08/05/2018
A good illustration!
The original illustrations are from Dr. Gerd Heuschmann's book "Collection or Contortion" and the accompanying text: “If a horse has an unstable, loose, or wobbly neck, in front of the withers, he cannot be ridden in the proper balance, nor can he bend, straighten, or collect. Only a neck that grows with stability out of the shoulder, and is stabilized by the muscles in front of the shoulder can contribute to the correct bend of the trunk. As seen is these illustrations, the incorrectly bent horse has an unstable neck. The second Illustration shows a correctly bent horse, with the neck properly supported and stabilized by the muscles in front of each shoulder."
I regular find myself explaining to students the difference between an incorrect turn (pulling on the inside rein to bend the neck in the desired direction) and a correct turn (a slight turn of the rider's shoulders in the direction of the desired turn; inside rein asking for a slight flexion at C2; inside leg asking the horse to bend the mid line slightly away, or 'around' the calf; outside rein framing the outside shoulder to direct it; outside leg keeping the hind from falling out; rider sitting lightly in the desired direction of travel).
These images illustrate very nicely the difference in balance and body position created by the differing methods.
The image on the left shows a horse pulled to the left, bending at C7, falling on to the fore (weight heavily on the left front, stepping offline inward with the inside inside hind and pushing sideway with the outside fore), out of balance and misaligned.
The image on the right shows a horse in proper balance and alignment, framed between the aids, moving freely and naturally under the rider.
