Lyle Is Helping Me!

Dear Reader,
Lyle is helping me to learn how to ride. I thank God for this. I thank Lyle for this also.
He and I are now working on three lessons. 1. In the first two pictures you will see that Lyle is learning how to yield his hind quarters. This yielding of the hind quarters is the basis of ALL control of the horse because this is what stops the big motor. I found that it was better for Lyle if I taught this hind quarter yielding using ONLY my legs and absolutely NO rein pressure. So that is why my hands and arms are away from the reins, to control my own behavior. I am finding that if I control myself, Lyle will be able to control himself! 2. In the third picture you will see that Lyle and I are working on the one rein stop. This is the safety break when riding. Because he is starting to yield his hind quarters, he is now able to do a one rein stop. 3. In the last picture you will see that Lyle is yielding his head in a way that is completely straight and has no side to side motion. (The side to side movement is resistance and nothing more.) This true straight yielding is only possible because he is comfortable enough to let me break his forward motion by letting me ask his hind quarters to yield to me. In the straight yielding of his head I have not asked him to yield his hind quarters because that would make a straight head yield impossible. But still he can only yield straight if he is willing to yield his hind quarters.
These are the three lessons upon which all good riding is based. These three lessons will allow Lyle to truly collect himself. I want Lyle to collect himself with only a small cue from me. I do not want to force him to collect himself because that would be a lie and it would not be a loving thing for me to do to him. It is this willing collection that will keep Lyle sound for heavy riding for all of his life. Please note also that I am not applying equal pressure to both reins. This is because applying equal pressure will only teach Lyle to resist the rein either by leaning on them or by over bending of by tensing his jaw.
So dear Lyle, please continue helping me to learn how to ride. For this teaching from you I will always be grateful. Lyle and I still have a long ways to go. But I am now finally willing to learn from my horse. So that is LYle's true gift to me, making me willing to learn from him.

The one rein stop is in the last picture.
Sincerely,
Penny Johnson
Kootenai Curly Horses
Bonners Ferry, Idaho