How modern language masks force, and why riders need to know better
I came across a popular article recently that claimed to teach collection. It was polished, had the credentials you'd expect—titles, money earned, horses trained. But within a few paragraphs, my blood pressure was up. Not because I disagreed with the goal, but because of how it was being taught—and more importantly, how it was being justified.
This isn’t about one rider or one article. It’s about a trend that’s taken over much of the Western riding world: the rise of mechanical riding, hidden behind professional language and prestige.
Let’s be clear:
Just because a rider makes money doesn’t mean they understand horsemanship.
And just because a horse moves doesn’t mean it’s moving correctly—or willingly.
When Collection Becomes Compression
One of the biggest red flags I see is the way “collection” is framed in modern articles and clinics. It’s often described like this:
- Drive the horse forward with your legs
- Hold with the hands (or maintain a “barrier”)
- Ride until the horse yields, rounds its back, or drops its head
But here’s the truth:
That isn’t collection. That’s compression.
It’s forcing a shape from the outside instead of creating balance from the inside. Any horse who is in collection should be able to move forward within one stride not because you’ve driven him there with you r legs but because he has impulsion. A collected horse isn’t the one who goes slowest on the rail with his head tucked. It’s the one who’s been trained and conditioned well enough that he freely allows you to rebalance him without resistance and without losing his energy. Impulsion comes after a horse’s free-forward movement has been developed.
True collection is the result of:
- Rider balance (not just leg and rein pressure)
- Timing and release
- Engagement from behind through softness, not force
- A horse that’s mentally with you—not just tolerating pressure, not just one who’s obedient.
- Free-forward movement
When “Pressure and Release” Becomes Control and Disguise
The round-pen revolution of the 90s brought the idea of pressure and release to a broader audience. It had potential. But many mainstream trainers—especially those with national programs—turned it into a system of disguised aggression.
We’ve seen it:
- Pressure that escalates until the horse gives in
- “Release” that only comes after the horse shows submission, not understanding
- Tactics that look calm on the surface but are built on fear, repetition, and trapping.
Teaching the horse that the only safe place to be is with you, means you’ve made the other places unsafe, or you’ve put enough pressure on him that he wants release.
You can make most any horse submit.
If I bear with my left rein on the horse’s mouth and only release each time he submits and lowers his head, soon he’ll learn to drop the second I tighten my rein. That’s not teaching him anything except to obey your pressure even if the result is uncomfortable or wrong for his conformation.
The Language Is the Giveaway
One thing I always watch is the language a trainer uses. Do they say:
- “Hold your hands steady until the horse yields”
- “Drive with your legs into the hand”
- “Make him go forward through the pressure”
- “Better send this one down the road” (That statement, BTW, usually shows up when a trainer has met the end of his skill level or he has got the ability or patience to take time.)
We’ve all heard the phrase “one trick pony.” That’s the trainer who can only train one kind of horse to do one kind of activity. The horse must yield to their way or hit the highway. Those trainers usually run on a production schedule.
Those words might not sound violent. But they are signs of a rider who prioritizes compliance over communication. They expose a mindset that believes horses exist to be shaped, rather than supported.
You won’t hear those trainers talk about:
- Following the movement with your seat
- Timing your ask with the horse’s balance
- Feeling the moment the back offers lift
-Allowing the horse to move forward
- Respecting the mental state of the horse—not just the mechanical result
The Rider’s Balance Matters
What’s most often missing in these popular “how-to” articles is the one thing that makes or breaks collection:
The rider’s balance.
Without balance, the legs become driving aids.
The hands become barriers.
And the horse becomes trapped between forward and back, without any real choice.
Basic Balanced Position (BBP)—ear, shoulder, hip, heel—creates a rider who can move with the horse, not against it. It makes space for the horse’s back to lift. It lets the legs support, not drive. It lets the hands follow, not pull.
But BBP takes more time to develop. It’s not flashy. And it doesn’t sell as fast as a three-step “fix” that promises results in a weekend.
The Real Question We Should Be Asking
Instead of chasing results, we need to ask:
What does the horse experience when I ride this way?
Does the horse soften, balance, and carry himself more freely?
Or does he brace, avoid, dull down, or “submit” because there’s no other option?
My Final Thought
Horses are incredibly tolerant. They’ll carry us through a lot of confusion. But they shouldn’t have to carry the weight of our ego, misunderstanding, or force.
As riders and instructors, we’re responsible not just for what we do, but for how we talk about what we do—and how we teach others to understand it.
So the next time you hear someone talk about “collection,” ask yourself:
- Are they creating balance?
- Or are they just containing movement?
The difference matters.
Til next time,
Barbara Ellin Fox
TheRidingInstructor.net