George Morris tells riders to be interested in giving, and two top riders, and trainers, agree. George also tells us: ‘It’s simple, it’s just not easy…’
“Give, give, give, be interested in giving. Of course you have to make a half halt with both your hands, but you have to get off the half halt. The half halt puts the horse on his hocks. Feel the hindleg in your hand, a steady hand. Today we have this fashion for hand riding, don’t copy fashion, what is important is correctness.”
George Morris
“The best thing you can do for self-carriage is the give and re-take of the reins. It is amazing how you forget to do that when you ride on your own. That constant giving the hand, taking, giving, taking, making sure that the outline is stable, the mouth is soft. You only have to look at the mouth to know how it is working, the horse is carrying its own head and neck.”
Carl Hester
Chris Burton thinks the six-year-old test for eventers, with its giving of the rein at strategic points, is good to show the horse’s training:
“I have a view that this ability to give the rein is very important for one-star horses, and it should be in all lower level tests, because if you are not able to ride with a forward giving hand, then it shows up. It amazes me how many top riders can’t ride with a forward hand. It’s a big issue, so this is why it is a great movement.”
Christopher Burton
It is matter of timing .. also giving can be different for different people ..just closing the fingers and then slightly opening them rather than giving away the contact completely is enough for a sensitive horse and rider
Love love love these tips. Absolutely essential that this is taught to our students.
Please keep them coming. Let’s all lift the standard of riding, training and teaching in Australia.