No I get your point... I love how everything works differently when your without a bridle! How I need to reconsider a lot of things and how I can use that when I give advice to others longreining (with bridle) most teachers tell you 'a bit of pressure left/right' then all of a sudden I'm there telling them "move yourself a bit more to the left/right
But it works most of the time!
I noticed that Ruphina doesn't react on my bodysignlas when I'm behind her, so I always walk on the inside position when we go straight ahead... O wait I should make some easy drawings to make my position clear to you... those will come! (I'm really into it now!)... maybe tomorrow or any time soon.
But my solution to this all is to have always an inside position (ofcourse not when doing a shoulderout... then the outside position.
So inside behind is straight ahead(close to her hindquarters), more to the inside bellybutton pointing where I want to go = turn, little pressure on the inside rein for bending her neck, shoulder out... starts in the corner I take the outside position next to her belly, bit of pressure on the outside rein for bending her neck and with my body I prevent her from turning... hopefully
Shoulderin is first making the turn (more inside steering with bellybutton) and coming towards her belly (like shoulder out) slight pressure on inside rein for bending neck... and occasionally both reins to stop her form going forward. This is all good as it goes I suppose... But halfpasses is more diffcult... I make a turn (bellybutton and so forth) go straight (hindquarters), slight pressure on the inside rein for bending her neck, coming up next to her belly for sideways movement... but she tends to go way to sideways... and not forward :P so maybe I should take a position in between shoulder in and going forward? Literaly sideways, forward?
Hmm... anything understandable... but all the time... my reins are over her back, so not behind her legs.
I'm behind her for going backwards (small pressure on both reins with the according voice cue and clicking sound) and halting I try to do in the same position as going forward... but slightly more backwards...
Oke... teak a deep breath... Drawings will follow to make everything clear.
[edit]
the piece I wrote in my diary about yesterday...
Quote:
went longreining today again, after all the talking about position and how the reins should be and all things I went to really figure it out, have my mind on where I stand and all. And I figured it out for some things!
I had some troubel when I'm in a turn to get her to move stragiht ehead again, had to 'steer against' the turn and then I had to change positions to steer back; but then she would keep on turning that way, and well some circles in our work as well as our thinking :P
But now I got it, I move more inward for a turn and when I want to go straight ahead I just move closer to her and somewhat backwards, works really great! Even in trot!
The shoulder in/out I got as well, I go stand closer to her frontquarters, by then I only once in every while have to ask her not to go forward in shoulder in but she can do it mostly on her own!
And I tried some sidepasses in the way Karen does them... that works not really great yet... but were on the right track, when I move myself somewhat more backwards and put my rein against her hindquarter we'll get there. I'm so happy I got this figured, it's really difficult for me still to focus on my hip position and on where my feet are pointing but all these small things do something I'm really planning to make some drawings to make everything clearer, for myself as well as others