Side Reins....?

Question

Could I ride my horse with side reins to train him to be more collected at the trot and canter?

Thanks!

Answer 1

Some people do, but frankly it's dangerous, and frankly they won't help when you're on. Side reins offer the horse a light, steady contact when being lunged. When the reins, you should be able to offer the horse the same thing without pulling. Most people put side reins on way too tight and focus on cranking the horse's head in which will not fix the problem. You want your horse to build muscle and to use his hind end correctly, coming through in the back and moving freely forward. Collected work is important because it helps the horse build muscle and learn how to properly carry himself, but side reins are better used only on the lunge line. In a seat lesson, people often put side reins on the horse to make up for the lack of rein contact typical of a seat lesson, and that is safe and acceptable to do. Just a note, asking the horse for a slow trot on the lunge line with side reins will help him build a lot more muscle than working at the canter will. When my horse starts to get tired at the trot, she breaks into a collected canter for a few steps to give herself a break.

Answer 2

Side reins are (to my knowledge) a tool to be used for lunging.

Using side reins, martingales, etc, are a shortcut to compensate for the rider's shortcomings. Since you can't show with them, why train with them? You should have quiet enough hands that YOU should be the side reins.

Answer 3

I have used side reins, but you should only use side reins with the help of a knowledgable trainer.

Answer 4

Both Karen and IloveSub...  Are dead on!  AND the voice of experience here will tell you what CAN happen when you RIDE with side reins.

Back in 1978, I'd been trying to get my favorite QH to push peanuts.  Everybody else's QH was doing it, WHY wouldn't mine?  Even after taking him to a well known trainer in the LA area (He took on roughstock from folks such as Jimmy Williams and all.).  My then trainer, Roy Traylor said "There's NOTHING wrong with your horse, that's the way God made him!"

Anyway, after a month at Roy's I discovered side reins!  He got so rounded and was soooo nice to sit!  Still didn't push peanuts, but there was a noticable difference.

I was at a horseshow in San Dimas, CA in the warm up arena riding with the sidereins WHEN this little pony trotted by us and swished it's tail.  The tail hit my old horse right square in the nose!  His head went up, hit the end of the side reins and right back into my face, where I put my two front teeth through my bottom lip.  Blood gushing all over my clothes and my saddle, I didn't get to show that day.

Answer 5

The side reins won't help him to be collected, they will only help to round him. The only way you should use side reins is in correspondance with the lounge line. You should begin with your reins at a low level on the horses body (I connect them to my girth on my saddle when lounging) - then make it loose enough that they can bring their head up to the proper area, or stretched down and low. You want them to begin by reaching the contact and building the muscle. Then you slowly tighten it and gradually raise the side reins once they have pleanty of muscle.

If you want a horse to be collected in the canter, they must first be able to balance in the canter. Side reins and loungeing are great and if your horse has been lounged enough in side reins and appears to have balance, you can have an experienced rider and lounger work the horse with the rider sitting on the back of the horse, with the reins loosely in their hands. You must always have the reins for safety, but never put contact on them, just enough that if you need them, you have them. Be careful, though, you should both be experienced - if you have an unbalanced seat you will not help your horse learn to balance.

If your horse can already canter/trot balanced, then you need to just work on half halts, they will both bring your horse up in the pole by guiding the horses hindquarters under them and they will slow the horse. Also, shoulders in and haunches in will help a horses collection, just take it slow. :)

Side reins are not for collection but only for muscle building in a "round" frame.

Good luck.