The Feeling of Connection and Contact

[piedmontfields]

I'm picking up this theme from the training thread, where there has recently been discussion of the feel of the rising wither, draped rein, and how contact changes over training. I think there are interesting POVs to explore.

I invite one and all to join in, perhaps considering some of these questions:

-What is your ideal feeling of contact and connection?
-What does your current horse usually present? How do you work with that to move towards your ideal (if not there)?
-How did you learn about the feeling of connection?
-How do you teach your horses about the feeling of connection?

[Kirby's Keeper]

Ok, I'll take the plunge.
1. To me contact and connection are 2 different things. You can have contact without connection, you can have connection without contact and you can have contact and connection. Contact to me is strictly the feel of the physical contact of hand to mouth through the reins. Connection is the feel of the energy created by the engaged hind legs travelling over the back of the horse up to the bit, through the reins to be felt in the rider's hands. In total self carriage
the connection goes from the horse's hind legs over the back to the raised withers and back to the hind legs since the horse is working more from the rider's seat and less from the hands. The neck and head become balancing rods and you ride the shoulders instead.

2. To achieve this I ride lots of transitions first on bending lines then to straight lines. By thinking of energizing the hind legs in both the up and down transitions and using the half halts correctly you start to get the horse to shift balance back towards the rider's seat. With correct repetition the horse starts to engage their belly muscles, relax their back muscles, let the withers rise, and energy flow over the back. That connection is what is required to have self carriage.

3. There is nothing like that feeling of connection the first time you truly get it whether by luck or design. Controlled power combined with a soft place to sit are the hallmarks of true connection. Getting that connection is like getting a motor boat up on plane. As you pull away from the dock the motor is at full power but you still aren't getting anywhere fast until the balance point of the boat shifts and it goes on plane then every change in course is so easy you almost just think it and it happens. It's the same with the horse.

4.See #2 plus making the appropriate corrections and most importantly allowing the horse to move forward in balance after the correction starts to establish the connection. As the connection grows stronger the horse stays in balance longer, the rider becomes quieter so the horse can do its job without interference from the rider until the rider decides to change direction or gait.

This is a very timely post since I have been working on this very thing with a couple of students and there has spawned a lively discussion. That is my interpretation. Take it for what it is worth but it has served me well over the years.

[Flight]

Great discussion! And very timely for me as this is one of the biggest changes I'm having to try and do to my riding. I'm finding it very difficult.

[khall]

I'll certainly chime in since I have been one of the posters on the other thread!

1. Contact and Connection: I agree mostly with KK that they are different, though can be inter-related. Contact to me means with the reins to the bit with straight line from the elbow to the corner of the mouth. The only time that changes is if the rider needs to make a request that is a little more emphatic and raises the hand to affect the corners of the mouth, either one or both. I will use the inside raised hand if I need to ask for release of the jaw to inside bend (this for retraining purposes or younger horses who need a little help) or both reins up in an arret to ask the horse to not drop the neck and curl behind the bit. Also, when there is a drape in the rein of course the rein will not have a straight line from elbow to bit, but elbow should still be aligned so that if the rein was not draped there would be straight line. Contact is used to develop the horse's understanding of the rein aids, to release the TMJ, to release the horse laterally and longitudinally i.e. release the neck. All of this is done at first in hand to familiarize the horse with the rein aids. This contact and initiation is what leads to connection as the horse then can release the spine and relax his back. It is only with a released spine and relaxed back can there begin to be a connection, that means the energy can flow through the horse and not get blocked by a spine that is not in alignment. That is why it is to me so important to ride with longer reins to not block the spine, not block that energy especially in the very beginning of the horse's work. Premature raising of the horse's head and neck will lead to a dropped back and blocked hind legs. In this position connection cannot be formed, the back and hind legs have to be strong enough to raise and carry the rider with relaxation and energy through it. The back is raised when the horse can reach down and out with a lifted back. Connection to me is that feeling of being "on the seat aids".

2. My big horse's natural inclination is to curl, has been since day one pretty much. So riding with a longer rein is imperative so that he reaches out to that rein and fills it up rather than collapsing back and dropping his shoulders. Not as much of an issue now because he is so much stronger with all of the work he has on him. What I did to get him to this point was to ride with a longer rein and then work within those parameters being able to mobilize his shoulders and hips with lateral work. This work gets him stronger, more supple so that he can sustain the contact and not drop his shoulders. Lateral work and work within the gaits, especially of almost walking and then back to trot and now collection and mediums within the gaits. RB to trot the usual collecting exercises used to build their strength and carrying ability. It still amazes me even now the change that can happen when I let the reins slip just a bit longer while working these exercises. Happened today just playing around while riding him. I'm wanting to play with Karen Rohlf's freestyle stuff, so was thinking along those lines today just out in the field.

3. It has been a long and winding road! I have been riding for over 35 yrs now, usually taking lessons from someone or even being a working student. I have owned quite a few horses over the years, but it is my big guy that has really taught me so much. Him and an OTTB g I had in the 90's and the big guy's dam. The TB was incredibly talented but also with extreme baggage that took time to unravel. Once I got him to relax and trust the training was fairly easy because he was so talented. I once got a 9 from Axel Steiner on him for lengthened trot at 1st (I think we had some 4s too!) As long as the relaxation was there all the lateral work was a breeze. His extensions were phenomenal and nice FCs, easy for him. But his soundness did not hold and had to quit unfortunately. He had to be relaxed, or you were riding a ping pong ball, bounce you all over. That relaxation came from the lengthened neck (this was before Mark, but I still realized the necessity of relaxation and length of neck) which allowed the back to raise and relax. That gave me a place to sit so he could be connected to my seat. He could go from full extension to collection with just a breath, he was that powerful. Then Rip's dam came along and she was a clean slate with no baggage, what a change!! Plus being a WB not the back tension of the TB. She was an easy start and easy ride from early on. She would stretch to the bit and reach out and down WTC pretty quickly. Again before Mark, but still forming my ideas on contact and connection. She would not tolerate aggressive riding, so riding with particular trainers, some known here, was a disaster. In fact got slammed for that on the old board, not liking a lesson with said trainer(s). Softness and lightness was the answer with her. Positioning her with lateral work and transitions within and between gaits was again a basis for developing the connection. Then Mark happened and I rode the dam and another mare I own with him, struggling to retrain myself and understand even deeper the idea behind softness and lightness with more detail than any other trainer ever had showed me. This began the lessons in hand which is the mainstay of the foundational work with my horses now. The details of TMJ, C1-C2, unlocking the back and releasing the neck. Plus we have been lucky to have a DVM that studied neurology based chiro. She brought a whole new dimension to the table, with science that backs up the training we do. Just take a look at the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems of the horse (same in humans too). It explains why releasing the TMJ and activating the HQs raising the back work to relax the horse. Also why when we tighten up sitting on the horse we are sitting on the sympathetic NS, the fight or flight system.

4. Teaching the horse about connection for me is about releasing the neck and relaxing the back so they can become connected to our seat. Once they become connected and listening, then just systematic training stepwise to build the horse's strength, suppleness and power. It takes time, it takes feel and understanding. For me it is about making the horse better and building that relationship with my dance partner.

[Dresseur]

Ok, will take stab as well...

1. My ideal feeling is when the back of the horse is pulsing up under the saddle, when a hh will slow the shoulder, but not the haunches and when the horse follows the rein with no hesitation. I agree with others that contact and connection are the same, but different . I think that you can have contact with the horse's mouth - but that contact can be dead, can be hard, can be soft, or you can have a connection borne out of proper activity behind and an alive contact.

2. My horse, a 3 year old, tends to want to be a little slow behind, as well as a bit out behind, which causes a back that is a bit too soft and a shape that wants to be a bit short in the neck and behind the bit. In hand work closes him up and gets his hind active and basically connects the back to the front, so when I get on, I can push him on (activity, not fast tempo). If he wants to get a bit heavy, I do transitions, if he wants to duck, I do upward hh and go after the hind legs.

I think with this, no 2 horses feel the same in the back and in the connection. Some are a bit stiffer, some are a bit looser, some want to duck, some want to lean etc. etc. And each of these symptoms has a different cause: conformation, being slow behind, behind a stiffer horse etc. etc. You really have to tailor the exercises to the horse. But the constant thing is - go after the activity behind, and make sure that hh go through - slow the shoulders, not the hind. And you want to feel the back pulsing a bit under the saddle. When it's right, the reins feel like elastic bands in my hands.

3. I learned by riding many, many horses, but it's still not enough! Basically, feeling out each horse, and having eyes on the ground to confirm or deny that what I'm feeling is correct in the look. But really, the rider has to ride enough to identify the right feeling. And I'm convinced that the feeling is through the back and hind, and that if that is correct, the front follows. Basically, self carriage - or not- is a symptom of whether or not you have the horse pulsing up properly. That's not to say that the horse doesn't need to be educated to the responses to the bit. Which leads into...

4. I subscribe to a progressive system in which the horses are started in an uphill shape. Longing, in hand work, and long lining is a big part of it. The horses back is prepared by the work on the line, so that when the rider is introduced, the horse is adequately prepared. Side reins are used. First on the cavesson, and then on the bit - and it takes months and months to adjust them into the approximate shape that the horse will eventually be working in. But the horse is send forward from the get go, and as the side reins are gradually adjusted, the horse learns to seek the bit and work over the bit - not behind it or through it. So, the horse never fears the bit, has a forward mind-set from day 1, and is expected to work in an uphill shape from day one. And, proper bend and straightness is addressed from day 1. No one pulls - not the horse, not the rider. Every horse that I've sat on that has been started in this way has been lovely to ride. Miro was started this way, and that's why he's able to do what he's doing in the manner in which he's doing it. Just MHO

[Chisamba]

I am going to take an illustrated stab at this, showing how I developed Kimba.

First six months, working toward contact, maintaining equal feel in both reins learning to steer with big turns and shallow serpentine. Lots of release for relaxation.

[Chisamba]

Once contact is developed, asking the horse to engage more through the body, adding more transitions, more 20 m circles to develop outside rein, changes of direction to develop supple connection in both directions

[Chisamba]

Introduction of slight lateral work to further engage the hind end, spiralling circles in and out to develop am more established connection.

Basically I do not expect the horse to be uphill and lift in the wither until they have no longer have a stiff side and a soft side. Ie I not develop connection until contact is established.

Other people say I the two terms completely opposite,. And I apologise.

[Chisamba]

Second year,. Increase the activity from behind resulting in a more uphill carriage. Better balance, beginning to introduce self carriage and differentiate from stretch. Self carriage where the horse maintains balance with a draped rein, ridden with an upright seat.

And stretch where she follows the contact, ridden with a slightly forward seat.

Self carriage with drape in rein

FB_IMG_1466461524783.jpg (18.81 KiB) Viewed 12917 times

[orono]

Really great progression Chisamba, what would you hope the next picture to show?

[Chisamba]

In closing I would say the first year is rudimentary in establishing a contact,. The horse takes that long to become requital in both reins, to learn to follow the contact, and to begin to become supple through turns and transitions.

Second year, one can start to ask for connection, more activity behind, balance and lift in front. The horse can begin to differentiate between following connection and self carriage.

I did not take these pictures to demonstrate this, I simple used the few pictures i have .

[Chisamba]

Really great progression Chisamba, what would you hope the next picture to show?

Next is maintaining connection through increasingly complicated exercises and transitions both in balance and in stretch to the bridle.

For example maintaining shoulder in with a draped rein,. And conversely being able to stretch the neck up and out in shoulder in to really develop a deep stride under from behind. Being able to do this through all lateral work, as week as extended and collected work.

I have already begun to introduce working pirouette, both in collection and in a more open connection

[khall]

Chisamba I really like these progression pictures they are excellent for showing young horse progression.

[leheath8]

1. My ideal is a feeling of the horse moving out to the hand - not leaning, not posing, but just coming lightly into the hand so there is constant, dynamic communication between horse and rider through the reins. To me, connection is a concept that speaks to the quality of the communication via contact (not necessarily just through the reins, but the entire contact of the rider with the horse), while contact is just a physical thing. I want a light contact but a strong connection so that only very minor aids are needed for adjustments (of positioning or balance or gait). I think it is possible to have the connection without any rein contact, but that is an ultimate goal, perhaps, rather than a starting place. I am interested in competition, so recognize that performing with a drape in the reins is not something that furthers my goals in that area. One ideal might be that the horse is so "on the aids" that barely more than a thought of the hand, leg, or seat aid from the rider is necessary to make a change in the horse.
2. My current horse is young and green, prone to imitating a giraffe, and has a slightly short neck (conformationally) but she is finally starting to offer the feeling I am looking for - staying out to the hand somewhat consistently. We have a nice connection and basic adjustments can be achieved with light, subtle aids much of the time when we are working on basic straight lines, large circles, and simple transitions in walk and trot. We are working to maintain this through more complex work - canter, lateral work, skip a gait transitions, and transitions within the gaits. We focus on the quality of the contact and connection, initially aiming for a just a step or two of the movement with the connection I want, then progressively building on that. I need to focus on remember to not drop my hands/the contact every time she gives me what I want as that create on/off contact/connection rather than improving consistency!
3. My current coach has methodically helped me learn what correct contact and connection feels like by helping me teach my horses what it is and then allowing me to feel what is possible.
4. I teach my horse through methodical and progressive introduction to the action of the bit through in hand work (flexions, teaching that lifting the bit into the corners of the lips is the action that results in the horse releasing the jaw and coming on to the bit - I generally follow the Philippe Karl approach) and then carrying that over to ridden work.

[Tuddy]

4. I teach my horse through methodical and progressive introduction to the action of the bit through in hand work (flexions, teaching that lifting the bit into the corners of the lips is the action that results in the horse releasing the jaw and coming on to the bit - I generally follow the Philippe Karl approach) and then carrying that over to ridden work.

We are currently doing this with Tuddy, as he is using his neck/jaw/head as a "fifth leg" as I like to call it and curling behind the bit. I clinic'd with a lady who is a student of Karl's Ecole de Légèreté (the School of Lightness) a year ago, and we incorporate these exercises into Tuddy's training. Once I feel that he is getting heavy, I do the lifting of the bit and he releases the jaw, and you can feel it, right now, in my hands. I have to be careful of my reaction time, as I am not as quick on the release as I am sure I need to be.

[leheath8]

That is great Tuddy. My instructor has completed Karl's school and is working on the advanced phases of certification. I only get to ride with her a few times a year, but my horses and I have made such great progress since switching to this methodology several years ago and I think that it is thanks to this approach I have finally figured out what kind of contact and connection I am aiming for as well as a way to achieve it consistently!

[Ponichiwa]

Late to the party, but my thoughts:

Contact is a part of connection, and it's usually my signal for when things are going off the rails. The quality of the contact tells me the quality of the connection to the aids, and often points out where things are going awry. If my pony is hollow in my left rein, I need to wrap her torso around my left leg, ask for her inside fore to step up and out instead of tight to her body (she sucks in her little elbows), and keep the hips in line with where I want to go.

I first learned this on a tough but fair schoolmaster. He was a champion of appearing to be connected but actually very disconnected-- sitting the trot felt like riding a trampoline. And when I finally got him swinging through his back and even on both sides of the bridle, it was like his hind end sucked me into the saddle in the sitting trot and I didn't have to work at all to maintain the quality.

For like, 2 strides. Then he'd decide that I'd had enough of a taste of the way it should be, and I'd have to start all over again.

But every horse comes to the connection just a little bit differently. The solution that worked for AT (champion schoolmaster) was very different than what is working for Kiwi, which is still not quite what worked for Bucky. I've got a lot of respect for those auction riders, I can tell you that much.

Kiwi is a tough one because she alternates between too strong in the bridle, and ghosting the contact entirely/dropping behind me. She's also very quick to shift her center of gravity by compressing or extending her strides and/or outline. Very tricky pony.

[piedmontfields]

Thanks for all the interesting posts on this thread. I like the various ways you all wrote about the relationship of contact to connection.

Another thought on contact is that both horses and people have a preferred feeling for contact (although that also can be shaped and changed). I know that I personally like my horse's mouth to feel like butter that is almost too soft to be creamed, while others prefer firmer room temp butter (or pick your metaphor). Like many of you, I do use releases of the jaw and poll to teach any horse the feel that I want.

However, this is all a bit tricky with my current horse, who is really more of a "whipped cream in the contact" feel kind of mare aka "fake" or "ghosty" as Ponichiwa describes it! As part of our effort to improve the consistency of our connection, we are going through some different feels in the bridle, including even getting a bit strong at times :-0 (chilled buttter?). I try to remind myself that this is part of the process of her figuring out the increased demands for strength in the hinds. I have had a few good rides recently where the contact was very genuine and positive during active connection of the hinds, but still had a good feel for me. The wimpiness of my hands (weird RA-like stuff) probably makes me extra sensitive to this working through this.