Turn Signals

Ed uses a simple snaffle bit and a light feel on the reins. He uses his thumb and forefinger as the primary contact on the reins. The other fingers close as needed to make the rein active.

If you listen in on an Ed Dabney horsemanship clinic, you'll hear Ed explain how to use "turn signals" to get smoother, better balanced turns. Ed has a simple way of explaining what to do and a simple formula to help you remember it. He says, "You look. He looks. You go together."

Ed says that "looking" is important in everything you do with your horse-it's your horse's most important cue.

You Look
When you look to the right with the intention of making a turn to the right, your body and balance make subtle changes. That slight change in the position of the hips, pelvis, and seat bones tells your horse about the turn you're planning. That's different from a turn of the head to look at scenery, because your body doesn't make the same shifts.

"Turning your focus creates a misalignment in your horse, who's looking straight ahead," Ed explains. "He likes his body to be straight and he likes you to sit straight, too. That misalignment tells him that your body is preparing for a change of direction."

Ed stresses that looking with intent to turn isn't the same as leaning to the side. Sometimes Ed has to tell a rider to look at the trees, because the normal tendency is to look at the dirt. Keep your shoulders level, and make the turn as if you were walking, not riding your horse.

To help you learn to focus, Ed says to look with your eyes and your belt buckle. Even though "looking" seems simple, doing it correctly is vital to the success of the maneuver.

Those subtle, sophisticated changes in your position help the horse to know what to do. When you look to the right with your eyes, belt buckle, and intention, your upper left leg comes against the saddle. At the same time, your right leg opens and moves slightly away from your horse.

"Everything feels open and light, nothing pushing. It's as if the inside leg opens a gate to let your horse turn in that direction," says Ed.

"Visualize the successful completion of the request you're about to make," he says. "That way, you'll make appropriate turns with your body."

He Looks
When horses look where they're going, turns are smoother and better balanced. You can signal your intention to turn by turning your head and focusing where you want your horse to go. But for your horse to turn to look, you have to give him a rein signal.

To ask your horse to look, you first look in the direction you want to go, then you close your fingers around the rein on the side nearest the turn (inside rein).

When your horse responds perfectly, his neck will bend just enough that you can see the back corner of his eye. It's a slight bend. You don't want his nose to come past the point of the shoulder.

After your horse is perfectly positioned, you can ask him to make the turn-to move his feet. But we aren't there yet.

Ed says that most people think that they pull the rein to get the feet to move. But the rein doesn't move the feet. "The rein is like a steering wheel. It's for position. We must take the time to learn to position the horse with the reins. Then the turn will be coordinated."

In clinics, Ed spends a lot of time teaching people to get a certain feel of the rein. Let's say that you're preparing for a turn to the right. The reins should be adjusted so that when your bottom three fingers are open, there's no pressure on the bit. But by closing those three fingers, you affect the rein. (You can see this more easily in the photos than by trying to visualize it.)

Horses don't automatically "look." The better your horse has learned to respond to rein pressure during early training, the easier he'll catch on. But even an older, stiffer horse will get it with a little practice.