"However, if the reins are shorter than is appropriate for the horse’s flexibility, especially if the hand pulls the neck backwards on top of that, the horse will drop his back and either bend his hind legs without stepping enough underneath, or he will get completely strung out and go above the bit. The dropped back does not create a sufficient connection between forehand and haunches. The hind legs touch down with a more or less perceptible delay compared to the front legs that step high but short due to the rigid seat. The rider has to lean far back or brace his back in order to keep the horse in a frame. He has to keep his calves too far back in order to stay in touch with the rib cage that has become narrow, and the disunited horse that is broken into two parts is finished. If one lengthens the reins, he runs away above the bit and from under the seat.
The danger of splitting the horse into two separate parts is especially great in the walk and in the collected trot and canter work, because he is the least required to step underneath here. This makes it easy to lag behind, if the rider is lacking the reliable feel for correct gaits. The mistake shows up most clearly in lengthenings, because the horse does not find the necessary thrust right away and either sucks back or throws himself onto the hand. Any posture that the rider has to maintain by tightening the reins backwards with his hands, which the horse does not maintain on his own at least for a little while even after the reins have been yielded, and in which the rider cannot lengthen the stride easily by simply driving, is wrong, even if the horse performs all kinds of movements in it.
Many horses who go with high elevation and poll flexion have dropped their back. Their neck is cranked up, and the hind legs are dragging behind. "
Last Update: January 13, 2007