Why is straightness important? Simply put, if a horse is not straight, he or she can’t perform at her best. Without straightness, horses aren’t able to push themselves forward in an even, symmetrical way, and hence don’t run as fast, turn as efficiently, or collect as well.
Horses go crooked for three main reasons: 1) to alleviate discomfort/pain/lameness 2) because they’ve never been taught to go straight, 3)because the rider is crooked.
The definition we’ll use for straightness that comes from dressage is: “parallelism to required line of travel (e.g. haunches neither left nor right of centerline or circle line), or to line of reference (e.g. in leg yielding – haunches neither leading nor trailing).”* This simply means that no matter what pattern you are riding, the horse moves as if his body was assembled of train cars, (instead of vertebra) and none of the cars has jumped the track! His rear end follows his front unwaveringly.
This can be hard to determine on a circle or even on a straight line. When you’re riding you can’t see whether or not his hind feet step in or over the print of the front feet, and not to the inside or the outside of the circle line. It’s very important to have a teacher or a friend watch you as you ride on a circle or directly at them. They should tell you of any deviation from straight that the horse makes, for example, “Her rear end is over to the right.”
If you study straightness, sooner or later you are likely to find YOU have physical challenges that make your horse crooked. Often a chiropractor or especially a very deep tissue massage therapist or Rolfer can help you become a better, straighter rider. Otherwise you’ll have to constantly adjust your position so you can be as straight as possible. Without constant feedback from a discerning teacher, you or the horse can’t possibly be straight.
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In my experience, most horses do carry their rear end to the right of center. Along with this often goes a shoulder that falls to the left. Many believe this inclination is related to the way horses lay when in the womb. Some think it’s because the horse is weaker or lamer in the right hind and avoiding carrying it up and under his body. Others will blame rider crookedness. We are right handed and tend to pull on the right rein more.
If you really want to improve your horse and your riding, follow the word of the masters: “make your horse forward and ride him straight.”**
· *See the “Glossary of Judging Terms,” found in the back of the USDF Directory which every member of USDF receives in the mail. These terms are also on the USDF.org website.
· **Gustav Steinbrecht