Teaching the Turn-around

As soon as my horse is solid in basic maneuvers, I start teaching him the turn-around (spin). He must be reasonably responsive to rider aids in order for me to “place” him in a correct position so I wait until he is far enough along in his training to accept what I am asking - usually after 30 days or so. At that time, he is far from finished but has enough understanding of my aids to begin learning a basic turn-around.

Before I work on turn-arounds, I warm my horse up well with basic exercises, jogging, trotting and loping. Then I let him walk relaxed for a few minutes.

At first, I ask only a half-turn. Sometimes I work on the large circle I have just loped, turning to the inside, walking a few steps then turning to the inside again. This means I change directions every time, though, so more often, I will only work one direction at a time, asking a half-turn, releasing, walking forward in a straight line anywhere in the arena, then asking another half-turn the same way. When my colt is responding as well as I think he is capable of for his level of training I work the other direction.

Example to the right with two hands on the reins: Walk the horse forward (spins need forward motion!), brace your body just enough to stop most (not quite all!) of the forward motion and at the same time place the left rein on his neck (in the direction of your right shoulder but not pushing on the neck or over the neck). Now “help” him with the right (inside) rein with a pull-release motion and, if necessary, your left leg until he turns 180 degrees (half-turn). Release all aids and walk forward. Repeat several times. Change directions and repeat several times in that direction.

• Do not completely stop before you ask for the turn.
• Do not pull the outside rein across the neck. Instead, “ask” with only a touch.
• Do not lift your outside rein high – 4 inches or so is about right. Remember it is the asking rein and you have other aids to back it up.
• Maintain body aid until turn-around is completed. (If you release body aid the horse will walk forward out of the turn-around.)
• Use pull/release pressure with inside rein.
• Apply leg pressure with a “bump”, not a steady push.
• Make sure your outside leg is not asking for the spin first (It will be a correction if used last and hopefully the time will come when you do not need it.)
• Apply leg pressure last and only if it is needed.
• Release all aids and walk forward to a “new” spot to repeat.

Note: It's necesary to release rider aids slightly before the turn-around is completed because the horse is in motion and will complete it on his own. After your know your horse well, you will know how fast your horse "shuts off."I release most of mine at about one-eighth before the completed turn. In a class, this will ensure that I don't pick up a penalty for over-spinning.

When my horse has mastered a half-turn, I ask him to make a full turn (or one spin) by putting two half-turns together with a slight release at half. That is: walk, brace body, outside rein, inside rein, outside leg if necessary, then after one half-turn, release rein pressure slightly (but not body aid), ask for another half-turn. Release all aids and walk forward. Repeat as necessary. The following video is the only one I could find in my collection to demonstate teaching the turn-around:

It could be several months before I feel my horse is ready to perform multiple spins but when he is, it's only a matter of adding to what he already knows. After all, multiple spins are only multiple half-turns! i.e. four spins is eight half-turns. What is important in the first few months of training is correctness. A horse cannot spin fast if he is not correct. Conversely, when he is correct, the speed is easy - the spin almost takes on a life of its own. Speed, however, will magnify any little problems at the basic level. Speed increases the degree of difficulty (that's why we are rewarded for it in the reining pen!) In future posts, I will address several spin "issues", spinning with one hand and specific exercises to make a spin better and faster.

Neck Reining 101

As everyone knows, reining horses must perform all the difficult and demanding maneuvers of a reining pattern with only one of his rider’s hands on the reins. Ideally, that rein should be loose so that a mere touch of the rein on the horse’s neck (combined with body and leg aids) guides him to – and through – each maneuver. This means the horse must respond to the outside rein or indirect rein (as opposed to the inside/direct rein) - no small thing to ask but definitely trainable over time.

There’s no mystery or magic formula to teach a horse to neck rein, but there are a few principles to understand it:

1. Neck reining doesn’t mean forcing the horse to turn with a lot of pressure on the outside rein.
2. Neck reining means asking the horse to turn with a touch of the outside rein.
3. Neck reining isn’t learned overnight. It’s learned with consistent signals from the rider.

Much of the schooling of a reining horse is two-handed. Certainly I use two hands to teach my horse. However, I never lose sight of the ultimate goal – one hand on the reins – so from the very beginning I think about the outside rein. I ask with it first, then back up with the direct rein and/or legs. And I never pull it across his neck. This applies to circles, spins and roll-backs. If I pick up my outside rein first to ask him to perform the maneuver, then back it up with my inside rein (and leg if necessary), he will learn to respond to the first signal – the neck rein. Here are two photos of my stallion, Running With Wolves. In both photos I am asking him to spin. In the first photo, as a immature, two-year-old in training, I am riding with two hands but asking with the right rein first to spin left; in the second, I am showing one-handed and he is responding to the touch of the left  rein to spin right.

Pick up outside (right) rein to ask, back up request with inside rein.

Pick up left hand toward right shoulder so rein touches neck to ask to spin right.

 For example, when I lope a circle to the right and am riding two-handed, I might pick up my left rein first on my horse’s neck and follow it with a direct pull with my right hand. It’s so important to not “baby-sit” with the inside rein. If there is always pressure on the inside rein, not only will the horse “lean” on it – he will rely on it to turn. And that is counter-productive. If he is relying on the inside rein all the time, he’s going to wonder what happened when he’s asked to perform off of the outside rein in a one-handed reining class when his rider cannot have contact with the inside rein!

The other thing I keep in mind is how close my hands are together. In the beginning of training or if I have a problem, I will widen the distance between my hands but to keep on track for “Neck Reining 101” I ride much of the time with my hands close together in front of the horn – just where one hand on the reins would be! This is especially true for the inside rein. If he can see my inside hand (even if I don’t move it), I will be baby-sitting my horse. If I have to use the inside rein to correct, it is truly a correction because my horse has not seen my inside hand when the outside hand (neck rein) asks.

A third consideration is the level of my hands. If I am thinking ahead to showing one-handed, it’s not much good to apply pressure to either rein with my hands below my horse’s neck. (Just try to do that with one hand on the reins!) So I try to keep both hands above the neck (just like one hand has to be).

Walking With Wolves running circles in his first year showing one-handed

To re-cap:

• Ask with the outside rein first.
• Hide the inside (correction) rein hand until you need it.
• Don’t let hands drop on each side of the horse’s neck when riding with two hands.

So – two hands on the reins are good (and should be used for much of the training) if the rider always keeps the ultimate goal in mind throughout training – one hand on the reins or "neck reining".

Half Pass to Walk

My horse now knows how to give to the bridle, give to my legs, walk, jog, trot and lope. I can half-pass him at a walk, jog and lope and can half-pass into a lope departure in the correct lead. The next step in this progression is to half-pass from a lope back down to a walk.

Purpose of this exercise: To encourage the horse to be respond willingly to rein and leg pressure at the highest level without fear.

The Exercise

Warm your horse up as usual, including jogging, trotting and loping. Then ask him to half-pass at a walk, jog and lope in a large circle – both directions – as in previous exercises (The Half Pass, Half Pass at a Lope). After half-passing at a lope a few times, leave your leg on (spur if necessary), maintain the half-pass position but with your body language asking him to walk. When he walks with head and haunches to inside of circle, release leg pressure and rein aids. When he has walked relaxed for a few strides, half-pass into a lope and repeat. After two or three times, change directions. Timing, consistency and “feel” is of utmost importance in teaching the horse this exercise but, once learned, he will willingly execute a half-pass to a walk because he is allowed to walk! Also, he learns to be unafraid of leg and spur pressure for the same reason – because he is allowed to walk and relax!

Where can it go wrong?

• The horse will not maintain a half-pass position to a walk. Either the horse has not learned the half-pass well enough (does not give to rein and leg) or the rider is not able to “time” his aids well enough. Practice the half-pass more at a walk until the maneuver is more refines.
• The horse loses forward motion. Without at least enough forward motion to walk, the maneuver fails. The rider may have braced up (as for a walk or stop). If the horse is in a half-pass position but has stopped, encourage him to walk (with half-pass aids still in place) by bumping him with the inside leg. That is, if you are half-passing to a walk in a left circle with your right leg on him and your left rein asking and releasing, bump with your left leg)

Note: If it seems impossible to convince my horse to half-pass to a walk from a lope, I will allow him to take his head to the outside of the circle to move his hind quarters into the circle – because it is easier for a horse to leg yield with his head away from the direction of travel and because I will at least accomplish half of the exercise this way (rather than letting him out of the exercise when he fails to perform it).

Half-Pass at a Lope

Before I attempt to half-pass my horse at a lope, he must thoroughly understand basic leg yielding and half-pass at a walk and jog. When he can perform a half-pass at a walk and a jog, I progress to a half-pass at a lope. The aids are exactly the same except I need to keep my horse in a lope. This can be quite demanding for both horse and rider.

The Exercise

Warm your horse up as usual, including jogging, trotting and loping, collecting at all three gaits as in previous exercises. Then ask him to half-pass at a walk in a large circle – both directions. (The Half-Pass) Repeat the half-pass at a jog in both directions and then pick up a lope.

After loping a circle or two, apply half-pass aids to move your horse’s haunches in to the circle. In a circle to the right, apply give-and-take pressure with the right rein toward your left shoulder (to indicate to the horse where his head should be but without holding it there) and hold him on the track with light but steady left rein pressure, then apply pressure with your left leg to move his haunches into the circle and at the same time continuing to urge him forward with your body.  At first, accept any decent attempt by your horse to do the maneuver.

Where can it go wrong?

• The horse will not give to rein pressure. A horse will not ever half-pass at a lope if he is resisting and/or throwing his head in the air. Go back and review the basics up to and including half-pass at a walk and jog.
• The horse will not give to leg pressure. Review the basics as above.
• The horse will not assume the half-pass position at a lope. Review the exercise at a walk and jog, then try again.
• The horse breaks down to a jog or walk when you apply half-pass aids at a lope. Although this may be a natural response when a horse is learning, it is the rider’s responsibility to keep him moving forward. Either too much rein pressure (telling him to slow down) or not enough encouragement from the rider’s body to keep him loping will put the damper on loping. The first requirement is that he is moving forward so get that first, then ask again making sure you are using a give-and-take pressure with your inside rein, not steady pressure.
• Horse overbends and drifts to inside of the circle. Either you are asking too much with the inside rein or not enough with the outside. Be sure to apply enough outside direct rein to keep him on the circle and only enough inside rein in a pull-release motion to keep his head in the direction of travel.

Note: This is very a very physically and mentally demanding exercise for the horse so, at first, accept any attempt on his part to perform it. Even after he has learned what you want, ask only a few times, then walk. Remember, it’s a huge reward for your horse when you release your aids, so take advantage of that and soon he will happily half-pass the length of the arena – because he knows the pressure will be end!

Don't be fooled by thinking the half-pass is a English-rider only maneuver. Although no where in a reining pattern is a half-pass found, it is a useful training tool for total control, flexibility and multiple training situations.

Half-Pass to Lope

After my horse has learned to half-pass, I ask him to lope off in the correct lead from a walk. It usually is not difficult if I have done the work on the half-pass. It’s virtually impossible for him to pick up the incorrect lead since, if he is half-passing correctly, his inside hind leg (the one that strikes off into a lope) is well under his body. Because of that, he is also in a collected frame where it is easy to lope. Most of my horses find themselves trying to lope and hardly know why because it so comfortable.

The Exercise

Walk your horse in a large circle. Half-pass to the inside several times, releasing after your horse performs the maneuver and walking a few steps. When you want to lope from a half-pass, keep your weight on the outside seat bone, release the rein pressure and “kiss”. Repeat a few times until your horse understands. Reverse and half-pass to lope in the other direction. Don’t expect too much too soon if your horse is learning. I accept any attempt to lope, then do it again.

Where can it go wrong?

• The horse will not lope or trots a few strides before he lopes. When this happens, your horse is either not collected enough in a half-pass positon or you have not released rein pressure to allow him to move forward. Go back to the half-pass and be sure he is moving forward with his haunches slightly in, then ask again making sure you are releasing rein pressure so he can lope without restriction.
• Horse overbends. If your horse is overbent, he may be drifting to the inside of the circle too. Be sure to apply enough outside direct rein to keep him on the circle and only enough inside rein in a pull-release motion to keep his head in the direction of travel.
• The horse tries to lope before you ask after you have half-passed. This is almost for sure because you have been doing only one half-pass, then loped off. He has learned that you are going to lope after only one half-pass. To correct and to ensure it does not happen, always half-pass a few times in a schooling session so he does not guess when you are going to ask for a lope. Of course at the show, you will only slightly move the haunches in and lope off right away so as to look the prettiest but still not incur a penalty.

Note: Although it’s, very correct to lope off from a standstill in a reining pattern, you are allowed to walk a few steps into the lope and many riders do. I do not want to walk more than four steps, two is better. Since you will be penalized for trotting or, of course, loping off in an incorrect lead, it’s important to prepare your horse for the lead departure. This exercise does that.

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.