Steering whilst long reining - something is amiss!

popularfurball

popularfurball

Learning all the time
Jul 18, 2005
12,688
666
113
North west
So we went out again this morning, Rascals happy little bum trotted merrily up the road... However we still have the same issues with steering. Now I actually think this should probably belong in a "Training of the long liner" section but I guess its also his training.

As we amble long, we can generally do very small corrections side to side eg if we need to move out the way. However, we are struggling with bigger turns.

He will move slightly to light rein pressure, but no more - so if I apply the rein firmer, he reacts the same for a couple of seconds, and then turns 180 degrees on the spot so I end up chasing around trying to get behind him again, and he continues to follow me in a circle :stomp::bounce:

It all makes for fun and games - but Im finding this communication issue problematic! It is amusing but I want him to learn properly!! He is standing, walking on and trotting without an issue, and all to voice aids. Occasionally needs a tap to keep going when he gets distracted (eg other horses) but otherwise being well mannered and polite about it all.

Please help! I would use my legs if on board, but Im not and cant get on board so we need to master this!
 
are you making sure you keep 'the outside rein' on like you would if you were riding? i find with appley that if I don't pay enough attention and 'drop' the other rein, she either won't turn or suddenly face me!
 
I think that's probably the problem, yes: you need to use both reins, and just give a little with the outside rein to allow the turn. Also (I think this is right, it's a while since I've done it), you have to position yourself slightly to the instide of the turn.
 
No I haven't been having a tight contact (I wouldn't ride with a tight contact either though). It's enough to make adjustments just not tight - he is really gobby (opening mouth and thrashing head about) if I have too much rein pressure - going to try a wider bit when I find one to see if it helps - he wanders along with his mouth open?!

Can't believe how hard I am finding it!
 
Take him in the school and do lots of circles and turns and changes of direction. It's slightly easier then as you've got the fence to guide him, so he'll naturally turn and you can apply the aids you want at the same time, plus you can longrein him on a circle as if you were lunging rather than being right behind him.

Sounds like he's just confused at the moment, but it's difficult to teach him when he's doing lots of straight line work on tracks, particularly if you're trying to make small adjustments. Though you can't ride him, if you did then you'd be aiming at this stage to be doing big circles and turns, and getting him going forward. You'd use a really wide, open rein to turn him if he got stuck, and you wouldn't micro-manage him, so if he was walking in approximately the right place, that would be all you'd ask for.

So, question - are you asking too much too soon? How is he not turning? Is he not doing big turns, like go left up this track, or is he wobbling and wandering a bit, so you're trying to correct it and keep him to a certain bit of the track? School work should help with either, but if it's the latter I'd not worry too much for now. Get the going forward, go to his head if you're in a position where steering is important (like walking past someone/ something) and it'll come with practice. And if you want to know if it's you or him, you can come and try Benjamin. If you get it right with him, he will do whatever you want. If you get it wrong, he'll tie you in a very big knot and laugh :D
 
Will be watching this with interest because when I tried long-reining Rosco a couple of months ago I discovered I had NO steering. I don't really use left-rein, right-rein to steer under saddle and on long reins we got in a huge tangle, did swift 180's, crashed into things or jack-knifed :redcarded:
 
Rather like us AFO :giggle:

Thanks for everyones help... Perhaps yes I am sort of expecting too much too soon, but I want to iron out the issue before he learns it as I can't "unschool" it when mounted...as I cant mount him :giggle:.

The small adjustments come about because I can see him eyeing up a tasty bush, or there are bikes/cars/people coming. These aren't an issue and I can redirect him across the road/track - our problem is "taking turnings" - the one we got really stuck with was about 135degree turn to the right - almost back on ourselves. He is confused by me, and thus starts dithering and gets stressed about it and we end up laughing in a big knot.

Forwards and stopping is great, though he can get mouthy with the stopping - Im working on pressure release - release as soon as he stands and reapply if he fidgets - I do not want a shuffling pony when a small child asks him to stand - I also dont want a hard mouthed one.

We have the same problem when he see's something he doesnt understand such as the box plank stile thing yesterday - he stopped at it, and when I asked him to walk on, he wanted to obey, but turned and walked back to me instead as he didn't understand that I wanted to climb through it. Im not so fussed about that at this stage as he will learn that I am only going to point him at things he can do (though it did take a double bounce jump to get through it!! :giggle:).

Perhaps I will try and take him in the menage one night this week and see how we go.

Are there any smart ways through gates too? I have no idea how people do all this with anything bigger than him :giggle:
 
practice the turns in the school if you can, starting off with really big u-turns, do them steo by step and dont forget to turn yourself as well, sort of step round behind him like the moving hands of a clock (am i still making sense??). and keep that outside rein. once you get the hang, it'll get easier, promise :)

when i first tried turning with appley, she'd spin round almost every time and I had to start afresh entirely!
 
Ditto the person who said about positioning yourself inside the turn.Body language is a huge part of long reining,in fact I very rarely use voice commands at all,and only ever as an opportunity to teach them as voice is useful for other things if you see what I mean,but they are never a necessary tool for long reining.

Do you ever lunge with two reins?? Basically just do the same as you would for keeping them on the circle,but end up by coming back around behind them rather than staying on the inside as you would with lunging.


I come toward the inside of the horse (making sure to stay behind the shoulder though as getting in front of that will cause the horse to stop),I personally don't have too much of a contact,and actually try not to rely too much on rein action,just use slight pressure for guidance,and then bring yourself around so are back behind the horse again,at which point you should have completed the turn and be driving him forward again. I just use myself to show him where he needs to go by blocking where I don't want him to go and use my own energy to keep him going forward.Make sure the only available space for him to go into is where you want him to go if that makes sense??

Apologies that was a pathetic explanation,but I really can't make clear what I mean in the written word,is just something I do most day's,but don't really think much about or know how to describe.

The wider you take the turns to begin with the easier your little man will find it,it's when you don't have a lot of room to manouvre yourself and get in the right postion that it get's more tricky.
 
notpoodle;2642441 when i first tried turning with appley said:
When starting long reining June she used to do the same thing, or spin
180!! I used to move with her in the school so behind her on straight lines but if I wanted her to circle left I would move into position asif I was lunging her and then move back once we were straight again. Gradually making my movements less until she grasped what I was asking (although she was a pro at lunging as it was part of her rehab on her hip!!) I don't know if this may work for you but it worked for us so could be worth a try ?!
Click to expand...
 
I ride with very little contact but find I need to use a lot closer and firmer contact when long reining. I had long reining lessons before driving lessons and the teacher walked along side me holding my hands for the first lesson so I learnt what contact to use. You really do need to support with the outside rein more than you do when riding because you don't have the back up of your leg. I find sometimes as well, when long reining around cones if I stare between the ponies ears in a kind of trance and follow my feet in the direction so I always stay behind it helps me keep straight which in turn helps the horse go in the right direction.

I was taught to imagine a constant circle that goes from one hand down the rein, through their mouth (or in Hollies case round her head as she has a Dr Cooks) back down the rein and to the other hand, if your left hand is coming towards you to turn left, the other needs to go away to keep the pressure and contact the same.

Also, if he is used to normal ridden rein aids, using the top holes on a roller so the line is similar to ridden reins may help him get the hang of it.
 
really excellent advice already given, all I would add is that are you applying steady pressure to the rein? I find a 'squeezing a sponge' action on the rein can get the message across better than increasing a steady pressure, if that makes sense! It avoids those 'ignoring you, ignoring you, still ignoring you, oh now you're really pulling so I'll turn 180' moments.
 
re: usiing the top hole - careful if she's already worked out how to spin, its much easier for them to spin on the top hole, if the longreins are lower down its easier to 'keep them in line', literally :D
 
I don't think he is evading - he isn't napping or arguing - just confused about what I am asking him to do - he doesn't have the forgiving "oh there is a track there obv that is where the silly muppet wants me to go"
 
Echoing whoever suggested double lunging to start with . . . you can practice turning as you change the rein and you have fences/walls to help you and the pony. Then when you've mastered those turns, gradually position yourself more behind him so that you're long-reining. Also, rather than asking for a "whole" turn from walk, try halting and then just squeezing down inside rein and holding outside rein and just waiting until he even takes one step slightly sideways - just so he gets the idea. Make sense?

N
 
I'm a fan of riding with little or no contact but this has to be earnt. If Joy can do what I want with as little effort form me than that's what happens. If she needs babbysitting more and more contact and sterring corections then I'll do that because she needs to know clearly what is expected of her before she can take over that responsibility.
 
I agree JC - which is what I want with him - and he is having extra guidance, but I think I am giving the wrong cues as guidance!

I don't lunge him - he finds it really stressful and panics - though we do free school. I will reintroduce lunging but its going to be once we have got the long reining.

I think we will be going in the school for a bit and just doing enough out and about to keep him intersted and not be bored. Thankfull we have about 500yds of road before we hit penine bridleway/off road riding so we are mostly car/road free - and only a few real turns.

I think also he is so good at stopping, that its almost like one rein = stop and two reins = stop, so I need to keep him walking forwards whilst asking for a turn... maybe a little bit too much for his brain :giggle: :D
 
inspired by your post I practiced u-turns of various sizes in a back alley with appley today :D

what helps me is to keep my arms quite wide apart (ok, no style points for this!) and sort of 'step' around the turn behind appley, keeping a contact (doesnt need to be much!) on both reins and making sure the outside doesnt shoot out of the u-turn and turn it into a spin (eg the back end should follow the front end, not swing out wildly, if you know what i mean!).

does this help?????
 
I'm reading this with interest as I've also come across this problem when playing with long reining before!
 
newrider.com
Top Bottom
Back