| A 20 meter circle at Training Level is the first | | | | maintain the activity of his inside hind leg.o Put your |
| dressage movement that you'll do to make your | | | | outside leg (right) behind the girth to help bend your |
| dressage horse more athletic. The goal of riding a | | | | horse's body around your inside leg and prevent his |
| round 20 meter circle is to create flexibility. | | | | hindquarters from swinging out. For a 20-meter circle, |
| Flexibility refers to your dressage horse's ability to | | | | place your outside leg 1-2 inches behind the girth.o Ask |
| bend laterally through his side. Here's what you should | | | | for flexion to the inside with your left rein. You should |
| know about lateral bend: | | | | just see your horse's left inside eye and nostril.o Keep |
| 1. The bend through your horse's side should be equal | | | | your outside rein (right) steady and supporting. Think of |
| from poll to tail. | | | | it as a side rein that limits the degree of bend in his |
| 2. Your goal is to help your horse become | | | | neck. It also functions as your turning rein to bring your |
| ambidextrous. In other words, he can bend as easily to | | | | horse's shoulders around the curve. |
| the right as he does to the left. | | | | Create a marriage between your inside and outside |
| 3. As a dressage movement, correctly ridden circles | | | | aids. You need both sets of aids to bend your horse |
| teach baby engagement (the bending of the joints of | | | | while you turn him along a prescribed line. Your inside |
| the hind legs). | | | | aids bend your horse, and your outside aids turn him. |
| 4. Circles also develop straightness. By definition, a | | | | What Are the Reference Points for a 20-meter Circle |
| straight horse is straight on lines and bent along the arc | | | | in a large arena ? |
| of a circle. | | | | To make an accurate circle in a large arena at |
| As a "Dressage Movement", why is it so Important to | | | | Training Level, you need four reference points.o Start |
| Ride 20 meter Circles Accurately? | | | | your circle at A or C. This is your first reference point.o |
| 1. Physically, accurate circles help develop lateral | | | | Your second reference point is 4 meters past the |
| flexibility and engagement of the inside hind leg. | | | | corner letter (this is 10 meters from the corner). The |
| 2. Mentally, riding accurate circles develops obedience. | | | | biggest mistake riders make when starting a circle, is |
| Always keep in mind that horses are herd animals. | | | | that they aim for the corner letter. If you do this, you'll |
| When you ride, you're part of a two animal herd. Your | | | | end up with an oval. So aim for 4 meters beyond the |
| horse is happy to be a follower if you're a leader, but | | | | corner letter.o Your third reference point is the spot |
| he'll take over if you aren't the leader. | | | | where you cross the centerline. If you drew a line |
| If you don't ride accurate circles, you're letting your | | | | between M and H (or F and K), that line is 6 meters |
| horse take over and make decisions. Once your horse | | | | from the short side. The imaginary line between the |
| learns to take over on a circle, eventually he'll make | | | | next set of letters (R and S or P and V) is an |
| more and more decisions on his own. Letting him make | | | | additional 12 meters. When you add 6 meters and 12 |
| his own decisions can escalate into disobedience. | | | | meters, you get 18 meters. So in order to make a |
| So, you always need to be the leader of the herd. It's | | | | round 20-meter circle, cross the centerline 2 meters |
| up to you to tell your horse where to go, how to go, | | | | above the line that runs between R and S or P and |
| and when to go there. | | | | V.o Your fourth reference point is on the other long |
| What Do You Need to Know to Ride an Accurate 20 | | | | side. Touch the long side 4 meters before the corner |
| meter Circle at Training Level? | | | | letter (10 meters from the corner). |
| To make an accurate 20 meter circle, do two things: | | | | Important: The key to learning how to ride a round 20 |
| 1. Bend your horse. | | | | meter circle is to look TWO POINTS AHEAD and |
| 2. Ride to specific reference points. | | | | "connect the dots". |
| If you're circling to the left, the bending aids are as | | | | Remember that all of the dressage movements are |
| follows:o Weight your inside seat bone (left) to | | | | not an end in themselves. They're a means to an end. |
| encourage your horse to engage his inside hind leg.o | | | | And "the end" for a 20-meter circle at Training Level is |
| Place your inside leg (left) on the girth. It acts both as a | | | | developing flexibility in your dressage horse. |
| pole for your horse to bend around and also to | | | | |