BEHIND THE VERTICAL- IS IT REALLY SUCH A BIG DEAL?

Today I would like to discuss the thorny subject of BTV (the horse’s nose being behind the vertical).. It is easy for even an inexperienced observer to notice the position of the horse’s head and neck but I would like to encourage you to take a more holistic view of the horse when assessing the correctness of the training.

Obviously, the ideal is that the head is in front of the vertical but there may be a lot of good things about the ride that go unnoticed because the obvious thing for a layman to see is the position of the head and neck. The horse may be relaxed, supple, connected and obedient but not quite strong enough to maintain the ideal length of neck for the entire ride.

There is a difference between being behind the vertical (BTV) and ‘on the bit’ and BTV and behind the bit. In the latter instance the horse is avoiding the contact and not pushing enough with the hindquarters to establish a connection. In the former, the connection is present, but not perfect as the horse is likely not strong enough yet to extend the neck fully. What is important is that the horse is reaching into the bridle and taking the bit softly, neither leaning on the rider’s hands nor evading contact with them.

A clinician I once heard speak likened it to holding a jug of beer in an outstretched arm, as opposed to close to your chest. It takes more strength to hold it in an outstretched arm. With training (if you decided this was worth training for) it would become easier. This is not an ideal analogy as the muscles involved are not postural and designed to hold tension for long periods of time (with training) as the upper neck muscles are, but it gets the point across.

There are many people who are opposed to competitive riding and claim that their riding is ‘classical’ because their horse’s nose is in front of the vertical, but fail to notice their horse’s back is dropped, the hindlimbs are trailing, the mouth is busily chomping and the tail continually swishing.

I would like to give my opinion on the BTV debate and give some tips that may help people better ‘train their eye’ in regards to correct riding from a biomechanical perspective.

To quote Udo Buerger ‘A pleasing carriage of the head implies proper functioning of all parts of the body and must result from overall muscular development and progressive training over a period of years.’

‘We must think of forming the horse in the same way as we command his movements: from back to front. Head and neck position will then develop in an established form, as if they had been cast in a mould. We do not try to set their form; we must wait until the horse has developed enough strength to balance himself properly in all his gaits, and then produces it of his own accord. Carriage is a consequence of balance. A body cannot hold itself up properly if it has not got firm muscles… Position of head and neck must be related to the horse’s state of muscular development and degree of training. When he can balance himself without any intervention from the reins, just by reacting to the influence of the rider’s seat, he has perfected a state of equilibrium which we call self carriage. This is the dream of all riders.’

The process of training is gradual, and of course the end result we are aiming for is a horse with muscular hindquarters and upper neck muscles that have become strong enough through training to be able to support the back in its raised position when the forehand is lifted high (due to a lowering of the engaged, and flexed haunches. In this position the nose will be in front of the vertical. Before the horse has reached this level of strength, he will carry his head and neck in a lower position, relative to the engagement and flexion of the haunches, and in this position his nose may be slightly behind the vertical. The important thing to ensure is the steady, even connection to the bit which connects the hindquarters to the rider’s hands and makes it possible to gradually load and flex the hindquarters more over time.  

Once the horse is working into a steady contact on both reins, we can start to work on bent lines and lateral work to engage and strengthen the hind limbs, continuing to offer the horse a longer length of rein as he is able to take it up whilst remaining connected over the back.

A horse can only progress in training if his muscles are in a state of relaxed tension. They cannot be stiffened or completely slack.

A relaxed, supple horse will have rhythmical, free gaits; his tail will swing like a pendulum from side to side and he will have a soft, contented look in his eye.  He will snort contently as he starts to achieve suppleness. He will softly chew the bit with closed lips and will produce a small amount of foam at the corners of his mouth. He will have smooth paces that the rider finds easy to sit and he will appear to spring off the ground soundlessly. The overall impression will be calm and content. 

On the other hand, a tense horse will have a stiff neck, continuously flicking ears; choppy, uneven gaits and will hit the ground forcefully with a trot that is difficult to sit. His tail may be swishing, held to one side or clamped in between his legs. He may grind his teeth, open and close his mouth, or stick his tongue out. Male horses will also have a continuous wind-sucking noise from their sheath. This is caused by either tense or slack abdominal muscles.

It is important to take the whole horse into consideration when assessing the correctness of the training. I would like to emphasise that I am not saying being BTV is a good thing.  And the head should never be forced into a frame with the rider’s hands.  The rider can only work from back to front and accept the contact that the horse offers. The position of the head will depend on the degree of training and the horse’s conformation.  The ideal and what we strive for is to have the poll the highest point and the nose in front of the vertical, but this comes as a result of training over years to build up the musculature sufficiently for the horse to carry himself in perfect self carriage (balance).

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