In this lesson, Laura takes you through all things straightness. Put simply, straightness is your horse feeling equal from left to right. By identifying true left and right and working through the middle to achieve a straight horse you will be able to establish a better feel and apply correction more appropriately by working with your horse, rather than against them.
Key Takeaways:
"Straightness" also means "equal suppleness" on the left and right side.
Focus on the positive instead of chasing the negative!
Changes of direction and transitions are key to creating straightness, as they encourage the horse to activate and use her hind end. Straightness comes from the hind end.
Sometimes, issues with straightness become more obvious when you attempt to teach a higher level movement.
Riding off the track or off the rail helps you measure how much your horse is drifting.
If your horse struggles to be the same on the left and the right, straightness will be difficult to achieve.
Straightness is that feeling where you don't have to drive so hard to achieve hind end activation.
Instead of trying to correct the horse form going one way or another, focus on going ahead in a forward way. This prevents "ping pong" effect where straightness is never achieved.
Note how much straighter Laura's horse looks now versus the beginning of the video. This was achieved through the "following the nose" exercises, lots of transitions, and riding off the rail.
While riding on a straight line, you may need to use right leg + hand or left leg + hand to correct a crooked horse. Don't worry about it looking perfect- it's more important that your horse learns from the correction.
