride balanced circles in 'Shoulder-fore' in trot and canter. Now we are going to start reducing our circle down to 15m & 10m circles - not only as part of our Novice test preparation so we are riding lovely accurate circles, but also to start introducing 'Leg Yield' ready for the next level.

It's a good idea to start training 'Leg Yield' on a circle because a circle is a 'continuum' in other words, it is never ending! You can stay on the circle until you get the right feeling - whereas if you are riding leg yield on a straight line, for example from the quarter line, you end up running out of arena, and then there is a risk that you may not have actually achieved the correct leg yield steps where your horse's inside hind leg is crossing over.

You then may end up stopping and starting again, or just carrying on unaware that nothing happened, which is not really helpful for your horse to understand ‘what is the right answer’?

On the circle you can clearly mark the moments when you get the correct steps and build up gradually - then you will find it easy to move the leg yield onto straight lines in the future when it comes to the Elementary tests.

This lesson is not about spiralling in and out 'willy nilly' - it’s about control and developing self carriage.

In the previous lesson we were working on 3 very precise sized circles - 20m , 15m, and 10m. The next stage is to repeat the exercise in canter. Although we aren’t required to perform 10m circles in canter at Novice level, we are ready to start working on the smaller circle which will help us start to develop a little bit more self carriage.

Let's re-cap on the key points:

- Stay in 'Shoulder-fore' the whole way through the exercise

- Keep turning your body inwards, and keep your horses shoulders on a smaller circle than the hind

- Use your outside aids and weight aids to shift your body mass as a whole unit inwards to spiral down to a smaller circle

- Then use your inside aids and weight aids to shift your body mass as a whole unit outwards to leg yield out to a bigger circle

- Pay close attention and be really picky about the rise and shape of your circles.

- Remember your rider checks - see can you give and retake the inside rein, and then the outside rein

Finally it's time to put our training to the test and analyse Novice 39 which is a tricky one... so I have lots of tips for you in this video!

Did you know your horse needs to be in front of your leg... even in halt?

From this point and beyond, dressage tests become more demanding, and there is no way you can progress without having enough reaction to your aids. In this lesson you will learn how to calibrate your own little 'sensitivity dial' ready to take you and your horse all the way up the levels.

Part 1: “Less is More” - this is a test to see what level of sensitivity your horse is starting with. Remember it’s your job as the rider to be consistent and clear with your aids, it’s your horse's job to sustain the pace. So instead of constantly aiding, this lesson will show you how to stay quiet and develop the 'sensitivity' you need to progress. 

Part 2: "Pretend Halt" - at Novice level and beyond the tests start to require a halt and salute at the beginning of the test. It's important to make a really good first impression to the judge, so in part two of this lesson you will learn how to train your horse to keep 'thinking forward' in the halt so they are nice and square, and ‘poised’ ready for action!

This exercise is essential to have in your 'tool bag' as it keeps your horse energised, and develops your seat!

We’ve all been guilty of riding the same 'tick-tock' trot going around the arena, throwing in the odd 20-meter circle and a change of rein for good measure. Unfortunately, this does very little to actually improve your horse’s overall way of going, and it also encourages them to switch off, drop behind the leg, and become inattentive to your aids. This simple exercise will not only keep your horse energised, but it is also a really good lesson to start learning how to use your seat effectively, which you will need going forward up the levels. 

You will start by learning how to 'play' with the trot, using transitions within the pace itself, using two cones set out across the centre line. Every time you reach the cones, the aim is to see how many 'little trot steps' you can make by sitting deep into the saddle. Then, by adjusting the 'attitude' of your rising in trot, you will lengthen the strides on the other half of the circle. You will soon feel your horse becoming more energised, as you increase the longitudinal suppleness and develop more 'pushing power' from the hind.

The next step is to progress to canter using your 'shoulder fore' positioning as learned previously in the summer season. Keep looking through the 'windscreen' between your horses ears, and although you are adjusting the length of stride. Remember the tempo stays the same - it’s not about speeding up or hurrying along, which will unbalance your horse. It’s about energising and developing more 'pushing power' from the hind leg. 

It’s winter season which is perfect for our favourite exercise ‘The Snowman’!

This is one of those exercises that do all the work for you - you don’t need to over think it. We start on the 20m circle (our snowman's body) in trot. As we reach the cones - transition to walk and turn onto a 10m circle (our snowman’s head). At the same time, we are then changing the flexion and the bend to the new direction - then once we reach the cones again, we change the bend and transition to trot for the 20m circle which is the body… and so on.

The next stage is to progress to canter - so we will be in canter for the snowman's body, and trot for the head. This is a real test of your riding skills and your horses reactions - you both need to be really switched on and on the ball. There is no room for error, otherwise your snowman will be a very odd shape!

Remember everything you have learned so far; first of all on the 20m circle you need the inside leg to outside rein connection. Then, prepare for the transition early, take sitting trot, think ‘heavy boot’s and make sure your horse is connected to your ‘new outside rein’ ready for the transition at the cones. You have learned all of these component parts already in this program, so it’s just a case of practising putting it all together!

There is nothing more effective for transforming the canter into something much more grown up!

So far in this season we have been ticking all the boxes to make your horse energised and sensitive to your aids, pushing from behind as well as becoming nice and supple. Now we are ready to start the direct walk to canter transitions, which you will need for elementary level, so it is essential to start working on it now.

To ride a good transition and keep your horse nice and round in the frame, we need a really secure outside contact which we covered previously in the Prelim program. We start off on a 20m circle in trot and then use our cones as visual marker for the canter transition. Remember, horses are the masters when it comes to pattern recognition. Raffles will soon learn that’s where he needs to transition to canter each time - so we’re going to use his natural anticipation to help us!

Just before the cones, take sitting trot, think ‘heavy boots’, position in shoulder-fore and ask your horse to step under and make a lovely uphill canter transition. That's the easy part! Then transition to trot on the opposite side of the circle - walk for 2-3 steps - then immediately transition to trot and repeat the canter transition at the cones. The key is to repeat the same pattern, making sure the canter transition is at the cones every time.

Next, gradually bring those 2-3 walk steps closer and closer to the cones, until there are no more trot steps between the walk and the canter. It’s like we're saying to your horse; 'oops, sorry I forgot to trot - we’re cantering instead!' The aids and the positioning are the same - keep the energy up - keep the inside leg to outside rein connection - give the canter aid and go!