Introduction
Down transitions are often more difficult for horses and riders than up transitions because horses tend to resist more against the half halts in down transitions than against the driving aids in up transitions.
For a good down transition, the combined weight of horse and rider needs to flow through the spine and through a specific leg into the ground, so that the horse can stay balanced, round, and light. If you ride a down transition into a hind leg - which is usually the case - this hind leg should fold its joints as it allows the half halt to go through. If there is any muscle blockage anywhere along the path between the bit and the hind leg joints, the horse will resist against the aids.
Prerequisites For Good Down Transitions
The targeted hind leg needs to touch down underneath the rider’s seat bone (i.e. in front of the vertical).
The back has to be raised so that there is an energy connection between the hind legs and the bit.
The path between the bit and the targeted hind needs to be free from muscle blockages and false bends.
Weight Aids
Down transitions are done by pressing a specific leg of the horse more vertically into the ground and holding it there, so that the energy of the higher gait dissipates into the ground and the horse transitions to the lower gait.
The most suitable and most effective aid for this is the weight aid. Since the job of this weight aid is to hold the leg on the ground or to press it into the ground, it is logical that the best moment in the footfall sequence is when the leg is on the ground and supporting the weight. For the hind legs it is specifically the short window of time when the targeted hind leg is on the ground and in front of the vertical. That’s the moment when it supports the weight, and its joints are flexing under the body mass.
The hind leg can be flexed by the rider’s pelvis sinking down, so that the pelvic floor emphasizes the downward movement of the horse’s body for a moment, or by sitting more on the seat bone on the same side as the targeted hind leg for a moment, or by a stirrup pressure on the same side, or by a rein aid - or any combination of pelvis, stirrup, and rein pressure.
The precise composition, intensity and duration of the aids depends on the individual horse. Horses with a weak, sensitive back can’t tolerate a heavy seat, but will require half halts that are ridden with a lighter seat, and more stirrup and rein participation.
Horses with strong, wide backs can handle a much firmer weight aid from the pelvic floor or from the seat bone.
Backs that are long and narrow tend to be structurally weak. This can be aggravated if the neck is set on high and relatively long because the natural elevation of the neck adds a leverage effect that presses the back and the grounded hind leg down into the ground.
Another potentially aggravating factor are hind legs that are built out behind. They don’t engage very well, and they don’t flex under the weight very easily. They will tend to stay straight and to push the horse’s croup up. As a result, they don’t protect the horse’s back from the weight, so that the back drops.
Only hind legs that are engaged and flexing under the body can protect the back effectively. If the hind legs are supple and strong, they will absorb the weight and flex in their upper joints, which increases the degree of collection, and the back remains intact. If the hind legs are not strong enough, they will remain straight, and the back caves in under the weight pressure.
If the rider sits down more heavily or harder than the horse’s back can tolerate, the horse will drop his back and invert.
Rein Aids
The rein aid can be regarded as a weight aid as well because it takes the weight of the horse’s head and neck and “squeezes” it through the targeted horse leg into the ground. This way, it can add the weight of the horse’s head and neck to the rider’s weight, so that the combined weight flows through the horse’s leg into the ground.
The horse will understand and accept a rein aid only if it is supported by the rider’s body weight, i.e. if there is a solid connection from the rider’s torso muscles to her upper arms and elbows so that there is also a connection from the hind legs through the horse’s spine and the rider’s midsection to the bit, and back through the reins and the rider’s midsection to the hind legs.
The rein aid then feels to the rider as if squeezing the rein with the fingers is brought through by a downward motion of the rider’s body. I like to visualize rein aids as a vertical top-down movement, not as a horizontal front to back movement.
The connection between the rider’s body weight and the reins is created through the engagement of the deeper core muscles. The upper arms and elbows should be relatively close to the torso. The larger the distance between the elbows and the torso, the more difficult it becomes to maintain the connection between the body mass and the reins.
It’s important that the rider’s hand does not leave its spot in a half halt. If the hand has to move backwards in a half halt, it is a sign that the horse was not stepping forward into the rein contact enough, but that he is shrinking away from it, retracting his head and neck when the rider tries to apply a rein aid. In that case, it is necessary to release the rein and send the horse forward, then try the half halt again. Even curling the wrist inward is a sign that the horse is not stepping into the contact enough.
Common Mistakes
Sitting down too heavily in a half halt or in a down transition with the intention of riding the half halt “from the seat”. In reality, this suppresses the horse’s back, so that the horse inverts and braces against the seat and aids, and the hind legs are prevented from stepping underneath the center of gravity.
Not engaging the torso muscles enough, so that the rein aids have no connection to the rider’s body weight. The horses, then, don’t understand the aid and will block it, instead of letting it go through.
Poor timing of the aid, so that the horse is unable to execute the rider’s request. For example, the hind leg that is on the ground and in front of the vertical, is able to flex and to allow the half halt to go through. The hind leg that is on the ground and behind the vertical is pushing the body forward. Its joint are extending. Therefore, it will resist against the half halt.
When the half halt doesn’t go through, many riders don’t release the rein for several strides, which is far too long. As a result, the horse ends up bracing more and more against the rider’s aids. The releases are extremely important as they identify and outline the active aid, very similar to the way the spaces before and after written words help the reader to identify where one word ends and the next one starts. Sometimes it can even be helpful to begin and end the half halt with a release (release - aid - release).
Some riders always half halt with both reins at the same time, to which the horse typically responds by bracing with his underneck.
Rein aids are easiest for the horse to understand if they arise out of a continuous contact. If the rein is slack, or the contact is intermittent, the horse will be very surprised when there is a sudden aid out of the blue. This tends to lead to a sharp, defensive reaction.
Summary
As you can see in the explanations above, a key factor in being able to ride good down transitions is a balanced, independent, supple seat and good timing and coordination of the aids. Polishing and perfecting these skills is a lifelong pursuit. It’s quiet, uneventful work, but it is one of the most important investments the rider can make towards her riding success. Real progress always comes from improvements in the basic skills of both horse and rider.
