Fixing Dropped Shoulders and Drifting Turns

From John Lyons Trainer Keith Hosman

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Why? Because your horse can only get as light as the lightest pressure you apply. Start with twenty pounds and you'll always be at twenty pounds. That's an important concept, one you should underscore and repeat out loud. Plus... trumpet flare please... giving your horse the benefit of the doubt puts an end to adversarial relationships. It kills that vicious cycle of "act-react" with you and your buddy the horse so the two of you can concentrate on improving your skill set. If or when your horse ignores your request, THEN you can amp your pressure or back up your request with further motivation. This leads us to... B) Never pick up the reins without first formulating a back up plan in your head, a "What I'm Going to Do if the Horse Ignores Me" plan. This also known as the "Don't Paint Yourself into a Corner" plan. How many times have you seen somebody ask their horse to back up like this: They pick up the reins, pull and grit their teeth. The horse plants his feet, drops his mid-section, grits his teeth and stands there. Finally, the human gives up and releases the reins. The horse smiles and learns to ignore pressure. Have you seen riders kick and kick and kick horses that won't move - only to finally quit kicking and shrug their shoulders? We're all trainers and this horse has just been trained to ignore the kicks.

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Lyons Training 101 Issue Number:  Forty-seven Staying on Track written by Keith Hosman, John Lyons Certified Trainer

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Issue Forty-seven, Part 1 of 1

Turn on a Dime and an End to Dropped Shoulders

Does your horse turn precisely - or drift off his path and turn "later rather than sooner"? Does he drop his shoulders through those turns and cause you to feel like your slipping off to the side? Here's how to get sharp - upright - turns.

Does your horse turn on a dime - or does he just sort of veer off in the opposite direction, looking one way while his feet carry him another? Do you ask for a right turn - and feel the horse continuing "in a glide pattern" to the left as if a plane crabbing off course?

Does your horse stay upright through his turns, carrying his shoulders (and therefore, you) in a balanced frame? Or, does he dip a shoulder as if a race car spinning through a hairpin, causing you to have to repeatedly shift uncomfortably in the saddle to retain your equilibrium?

Here's a quick fix you can employ this very day. But first, a little theory. Extend your left arm out fully in front of you at shoulder level. Think to yourself "I want my arm to move to the right." Take your right index finger and try to position your arm for the turn by pushing your left wrist to the left. What will happen is that your arm moves to the left, the hand and wrist trail, pointing off to the right. This is your horse when it looks to the right (due to rein pressure) while continuing to glide to the left. When you push your wrist, it represents you picking up the rein, trying to turn the horse as we have done traditionally, that is, from the front (trying to turn the whole horse by turning his head and neck).

Now, take your right index finger and push your left elbow to the left. Your elbow will move around to the left (think "the horse's hips), the hand (the horse's head) will be pointed the right way - and the horse (your arm) has little choice but to move in the correct direction. It's just the same as a boat when it turns. The rear end does double-duty, both turning and powering the movement.

From now on, then, as you ride be cognizant as to whether your horse is turning tightly as if on a track - or if he's sliding out. The moment you feel this "slop," take the rein...

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End of Issue Forty-seven, Part 1
 
 

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