ANSWER:
That's a good question, and every rider struggles with this for a long time before figuring it out. One of the problems is that although there is a certain technical component to it that you can describe, there is also a lot of feel involved in terms of the timing of the aids, the intensity, duration and combination of each aid with the others. In order for one active aid to be able to reach its target area and accomplish its mission (i.e. to come through), the other aids have to support and frame, so that the horse yields to the active aid with the right joint and doesn't evade by flexing the wrong joint(s).
Prerequisites for the horse to be able to come on the bit are that
the energy impulses of the hind legs have to reach the bit undiminished,
the rein aids have to be able to reach the horse's hind legs all the way to the coffin bones
the horse has to be balanced evenly on all four legs
the horse's body has to be supple and relaxed, yet connected
the hind legs have to flex in their hips and hocks
the pelvis has to be tucked and the croup has to lower
the back has to swing up and down with each stride
the withers have to rise and lift the forehand up
the neck has to stretch forward-upward in a round, even arch, so that the poll is the highest point of the skeleton
the head has to hang almost vertically so that the rein aids reach the jaw at an angle that is close to 90 degrees for maximum effectiveness.
Here are some simple steps the rider can take in order to meet these prerequisites:
Ride accurate, specific arena patterns (no wandering aimlessly around the arena!). Circles must be round, straight lines must be straight.
Ride a rhythm and tempo that is as regular as a metronome, as well as a consistent stride length on all the arena patterns
Align the horse's hips and shoulders precisely on the line that you are riding (i.e. the horse's spine has to form a segment of the line)
Maintain a sufficiently high and consistent energy level
Bring the hind legs closer to the center of gravity, for instance by enlarging the circle from the inside calf, or by sidestepping exercises, such as leg yields, turns on the forehand in motion, or full passes
Flex the hind legs between the ground and the rider's body weight through half halts and/or down transitions to the walk or halt
Soften your hips and relax your hands and forearms, while keeping your core muscles toned and your elbows connected to your hips
If the horse still is not on the bit, look for muscle stiffnesses in the horse's body and remove them with specific suppling exercises that target the area in which the blockage is located.
The two lists show that "putting a horse on the bit" involves much more than just getting him to lower the head. Far from being a "local affair", going on the bit is an activity that involves the horse's entire body. You could say that correct poll flexion requires the flexion of all the joints in the horse's body to a greater or lesser extent, which is the reason why flexions and bending the horse's joints in motion used to be considered of central importance by the old masters.
A good way to proceed with putting the horse on the bit is to walk on a circle or volte on the stiffer side of the horse and to ask him to yield to the inside leg and rein by enlarging the circle for a couple of strides, which means that the inside hind leg has to step a little in front of the outside hind leg, the rib cage has to swing out more, and the horse has to take the weight off the inside shoulder and transfer it to the outside pair of legs. In the process of the weight change, the inside rein can succeed in flexing the poll laterally, so that the inside jowl connects to the inside neck muscle. This enlarging gradually makes the horse stretch the outside of his rib cage and neck into the rider's outside leg and rein. The outside aids have to be there and wait passively for the horse to arrive in them. But they have to be within reach. If the rein is too long or if the leg is too far away from the horse's body, the horse will never be able to make contact, and there can be no conversation between horse and rider. As soon as the horse makes contact with the outside leg and rein, they gently receive the horse and provide a limit to the bend and the size of the circle. The outside rein is then also able to apply a half halt. The old classical principle behind this is that the horse has to be softened by the inside aids first, in order to be able to find the outside aids.
A good sequence of aids is to enlarge 2 strides, then to half halt twice on the outside rein, when the outside hind leg is on the ground, then to flex the poll laterally for 2 strides with the inside rein, when the inside front leg is on the ground, and to finish the sequence by activating the haunches again with a touch of the calf or by a vibration of the whip, in case the horse lost some impulsion as a result of the rein aids, which can happen initially, if there are resistances in the hips or in the poll.
When the horse has yielded to the rider's requests in the walk and comes on the bit, it's time to repeat the same thing in the trot. And when the horse is on the bit on a circle, then it's time to go straight while maintaining the longitudinal poll flexion.
On the hollow side, the horse will try to drift out with his shoulders and to come in with his haunches, so you have to frame the outside shoulder and inside hind leg, by bringing the horse into a shoulder-in related position.
- Thomas Ritter
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Last Update: February 24, 2007