The half-halt is a specific riding aid given by an equestrian to his horse, in which the driving aids and restraining aids are applied in quick succession. It is sometimes thought of as an "almost halt," asking the horse to prepare to halt in balance, before pushing him onward to continue in his gait.
The main purpose of the half-halt is to rebalance the horse, asking him to carry his weight slightly more on his hindquarters and less on his foreh...
more
Read article at Wikipedia
Half-halt
Similar topics in Freebase
-
Collection
Collection is when a horse carries more weight on his hindlegs than his front legs. The horse draws the body in upon itself so that it becomes like a giant spring whose stored energy can be reclaimed for fighting or running from a predator. The largest organic spring in the horse's body, and... -
Piaffe
The piaffe is a dressage movement where the horse is in a highly collected and cadenced trot, in place or nearly in place. The center of gravity of the horse should be more towards the hind end, with the hindquarters slightly lowered and great bending of the joints in the hind legs. The front end... -
Passage
The passage is a movement seen in upper-level dressage, in which the horse performs a highly elevated and extremely powerful trot. The horse is very collected and moves with great impulsion. The passage differs from the working, medium, collected, and extended trot in that the horse raises a... -
Half-pass
The half-pass is a lateral movement seen in dressage, in which the horse moves forward and sideways at the same time. Unlike the easier leg-yield, the horse is bent in the direction of travel, slightly around the rider's inside leg. The outside hind and forelegs should cross over the inside legs,... -
Flying change
A lead change refers to an animal, moving in a canter or gallop, changing from one lead to the other. There are two basic forms of lead change: simple and flying. It is very easy to define the correct lead from the incorrect lead. When a horse is executing the correct lead, his inside leg will... -
Pirouette
A "Pirouette" is a French word for the Ballet reference, " to whirl about." A pirouette is a two-track lateral movement asked of a horse in dressage, in which the animal makes a circle with its front end around a smaller circle made by the hind end. Specifically, the front legs and outside hind leg... -
Bascule
Bascule (pronounced /ˈbæskjuːl/) is the natural round arc a horse's body takes as it goes over a jump. The horse should rise up through its back, stretching its neck forward and down, when it reaches the peak of his jump. Ideally, the withers are the highest point over the fence. This is often... -
Rein-back
The rein-back is a dressage term to indicate the two-beat movement in which a horse is asked to back up. The horse picks up and sets down its feet almost in diagonal pairs, and moves straight backwards with the line of his forelegs following those of his hind. The horse should remain on the aids... -
Ballotade
In equestrianism, a ballotade is a leap made by a horse, such as between two pillars, or upon a straight line, so that when his four feet are in the air, he shows only the shoes of his hind feet, without jerking them out. -
Spanish walk
The Spanish walk is a movement performed on a horse. The horse raises the forelegs off the ground in an extreme upward and out manner, with much expression. The Spanish walk is not included in any dressage tests, but has its roots in dressage and is sometimes taught as a trick. Information on the...