Advanced Tack: Review

Name 3 parts of the horse that are affected by the bit.

You're watching an intermediate level lesson and your coach sends you back to get a pelham for one of the riders. There are these two bits hanging in the tack room. Which one do you bring? Why might she have decided on this bit?



Note - for answer to the bit question above, click the image :)

You've been given the opportunity to start a green horse. What sort of bit would you use when first starting him? Why?

What are four things to consider when deciding on a bit for a specific horse?

What is a combination bit a combination of? What are two combination bits? Which one is more likely to be used by a child? Why?

Give an example of a direct pressure bit.

Give an example of a leverage bit.

Name the numbered parts:



Did you ever know so much could be said about bits??? Well done!
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Advanced Tack: Double Bridle and Misc Bits

At this level you should know about more interesting bits, how they work, and when/why to use them. Snaffles were covered at length in Intermediate. Now we have some of the other miscellaneous items: hackamores, leverage bits, gags, combination bits, and of course the double bridle.

A hackamore is a bitless bridle. It functions by applying pressure to the nose and the chin groove. Some horses, particularly those with really sensitive mouths, respond much better to a hackamore than a standard bit. The strength of this is determined by the length of the shanks to which the reins are attached. This is not legal in dressage, but is in the jumping disciplines. (random side note -- my spell check apparently knows what a hackamore is?!?! It doesn't know any other riding vocab, but it's got that one word. Gotta love it :)

Alright, so leverage bits multiply the pressure applied to the mouth; this means that however hard you pull, the horse feels 2,3,4x that amount. Generally, the longer the shanks, the greater the leverage.

Curb bits are leverage bits (usually also used with a curb chain that applies pressure to the chin groove as the reins are used). Curb bits may also have a port (a bump) in the middle of them. If there is no or very low port, most of the pressure is on the tongue and the mouth. If the port is medium height it shifts the pressure off the tongue more to the bars. If it's high, there's a chance it may put pressure on the roof of the mouth, which in turn acts like a fulcrum to significantly increase the pressure on the bars. Some curb bits may look very much like snaffle bits, but all have extra rings for the reins to be attached lower than the bit -- this is what provides the leverage. The longer the shank, the greater the multiplying effect. Curb bits should very rarely be used alone; they are generally used with a bradoon (tiny snaffle) to create a double bridle.


Curb Bit

The double bridle is ridden in at the advanced levels to give ultimate sensitivity -- assuming the rider is capable of that. There is a standard curb bit and a bradoon (which is basically a super-small snaffle). The rider carries two sets of reins and uses them independently depending on the desired effect.



1. Bradoon Strap
2. Crown Piece
3. Browband
4. Curb Cheekpiece
5. Cavesson Noseband
6. Throatlatch
7. Curb Bit (low port)
8. Bradoon
9. Curb Chain
10. Lip Strap
11. Snaffle Reins
12. Curb Reins

For those not quite ready for a double bridle, the pelham is a combination of snaffle and curb bit; it also uses two sets of reins. The top one gives a snaffle effect while the lower one gives the curb and leverage effect. Kimberwicks (which are often seen on strong ponies being ridden by little kids) have a similar combo effect, but use only one set of reins. The severity of the bit is influenced by where the reins are attached (loose or in one of two slots).


Pelham

Gags are leverage bits which can also look an awful lot like plain snaffle bits (in fact some snaffle bits have the option of turning them into gags depending where you fasten the reins). Most gags should be used with two sets of reins -- one in the usual snaffle position and one on the leverage ring. These bits tend to be fairly strong and should only be used by those who know what they are doing. They are mostly seen on very strong horses in speed events.


Elevator Bit

This elevator bit is a pretty standard example. If the reins are on the big ring, it acts as a snaffle. By the time you're at the bottom ring, you've got some pretty serious leverage happening. You will often see people fixing two sets of reins to this bit so they can ride primarily off the snaffle, but have the leverage if they need it.

So now that you know all that -- how do you decide what bit to use? Well, there are a bunch of things to consider:

- Age, training level and temperament of the horse
- Experience level of the rider (remember even the softest bit can be inhumane when held by hard hands)
- Type of work (ie - often in eventing you'll see a horse going XC in a slightly stronger bit than they do dressage)
- Shape of the horse's mouth (a thick bit may be theoretically soft, but in a tiny mouth it'll be uncomfortable)
- Horse's preference (ie - some horses really don't like pressure on their tongues, others may not like the pinching feeling of jointed bits, etc)


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Intermediate Tack: Review

What parts of the mouth does a snaffle bit influence?

Name these bits:



Which of those bits might you use on a young, nervous horse? Why?

Which of those bits is the most severe? What makes it that way?

Why might you choose to use a full-cheek instead of a loose-ring snaffle?

Name the three nosebands:



For the first and third nosebands give one advantage of each.

Note: Answers to noseband questions by clicking on the image :)
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Intermediate Tack: Snaffles and Nosebands

Ok so let's get the necessary vocabulary memorization out of the way first. Various snaffle bits in all their glory:



Got it? Good. But by this point you should be doing more than simply memorizing -- you should be thinking! A dangerous hobby, I know, but worth it every once in a while :) These bits -- it's all well and good to know what they are, but what do they do? Why would you choose one over another? How do you tell how severe a bit is? How do they work? Where do they put pressure?

For today we're going to focus on snaffle bits (see adv for others :) with a brief foray into nosebands since they are so often used to supplement the bit.

So to answer the last question first (why do things in order?) -- Snaffle bits apply pressure to the bars of the mouth, the tongue and the lips. But there are many ways of doing that! They are direct pressure bits, which means that the amount of pressure you put on the reins is what the horse feels in his mouth. (sidenote: the bars are the area between the molars and the incisors - if you stick your thumb in the corner of your horse's mouth where the bit goes, you'll discover there are no teeth there. But that's a lesson for another Thursday!)

Severity -- it's important to remember though that any bit's severity is entirely defined by the hands that hold it. That being said, once the hands are educated enough the rider can start to consider appropriate bits for their situation. In general, a thinner bit will be stronger than a thicker one (consider if you're carrying a really heavy bag by handles. Thin handles are going to cut into your hands, whereas thicker ones you'll be able to carry for a longer time -- the pressure is dispersed over a wider area). Anything with a twist will be stronger than something flat. Twisted bits of any sort apply quite sharp pressure (think of that whole thin bit vs thick bit idea -- the edges of the twist are very thin). Since most horses will run from pain you're often better to use a softer bit with a different noseband (ie flash, figure-8) that restricts the horse's ability to open their mouth, then to use the harsher bit. Double bits (esp when twisted) do the same thing but times two as now the pressure points are doubled. While remaining in the realm of snaffles, those are your primary severity considerations: width of bit and is there any sort of twist to it.

A secondary consideration is the type of bit rings (what the reins attach to). A loose ring will rotate as the bit moves in the horse's mouth. It encourages relaxation and is loved by dressage riders everywhere for this :) The main downside to a loose ring is that they can pinch the sides of the mouth -- bit guards (little plastic circles) are sometimes used to counteract this. A full-cheek (and to a lesser extent, a D), will push against the side of the mouth as the opposite side is pulled (so if you pull the left rein, the right side of the bit pushes against the horse). This can help clarify steering requests. The down side to these is that the cheeks could potentially get caught on something, and/or twisted the wrong way -- less than fun for your horse in either scenario. Keepers are often applied (attaching the top of the full-cheek to the cheek piece) to help avoid this issue. An egg-butt is marginally softer than a D in that it doesn't have the straight edge to help with steering to the same degree, but stronger than a loose-ring as it's fixed so there's not as much play.

Now, knowing that a loose ring encourages the horse to salivate (and therefore relax -- the two items are connected pavlovian style in horse's little brains. And in ours too I guess -- when you see a drooling person, they're usually overly relaxed...), what do you suppose bits with keys or rollers are for? Yup, same concept. They also have the bonus of giving the horse something to play with -- especially for young horses, this can be a great thing! Keeps their little brains engaged (so they're not thinking of the goblin in the corner or a million other things that lead to trouble) and gives them something to do that will encourage the relaxation response. All good :) And bits that have copper on them? Same thing. Because of this effect these bits are all illegal in dressage (cheating!).

Some bits are almost straight (ie mullen mouth) or double jointed (ie french link). These reduce the nut-cracker action and disperse the pressure more evenly across the tongue. Which is better depends entirely on your horse. Some horses seem to prefer single joints, others multi- joints. Most of the TBs I've known seem to like the multis; the heavy crosses seem to go better in the singles -- could have something to do with the size of their mouths *g* but this is entirely incidental wisdom. Basically if your horse seems unhappy with one, try the other. If they have a tendency to lean, you'll want to avoid the unjointed bits.

An exercise - go to your tack store (or even your tack store's website -- here's one I use: Bahr Saddlery) -- and look through the bits. Pick three that you don't recognize and see if you can figure out what they do, how they work, and why you would use one. For instance, here's one you may have seen before, but we haven't discussed yet:


Waterford

Now you can see it's a loose ring snaffle, so it's going to encourage playing. It seems to have balls on it too, but they don't roll so it's not really a mouthing bit. It is multi-jointed so it'll lie flatter over the horse's tongue with less nut-cracker action on the bars and lips than a single-jointed. It's not particularly thin and it has no leverage component (see advanced) so it's probably not all that severe. So why would you want it instead of a say a french link? What's the advantage here? The advantage is that with the balls the horse has less opportunity to lean on the bit, but they are softer than any sort of twist so generally don't get the angry response a twist might in a sensitive horse. So if you had a horse who was heavy in your hand, this might be a good one to try.

Run through that thought process with a few more random bits. Good luck!

And as if that weren't enough... Remember the comment about using a noseband instead of increasing the severity of the bit? Well in order to do that, you need to know a little about nosebands! The main ones you're likely to see are:

Cavesson - this is your standard noseband
Flash - the flash is an extra strap attached to the cavesson that does up below the bit. This keeps the horse's mouth closed and prevents the horse from crossing her jaw. It also can hold the bit steadier in the mouth, which some horses seem to prefer.
Figure 8 - much like the flash, but forms an 8, imagine that! The top half of the 8 goes much higher than the usual cavesson, which gives added steering ability. The theory behind this design is that it allows the horse to expand their nostrils more freely which is necessary for high-speed work. These nosebands are often seen on eventers and jumpers.
Drop - same effect as a flash without using a cavesson; these were popular in dressage for a while but have since fallen out of fashion.
Note: If you plan to use a standing martingale you MUST have a cavesson (or a cavesson w/ a flash attachment) to attach it to.


Example of a cavesson, a flash, and a figure-8

A note re fit: none of these photos are ideal. The cavesson should be a little lower; the flash should have the cavesson tighter and the flash closer to the bit; the 8 should be adjusted so the cross is slightly higher. I'm sure Google could show you lots of images of these (and various other) types of nosebands both good and bad! These are just shots I happened to have at hand. :)

Wow, so that was a mountain of information for one day -- but most of it isn't memorization so much as thought process, and since you already know how to think, you're good to go!

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Beginner Tack: Review

Taking the time to review? Good for you! Well as important as it is to learn diagrams; it's even more important to be able to understand the real thing!

So -- what piece of tack is Rye modeling?



If you're not sure at all -- go back and read the lesson! If you think you know, but would like confirmation, hold your mouse over the photo to read the alt text.

Identify the numbered items (note: 10 refers to one of the "miscellaneous pieces of leather" -- but which?)



Now that you know all the parts -- your next challenge is to take a bridle completely apart and then put it back together again! Good luck :) (ummm two pieces of advice before you do that: write down what hole everything goes on so it will continue to fit your horse after you're done, and don't try this right before a lesson - it might take longer than you anticipate!)

Bonus points -- what type of bit does this horse appear to be wearing? (answer to that is in the alt tag -- hold your mouse over the image)

Since almost every shot I have of a horse with a saddle on it is either an unlabelable angle or includes a rider blocking much of the saddle, I thought we'd stick with a diagram for this one:



And what's the belt that holds the saddle on the horse called? And the things you attach it to (roughly directly underneath #8)...?

And lastly (but of course not least! Is anything ever least?) the bits:



What are the two types of martingales?

You see a child riding their pony down a hill; the pony stops to graze and both child AND saddle slip comically down his neck. What piece of tack would've prevented this moment?

If you've got all that down, you're good to go :) Congrats!
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Beginner Tack: Parts and Basics

I'm very much afraid it's more terms and memorization today -- I know, it sucks starting out. But just think how much more like a pro you'll sound when you know all this stuff!

Today we're doing tack -- you know, the stuff you put on your horse! At this level, I'd expect my students to know the difference between a halter and a bridle, they should know the parts of the saddle and bridle, and they should know at least the very basic snaffle bits. Really, that's not all that much is it? :)

So the halter and the bridle both go on your horse's head (usually not at the same time :). If it's got reins and/or a bit and/or a brow band, it's probably a bridle :) Now, for that explanation to make any sense whatsoever, you must know what at least one of reins, bit, or browband are! Let's see...



hmmmmm so it occurs to me that the text is a little light. Sorry about that -- if I have time I'll fix it later! It'll do for now though... Now we've discovered the reins are the things you hold in your hand when you're riding (comeon, you already knew that right?). The bit (in this case specifically an egg-butt snaffle bit) is the piece that goes in the horse's mouth. And the browband, not surprisingly, goes over his brow. Remember, horse people weren't terribly creative when it came to naming parts of the tack (they used that up on dressage letters! Tune in next week for more about that :). So the crown piece is where the crown would sit (particularly amusing image if you happen to have a diva of a horse), the noseband goes over . . . ?-- work with me here... That'd be the nose! The cheek pieces run alongside the... cheek :) Surprised yet? And where do you suppose the throat latch goes? That's right -- it's basically common sense rearing its ugly head. See now that wasn't all that difficult, was it?

Let's see, what else -- oh, the keeper is the little thing you tuck extra leather into to keep it still; the runner is the same little thing that's not fixed -- it runs up and down the length of the leather. Stupidly picky detail, but one examiners love, and again -- something to make you sound just that much more intelligent in conversation! Generally though "keeper" is used for both those little beasts.

Now, I pointed out the egg-butt snaffle bit. Snaffle is a category of bit, and the only category of bit beginners should be worrying about (other future items include things like curb bits and gag bits - but for now, the snaffle is enough!) Within that category there's a fair amount of variety -- you need only think about three: the loose-ring, the egg-butt, and the D-ring. Now, remembering the oh-so-creative naming convention of the other bridle pieces, you can imagine this is not particularly exciting. The loose ring, has a ring that's, well, loose. You can spin it around in circles. The d-ring, has a ring that looks like a D. Surprised? hahaha egg-butt is the only stretch; I don't think I want the omlettes that person's making. But even it's somewhat understandable. And just in case you're now totally lost -- a picture's worth a thousand words (or at least a paragraph!):



So a few items to note -- rubber is gentler than metal; bits for starting babies are often made of rubber, some of which is advertised to taste like apple even! Loose-ring bits let the horse play a little, which makes them slightly softer and encourages the horse to relax and salivate (a good thing, I promise!). The down side to them is they can pinch the corner of your horse's mouth (try it -- hold the bit between two fingers, right where it meets the ring and then spin the ring. You may find you get pinched. To avoid this you'll sometimes see a round rubber piece that goes between the horse's mouth and the ring). D-rings and Egg-butts are fractionally stronger as they don't rotate, and can give a little extra steering (pressure on the side of the mouth as you turn the head). And that's probably more than you need to know @ this point, but really, you're here to learn right? :) And better too much knowledge than not enough!

Ok saddles:



So pommel and cantle I got nothing. Sorry. I'm afraid they're straight memorization -- although depending on your coach, you may hear the terms in class often enough to know what they are anyway! The rest is a little easier... The seat, well comeon, we're back to the obvious. The knee roll is where your knee sits. The stirrup iron is attached to the saddle by the stirrup leather. The flap flaps :) Panels are another "just memorize it" moment I'm afriad... The keeper here isn't labeled cause I figured you'd already be smart enough to know that after studying the bridle! Under the flap, the only part you need to know right now is the billet straps or girth straps (UK and US respectively). They hold the girth (aka the belt :) on and are therefore rather important... There are other unlabeled parts (the waist --found not surprisingly above the skirt, the point-pocket -- the most useless part ever, the tree --found inside and rather critical to the whole saddle idea, etc) but these are enough for the moment!

A few other random pices of leather you should know about because you're likely to come across them in your travels:

Martingales: These are to stop the horse from raising his head beyond the level of control. If they get their head too high, there is next to nothing the rider can do about it; adjusted correctly, these prevent that. They do NOT tie the horse's head down. If the horse is behaving correctly the martingale should do absolutely nothing. There are a few types of martingales -- the most common seen in NA are running and standing. The standing runs from the girth to the noseband (now that you know what both those things are) and is the more effective of the two. The running goes from the girth to the reins and is the safer of the two. The running also has the added advantage of counteracting the effect of a rider who carries her hands too high.

Breastplates (of which there are several styles) go from the saddle (or the girth) around the chest and back to the saddle (or girth). These stop the saddle from sliding backwards -- a common issue particularly on horses with a very powerful stride.

Conversely, the crupper goes from the cantle (remember where that is?) around the tail and connects back to itself to stop the saddle from sliding forwards. This is almost exclusively used on round ponies who have next to no withers.


Crupper

Ok, I think that's about enough for the moment. If you don't agree, feel free to move on to Intermediate :)

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