Basic Principles & O.R.B.I.T.S.

[TracingEquines]

Basic Principles

The following Basic Principles must be the first things to establish when working a horse, this includes young green horses as well as those that are more advanced.

1. Controlled Free Forward Movement

In this instance the word "Controlled" alludes to the horse, in that he is exercising composure whilst eagerly awaiting the wishes of his rider. Every horse should come out of his stable yearning to run, jump and play, but such is his training that he will control himself and channelise his desires to those of his rider. The better and more established his training the more self-control he will display. The word "Free" alludes to the horses' limbs, joints and muscles. They must move unhindered and easily over each other with co-ordination and above all without tension. "Forward", apart from the obvious physical sense, also refers to the horses mental attitude. He must show clearly in his demeanour and way of going that he is thinking ahead and has an unmistakable desire to go there. "Movement" is reasonably self-explanatory, referring to the horses' progress or motion.

Free - The horse can move its shoulder etc. without being hampered by the tack or the rider.

Forward - Means the horse is always thinking and moving forwards.

Controlled - Means the horse is not racing around and is listening to the rider's aids.

Movement - Means the horse is moving and not just standing still.

2. Rhythm

The metronomic sequence of footfalls or beat within the pace. Walk is 4 time, trot is 2 time, canter is 3 time and gallop is 4 time.

Rhythm - Is the metronomic beat of the pace. It should remain consistent throughout and not slow down or quicken up.

3. Bend

We can consider two types of bend, "Lateral" and "Longitudinal". A "lateral" (left or right) bend depends on the horses' stage of training but should always be uniform along the length of the horses' body and not just a head and neck bend. The horses' ability to bend is known as his degree of suppleness and he will nearly always be more supple on one side. It is therefore necessary through systematic training that we even up this one sidedness. "Longitudinal" bend is the shape the horse makes when he viewed from the side. It is less important as a basic principle than lateral bend and is there explained in the next section. (see O.R.B.I.T.S.)

Bend - There are two types - Longitudinal and Lateral. Longitudinal bend is the outline of the horse. It should be an "n" shape, not a "u" shape. Lateral bend is the left and right bend of the horse. It should be uniformly bent from the poll to the dock.

O.R.B.I.T.S.

Each of the letters in O.R.B.I.T.S. represent further quality checks for both rider and trainer to work on as and when their introduction is appropriate. They are as follows

O - Outline
R - Rhythm
B - Balance & Bend
I - Impulsion
T - Tempo
S - Stride & Straight

Outline - The outline of a horse is also referred to as the longitudinal bend. It is the roundness of shape of the horse, his silhouette ie. the shape of the horse along his top line - from his hock to his mouth. Outlines will differ between horses' depending on their stage of training. Younger, greener horses' will have a longer, lower outline whilst older, more advanced horses' will have a shorter, rounder outline. Generally the rounder and more compressed the outline is the greater the degree of engagement. The outline is linked side by side with "self-carriage", where the horse is entirely responsible for carrying his and the riders' weight in balance.

Outline - The Longitudinal bend of the horse, from the hock to the mouth.

Rhythm - The metronomic beat to the pace.

Rhythm - The metronomic beat of the pace. The 1, 2, 1, 2, of the trot etc.

Balance - A balanced horse is one that carries his own weight and that of his rider correctly distributed over all four legs. If this is so he may move on a prescribed line without wobbling or deviating and without losing quality or profile. A horses' ability to consistently maintain his balance is dependant on his stage of training (and of course his rider!)

Balance - The horse has equal weight distributed over all four legs and is not falling in or out or over.

Bend - The correct bend means that the horse will be uniformly shaped throughout his entire length, that is from poll to tail. Therefore, seen from above his body conforms exactly to the line along which he is moving. On a straight line, therefore, he is straight and on a circle or part of a circle the curve of his body will coincide with the arc of whatever size circle is being attempted

(N.B. See also Basic Principles.)

Bend - The Lateral bend of the horse.

Impulsion - Energy! Created by the hind legs being brought further underneath the horse. Produced by greater flexion of hip, stifle, hock and a consequent lowering of the croup. The lowering of the croup lightens the forehand. The horse must still remain straight, calm and on the bit whilst altering degrees of impulsion.

Impulsion - Energy, from the hock. Not to be confused with speed.

Tempo - Speed of rhythm. Number of footfalls per minute. Miles per hour of steps. The rider chooses the tempo that is comfortable for both himself and the horse. The correct tempo for the horse is one at which he can remain balanced.

Tempo - The speed of the rhythm, the number of footfalls per minute.

Stride - The length of ground covered between the picking up of his feet from the ground and their placing down. The stride length will vary depending on pace, impulsion and outline.

Stride - The horse's stride is measured from where one hoof hits the floor to where it touches the floor again.

Straight - For a horse to be straight his hind legs must follow exactly the same line as his forelegs. On a straight line, therefore, his hind legs must not step either to the left or to the right of the forelegs hoof prints. They must be placed down directly on, in front of, or behind them depending on stride length.

Straight - The horse is moving straight if the hoofprints made by the hindlegs are behind the prints of the forelegs.

[TracingEquines]

One of the best ever lessons this one was. It was a staff lesson and the horses were a tad on the sharp and hyper side. I got my favourite boy to ride, Bravo. He was a 14.2hh, palomino gelding, white blaze, 4 white stocking and was welsh x arab and in his late 20s but still could show off when he wanted to.