The Half-Pass

I know. The half-pass is better known as an English maneuver, but I don’t know what I would do without it! A half-pass ensures that my horse will lope off in the correct lead, teaches lead changes, positions for spins and is a great tool for correcting if he  charges in a run-down (half-pass to a walk).

The half-pass is the most demanding form of leg yielding, so my horse needs to know how to leg yield in the simplest way – that is, giving to pressure from my inside leg and moving forward sideways to the outside of the circle – before I teach the half-pass. I also teach him to move into the circle (off of my outside leg) before I teach half-pass. So, if you are walking a circle on the right rein, you should be able to leg yield your horse to left a few steps as in Basic Exercise: Leg Yielding and also leg yield him off of your left leg a few steps to right (still walking in a right circle) before you try to half-pass. (Note: When you leg yield into the circle, apply outside leg and outside rein wide to tip the nose to the outside, then inside rein (on the neck) until he moves a few steps forward/sideways into the circle.)

What is a half-pass?

A half-pass is a form of leg yielding whereby the rider re-directs the forward motion of his horse into forward sideways motion with the horse’s head in the same direction as the direction of travel (as opposed to basic leg yielding where the horse’s head is away from the direction of travel).

The Exercise

Walk your horse in a large circle on the right rein. Make sure your right leg is not in contact with your horse. With your weight to the left (it helps to really exaggerate this at first), apply right rein pressure in a “give-and-take” in the direction of your left shoulder – a rein of opposition. I find I need quite a short rein to do this so my hand doesn't get too high. Apply left leg pressure and steady direct left rein pressure until your horse steps to the inside of the circle with forward sideways steps. Your right rein will be holding your horse on the circle and your left leg will be moving his hind quarters into the circle. Ask for only a step or two at the beginning, using your voice or bumping softly with your inside leg for forward motion. Release all aids and repeat, then repeat to the left.

Where can it go wrong?

• The horse loses forward motion. If your horse does not want to move forward when you have him in a half-pass position, “cluck’ to him (voice) and/or bump him with your inside leg. If you cannot convince him to go forward or he backs up, release the half-pass aids, walk forward (you always have to have forward motion!) and try again.
• The horse will not give to the inside rein. Make sure you are pull/releasing the inside rein. If you are solid on both reins, your horse will be confused, especially if he is just learning the maneuver. If he is not giving to the inside rein, the rest of the aids for the half-pass are not going to make it happen, so get this working first!
• The horse does not give to the leg. If your horse does not give to the leg, you might have to go back to more basic leg yielding until he responds better. Also, turns on the forehand might help. Then go back to try the half-pass. Remember, you need only a step at first.

Note: On horses that really resist my attempts to teach the half-pass, I will break it down like this: On the right circle, for a half-pass to the right (inside of the circle), I first apply my right leg to leg yield out of the circle (the simple exercise). When he responds, I shift my weight to the left (outside), apply my left leg, and change my inside rein to the rein of opposition (toward my left shoulder). If he takes a step, I reward with a release of aids; if he does not, I go back to the simple leg yield and repeat. I might also try the opposite approach: leg-yield into the circle (weight in outside and outside leg pressure but with the head to the outside). When he moves off of my leg, change the right rein angle from “on the neck” to toward my left shoulder. He is now in half-pass position. Again, reward for one small step.

The half-pass is not easy for horse or rider if they have not performed it. More balance, engagement of the hind quarters and impulsion is required than a simple leg yield. As the horse learns, the rider must be able to feel when his horse is out of position so he can adjust rein or leg to help. As with all the exercises, when the horse learns at a walk, I first ask for more refinement and more steps, then at a jog and eventually at a lope.

I will try to post a video in the near future on this post to demonstrate the exercise with variations.

The Lope and Leads

There’s no faster way to a low score in a reining class than your horse loping in the incorrect lead. Since you will deducted one point for every quarter circle that you are not in the correct lead, and there are twelve circles in every reining pattern, the penalty points can add up! And before we go any further, if your horse is correct in front and incorrect behind, he is not “half right”!!

The lope and leads are hand-in-hand. When a horse lopes, he will be in the right lead, the left lead, or disunited (not ever desirable!) If you watch a horse loping, it will appear that either the left or right fore and hind legs are carried more forward. He is in the left lead if the left legs are extending forward; he is in the right lead if the right leads are extending more forward. If he is disunited, he will be in the right lead in front and left lead behind or vice-versa.

The “correct” lead for left circles is the left lead; the correct lead for right circles is the right lead.

I expect my horses to learn to lope a lot of circles. After my horse is well warmed up with basic suppling exercises, jogging and trotting, I will usually (always on the youngsters) ask for the lope from a posting trot. On the two-year-olds, if I am trotting, I sit down (but lightly – not hard enough to stop), keep some weight in the outside strirrup, move my hands forward and say “lope”. Then I make a “kissing” sound. This works like a charm on a colt that I have never loped but have asked to lope on the lunge line with a “kiss”. Later, and on my trained reining horses, I school the lead departure in the correct lead from a walk or stop (a future post on Reining Training Tips) so I don’t incur penalty points by starting my circle in the wrong lead. The following video demonstates the lope and leads:

What can go wrong?

Sometimes a horse does not seem comfortable in one lead and always uses the other – even when it is the outside lead e.g. he lopes in the right lead on a left circle. This often happens on a two year old that is just learning to lope. If he picks up the incorrect lead, I do not punish him. If it is the first time we loped, I want to make sure to reward him for loping! But this can’t go on for long, of course. After I know he will lope when I ask, I want the correct lead too. I drop back down to a trot if he picks up the wrong lead and try to feel his natural balance and use that to my advantage. There will usually be one part of the circle where I can feel he is more likely to be correct. If he has missed the lead several times, I make sure to change the place in the circle where I asked because he has “learned” to miss it in that spot. Also, I make sure I keep outside rein pressure on him to keep him on the track and help with the outside leg. So much of this is timing – feeling when the horse is in a position to automatically take the correct lead.

I like a pretty loper. There can be quite a difference in the way horses lope. Some of it is training and the different styles of the trainer – very collected or natural way of going for instance. That is personal preference, but the way a horse lopes – the way he is built and the way he uses his body – cannot be changed. My opinion is: Ride a good loper because a great portion of the time the judge is watching him in the reining pen, he is loping!

Circles and Collection

Every reining pattern has six circles so my horse better know how to execute, not only a circle, but a correct, pretty circle. Also, circles are the backbone of a reining training program.

If my horse gives to my hands and gives to my legs, the theory is I can teach him to walk, jog, and run circles. If he gives to the right rein and gives to the left rein, I can direct his head; if he moves away from leg pressure, I can position his ribs and body; if he understands to move forward when I ask, I can ask for any gait I wish - in a circle. That’s the theory…

From the first rides to the finished reining horse, my program is to correct my horse when he leaves the circle and leave him alone when he is on the circle. That, to me, is fair and easily understandable to my horse. Also, that is the way to have a horse that will gallop circles with no rein contact – or even bridleless! In other words, if I am loping a circle to the left, my hand is low as long as he stays on the circle. If he drifts out of the circle, say to the right, I pick up my hand and leg yield him back on the path, then lower my hand again and leave him alone. If he drifts out again (or collapses in), I correct again, then leave him alone again.

Before I go any farther, I must talk about what a circle is. A circle is a figure bounded by a curved line that is everywhere an equal distance from the center – no more, no less.  A circle is round - not oval or lopsided - round! If you are having difficulty ascertaining whether you are on your circle, it might be a good idea to “chalk” one with lime in your arena. Practice walking and trotting this circle until you have the feel of keeping your horse in the correct frame to stay on the circle, and then try at a lope.

Hand in hand with circles is collection (although a horse needs to be collected to be able to perform all reining maneuvers). A “collected” horse is balanced between the rider’s hands and legs. As I drive my horse forward into my hands with my legs, he shortens his frame, rounds his back, and strides deeper behind. He cannot do this if he is not giving to the bridle. When he softens to rein pressure, he can then round his back; when he rounds his back, he can stride deeper with his hind legs. Collection starts with giving to the bridle and is completed when the horse gives to leg pressure. As always, if my horse is green, I expect less.

The Exercise

Walk your horse in a large circle and slowly apply pressure with both legs. Then slowly apply rein contact and hold (I tell my students to “lock their elbows”) for four or five strides, applying enough leg pressure to keep your horse moving forward. You should not keep pulling with your hands – stop your hands and drive with your legs. (Your reins should be at a length so that your hands are not behind the horn when you have taken the slack out of them with your horse giving vertically). The goal is for the horse to give his head to rein pressure and become lighter on the forehand as he places his hind feet farther under his body.
Repeat the exercise at a jog, a posting trot and lope as the horse understands. 

• Apply legs before hands.
• Apply more leg than hands.
• Do not restrict more forward motion than you can create with your legs. In other words, if you have very strong legs, you can apply more pressure with your hands because you can overcome it with your legs. A child, on the other hand, with very little leg strength, needs to be very light on the reins.

This is what keeps your horse moving forward. If you apply more rein pressure than leg pressure, you are actually asking him to move backwards. We want to keep forward motion. At first, relax pressure for three or four strides before asking again but as your horse gets more trained or if he is already trained, you can release pressure for only one stride or even a half stride. The goal is for the horse to maintain the collected frame because he BELIEVES that you will always put him back in that frame. The following video demonstrates collection at a jog, trot and lope on a two-year-old.

I do a tremendous amount of schooling work on circles. After warming my horse up, I jog, then trot, then lope circles, collecting at every gait and, of course, reversing directions. Only after my horse is relaxed in a circle will I ride straight lines. I like to say he has to “earn” his way into straight lines. If he is chargy or not focused in the straight line, I go back to circles and collection in the circles.

How Basic Exercises Relate to Reining Maneuvers

I’ve been talking a lot about basics – simple exercises to warm up your horse for more difficult ones. I’ve explained why I do basic exercises and how they train a young horse. I’ve also said that giving to rein and leg pressure (what basic exercises are) is the “whole program”. That may seem too simple, but it’s true. Of course, my horse must learn to “give” with refinement and at different gaits (which increases the degree of difficulty) and in combinations, but if I keep it simple in my mind – asking my horse to give to my hands and my legs – then he has the best chance to learn and execute anything I ask. And (I’ve said this before but it bears repeating!), if there is a problem at a higher level, it can and should be fixed at the basic level. Those basic exercises are closely related to the reining maneuvers.

Circles: Circles are an integral part of a reining training program from the first rides to the finished reining horse – and I want very correct circles. I use basics to position my horse in the correct frame to lope a circle – forward motion, give to the rein, give to the leg – and I use basics to keep him on the circle. For example, if my horse collapses into the circle, I apply inside leg to leg yield him back on the circle; if he bows out of the circle, I apply outside leg to leg yield him back on the circle. In a reining pattern, circles are performed at a lope but, if my horse is very resistant, I will drop back to a trot, jog or even a walk to correct.

Rundowns: As in circles, I use basics are to position my horse until he understands how to keep his body straight. A lot of times, training is about exaggerating the correction, so if he fades towards the wall, I might leg yield him well off the track. For example, if I am loping in the left lead in a straight line twenty feet away from the fence and my horse starts to fade over to the right toward the wall (he will be pushing into the right rein as well), I can leg yield him left off of my right leg well into the arena (farther than twenty feet!), then allow him to go straight again.

Lead changes: I cannot teach my horse to change leads if he does not give to pressure from reins and legs. That, along with forward motion executes a lead change. If I am loping in the left lead and want to change leads, I will collect my horse (give to the reins), move him off of the right leg a bit, then switch to move him off of my left leg for the change.

Spins: Spins are a series of half-turns on the haunches and a half-turn on the haunches uses all the basic exercises – forward motion and giving to reins and leg. For example, for a half turn to the left: With the left leg off the horse, I ask my horse to turn with my right (indirect or neck) rein, apply left rein in a give-and-take motion to keep nose turned (give to the reins), bump with the right leg (give to the leg). This is for a horse just learning a half-turn. For a trained reining horse, with one hand (give to the reins), I ask him to turn to the left and use my leg only if he needs it (give to the leg).

Stops: Stops are taught, and then executed, using all the basics. I ask for a sliding stop exactly as in the exercise:  vertical flexion, which is about response to my weight, voice and hands. That is, I change my weight (behind center of balance), say “whoa”, and then lift hand only if I need to.

Rollbacks: Rollbacks are merely putting two maneuvers together – a stop and a half-turn on the haunches – along with forward motion. Perfect rollbacks are the result of a good stop, correct response to the reins and timing (the rider’s responsibility!).

Back-ups: My horse learns to back up at a basic level (Basic Exercise: Vertical Flexion) and the maneuver is refined with training, using basics of giving to the reins, legs and weight. The basic exercise in vertical flexion is not really a back-up exercise (it is more about giving to both reins) but it does begin my horse’s understanding of the maneuver. Later, I want him to respond to the motion of my hands and the change of my weight for a pretty back-up.

This is a summary of how basic exercises relate to reining maneuvers. I will deal with each of the maneuvers specifically in later posts.

Basic Exercise: Leg Yielding

There are several kinds of leg yielding exercises, all resulting in the horse responding or “giving” to leg pressure from the rider, but the most basic (and the first) leg yielding exercise I want my horse to learn is giving to inside leg pressure and re-directing forward motion into forward sideways motion to the outside of the circle.

Purpose of leg yielding

• To teach the horse to give to pressure from the rider’s legs.

• To teach the horse to be unafraid of leg pressure.

• To encourage the horse to willingly give to leg pressure in combination with rein pressure.

• To continue to warm up the horse’s mind and body for more difficult exercises.

The Basic Exercise

Leg yield to the left: As you walk your horse in a large circle on the right rein, keep you left leg off of the horse, apply your right (inside) leg a little behind the cinch, pick up your right (inside) rein to encourage your horse to keep his nose slightly into the circle to maintain the arc, then slowly apply pressure with the left (outside) rein in conjunction with increased pressure from your right leg until the horse changes his forward motion to forward/sideways motion and takes a step or two. Keep your body light in the saddle to encourage forward motion; if he loses forward motion, “cluck”; if he still will not move forward, bump him with your left (outside) leg. When he responds with at least one lateral step, slowly release the reins and remove right leg pressure. Walk relaxed to a new place in the circle and repeat. As he understands the exercise and/or warms up, ask for two or three steps – no more – and walk on. As in the previous exercises, you must only ask what your horse is capable of at his level of training – if he is a two-year-old that you are just starting to ride, you will be satisfied with very little; if he is a trained reining horse, you will expect more correctness and refinement. He should perform the lateral movement, giving to the rider’s hands and legs and stepping forward and sideways, crossing both front and rear legs.

Illustration: leg yielding to left off of right leg

When your horse is responding well to the left, repeat to the right. If he is more advanced in training, repeat both directions at a jog.

The order of aids to the left: left leg off, right leg on, right rein, left rein.

Note: This is the very simplest form of leg yielding – giving to the rider’s inside leg and moving to the outside in a forward-sideways direction. When your horse is more advanced, you will want to leg yield him to the inside of the circle, leg yield directly to the side (as to open a gate) and half-pass.

• Your inside rein should be away from your horse’s neck in a straight line from your horse’s mouth to your elbow; your outside rein should be against your horse’s neck (your hand will be close to outside of the horn). The length of your reins should be such that your hands do not go behind the horn when you apply pressure. Also, your hands should be at the same level even though one is close to the horse’s neck and one is away from the horse’s neck.

• Apply rein aids slowly.

• Release rein aids slowly.

What can go wrong?

• Your horse may “lead” with his shoulder instead of true lateral movement. This is almost always because the rider does not apply enough pressure with the outside rein – that is the rein that restricts forward motion and encourages use of the hind quarters. Gradual increased pressure of the outside rein with increased inside leg pressure corrects this problem. Again – be satisfied with very little until your horse understands where the release is.

• The horse does not move sideways at all, ignoring pressure from your leg. Often this means the rider has not applied enough rein pressure to stop some of the forward motion. Slowly apply more pressure with both reins while at the same time firmly asking him to yield to your leg. If he takes a step – or even a half step – slowly release reins and legs, walk on and repeat. Ask for more when he understands.

• The horse stops or stops and backs up. Cluck and bump his side with your outside leg to ask for forward motion but do not release the rein aids until he moves forward (assuming you are not pulling too hard!) If he still does not move forward, release one rein still asking for forward motion and ask for lateral flexion in that direction (The ladder… step down a step) Walk on and repeat, correcting as necessary until he moves forward/sideways even a half step. Again – don’t ask for too much until he understands.

The Basic Exercise with Refinement

As your horse becomes more trained or if he is already trained, you should expect more correctness, refinement and willingness in his response to the aids for leg yielding. Expect more lightness in his mouth and response to more subtle cues. As in all training, when the horse is learning, cues are exaggerated and, as he becomes trained, more subtle. At this time, you need to “feel” your horse’s response, strive for correctness, feel where the problem is and correct if necessary. You may need spurs to encourage him, but use only what is needed. I apply my leg first, then the heel of my boot, and then, if he still does not move away, I gradually turn my foot so the spur is in contact and push. The next time you ask, start with the softest aid first.

When your horse gives to your hands and gives to your legs (lateral and vertical flexion and leg yielding), it’s the whole program. Everything you do from this point on is about responding to rein and leg pressure. Some maneuvers are simply a combination of these basics. As training progresses, you will expect more refinement and a higher degree of difficulty, for example leg yielding in different way and at different gaits.

Basic Exercise: Vertical Flexion

The second warm-up exercise I ask my horses to do is vertical flexion. This exercise teaches response to the rider’s weight and direct pressure from the rider’s hands. It is also the beginning of the reining horse's hallmark maneuver - the sliding stop!

Purposes of vertical flexion:

• To teach the horse to respond to pressure from both reins.
• To continue to warm up his mind and body for more difficult exercises.
• To encourage engagement of the hind quarters with vertical flexion

The Basic Exercise

After your horse responds softly to lateral flexion (Basic Exercise: Lateral Flexion), ask him to walk forward on a large circle.  Walk several steps, correcting him if necessary to stay on the circle and keeping your body in the center of balance.  Then, with your hands low and reins loose, brace your body against the forward motion by pushing your feet in the stirrups, locking your hips and squaring your shoulders. Give him time to respond (count to two) and then (and only then!), SLOWLY start drawing back on the reins with firm constant pressure until he steps back one or two steps. As he steps back, SLOWLY release rein pressure until your hands are back in the original position low on his neck in front of the saddle. Bring your body back to the neutral position and let your horse stand quietly for a few seconds. The goal is for the horse to willingly stop when you brace your body and say “whoa”, then give his nose vertically to rein pressure.

Repeat several times as you walk around the circle, then reverse and repeat in the other direction. If your horse is a green two-year-old, you will be happy with that. If he is farther along in training or is a trained reining horse, do the exercise at a jog. You might be tempted to react faster at the jog if he does not respond to your weight and voice aids, but you still must apply pressure with your hands SLOWLY.

Illustration:vertical flexion 1

Illustration: vertical flexion 2

Important! After you have stopped, backed up and stood for a few seconds, always walk a few steps before jogging again. Even at this basic level, you are teaching your horse the rules of stopping. You don't want him jumping out of a stop - that's why I stand and that's why I walk out.

• Apply rein pressure and release rein pressure slowly.
• Keep your hands low when you ask the horse to stop (hands should not be stopping him)
• Do not immediately ask your horse to walk forward again. Instead, reward him by allowing him to stand for a few seconds.

The Basic Exercise with Refinement

As above, walk forward with your reins loose, your hands low and your body relaxed and in the center of balance. Brace body, say “whoa” and pick up the reins to ask him to back up and give vertically to the rein pressure but now, as your horse learns, or if he is a trained reining horse, you should expect a more correct response and more sensitivity to your aids. Feel where there is resistance (right or left) and instead of adding more pressure, go back to lateral flexion. Release the rein he is NOT resisting and draw him around as in Basic Exercise: Lateral Flexion. That way you are correcting only the side that is resistant.

Note: I like to compare my training program to a ladder. You start at the lowest “rung” and step-by-step climb to the highest. If there is a problem, you step back down, fix the problem, then proceed up the ladder again.

What can go wrong?

• The horse does not give to rein pressure at all. You can’t out-pull a horse, so this is a battle you will lose. Instead, ask the exercise just as if you expect him to back away from the rein pressure. When he doesn’t, lower one hand and turn him around with the other (Lateral flexion) until his responds softly to that rein. Walk forward, ask again, and this time when he resists, turn him the opposite way until he is soft. Repeat a few times, alternating sides, and then ask him to back off both reins again. If he even takes a step, reward him by standing; if he does not, repeat the corrections. I know this works every time but the secret is not asking too many steps back at first.
• The horse backs away but puts his head up. He is trying to escape pressure and you have to tell him it where that escape is. You cannot force his head down. Instead, raise your hands (wide apart) to stay with level of his mouth and keep constant light pressure until he puts his head where you want it. Then release. (Your shoulders may get sore waiting this out so if you can’t hold on, lower one hand and turn him around with the other as above).
• The horse stops backing abruptly when you release the pressure. You might be quickly dropping your hands when you feel him give to rein pressure instead of slowly giving back the rein. I see this a lot because the rider is anxious to reward his horse. I call this “dumping” your hands and the horse is actually responding to that quick movement with a quick movement of his own.
• The horse pulls his head down too much or is “behind the vertical”. Almost certainly you are hanging on to the reins too long. Try to start giving back as his head is going down. If he has been doing this for a while, you may have to ask him to pick it up, then release.

Important! You are teaching your horse where you want his head by releasing when his head is in that position.

This exercise is not a backup exercise (although your horse certainly learns to back up). It's a back-and-give-to-the-bridle exercise. The purpose is to teach the horse to give to pressure from both reins at once.

In time, your horse will respond to the motion of your hands rather than pressure on his mouth. When that happens, he has developed real sensitivity.

Note: I will post a video later when I can ride in my arena!