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If you were running 50 miles would you choose to have a loose pack that
kept slapping you in the side, so you had to hold your arm around it
to keep it from slapping you? Or would you choose to have a pack that
was fitted correctly, just tight enough to stay still and in place?
The 2 wrinkles in the mouth (for most horses) is the "just tight enough"
placement.
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According to Alois Podhajsky (in my opinion, the greatest horseman of the
20th century) in his book _The Complete Training of Horse and Rider_
"When the snaffle has been chosen and correctly fitted, (he is talking
about the thickness and width of the bit, a section I omitted as it is
not germain) it must be fastened to the cheekpieces of the pbridle and
pulled up as high as possible WITHOUT crinkling the corners of the lips."
(Emphasis mine). pg. 241.
I mention this only to show that not everybody is of the opinion that "2
wrinkles" is "just tight enough"
Books I have read that have been written by riders/instructors from
England will ususally say "one wrinkle."
I personally am of the opinion that 2 wrinkels is a bit to tight (pun
intended) and find that I get a much better response to the bit when I
place it right at the corners of the mouth. I don't think it requires a
horse to clench its teeth to keep its mouth shut (I don't see them
sleeping with their mouths hanging open).
Foaming and slobbering is something that happens when the horse flexes at
the gullet (which stimulates the saliva glands), and is generally
considered to be a good sign by dressage judges.
Dropped nosebands (the one's that tie the horse's mouth shut) are useful
on horses that open their mouths to avoid the bit. As soon as your horse
learns to respond to the bit and is comfortable with it, the dropped
noseband becomes superfulous.
I have yet to see someone at an endurance ride who is overly concerned
with whether their horse was evading the bit or not. And I don't recall
ever having seen a dropped noseband at a ride.
Other nosebands that I HAVE seen at an endurance ride are the ones used
for attaching a standing martingale (tie down to many people) to. I have
always been of the opinion that standing martingales are for horses that
are standing (hence the name) and have no place on a moving horse, but
that is a different topic entirely.
kat
Orange County, Calif.