The bend that I am referring to in the horse, is the from nose to tail. It encompasses the whole of the horse’s body and as a result it connects him into a single unit, allowing all of the parts to work in harmony and in balance. This also supports the development of collection and increases the efficiency and efficacy of subtle aids.
Naturally, the horse will have a stronger side, just as we do. This can complement or contradict the rider’s own preferences, but either way the horse needs to be strengthened on one side and suppled on the other. He will naturally stretch and allow the bend to one direction, and naturally contract to the other. The contracted side will carry the bend with ease, while the stretched side will struggle to balance out the strength of it’s opposite.
Largely, the way in which bend is established is through force. To understand how best to approach strengthening and stretching however, we must first look at the ‘mechanics’ of muscles. Like anything of a biological nature, when force is applied, it will be met with resistance. Secondly, less is often more. In order to encourage the contracted muscles to relax and allow the weak side to take the bend, we must induce relaxation. We cannot tell the horse to relax, and even if we could it often creates the opposite in people. Most often we are tense without being conscious of that tension, and relaxation cannot be forced, it can only be allowed. We must gain the horse’s mental trust, before the physical can change. Just as we would struggle to induce relaxation in a person who is mistrustful of us, the horse is no different.
This is where the quality of our touch comes in. Using touch to influence the horse is much like learning to master a fine musical instrument. There are plenty of people who are good, lots of people who are awful, and very few who have honed it to an art. How we take this touch to art, is with lots of reflection, consciousness, and listening. The horse will naturally begin to relax when we listen with our whole being in his presence, half of the task has already been accomplished at that point.
Let’s look more at what a correct bend supports and strengthens…
A largely popular, and perhaps even more greatly misunderstood, topic is that of the half halt. The action to produce the half halt is very simple in and of itself, but without the proper positioning of the horse (the bend), the half halt’s effectiveness relies solely on the horse’s mental decision and good graces. While our goal is to have the horse functioning off of his mental training, in the process of establishing that training it is helpful to know how to physically enable the horse to move properly. The bend plays an important role here. From head to tail, the horse’s bend connects the front to the back and allows the half halt to be used in such a subtle manner that it *is* imperceptible to any onlookers. It becomes an intention on the part of the rider without conscious physical effort.
Bend also supports more precise directional control. It enables us to switch smoothly between lateral movements, shifting the weight from one leg to the next, to change from a turn on the haunches to a turn on the forehand seamlessly. We can pick where the horse puts his feet, leading to the next benefit.
Gait transitions. With the bend working to connect the front with the back, we gain balanced and smooth gait transitions up and down. We are also able to rebalance the horse where necessary without complicated and complex figures or exercises.
All in all, bend is vital to the advanced training of the horse. Even while working the basics, encouraging the correct bend creates a positive foundation for the horse to build upon. And with that, a closing tip when working on the bend. Make certain that your outside rein is soft, the horse cannot relax into the bend if the outside rein is taught…