Move forward on a straight line, and change direction every half circle by pointing with your hand. Yield the hindquarters first, then move the forequarters through.
Table of Contents
The Half Circle exercise is a groundwork continuation of the Full Circle. It is strongly recommended to blend both exercises as soon as you master them both. Actually, it is only one exercise split in two parts so we can learn it _ horses do not need this to understand and perform. The purpose of this exercise is to improve the mobility of the horse, his capacity to move the hind end from the front end separately.
Position
First, take the same position as in the Full Circle exercise. Start by pointing a direction to the horse, and let him walk a couple of circles. Change direction as you pick a straight line in the pen or the arena and keep walking ALL the time.
Security
You should follow the same security advice as in the Full Circle exercise. Be cautious as you will work with your horse on the move, things can go pretty fast, and you do not want lose to rhythm. At the beginning, some horses will tend to trot or lope around you as they need time to figure out what you want. In such a case, you have to be careful to keep that bubble around you: use your flag to push your horse away from you every time he gets too close, and make sure you always keep the bending in his body, to avoid his hind legs to come too close to your face!
One last advice: if you lose the rhythm or if you think it goes too fast, go back to something both your horse and you know better, such as lunging for instance.
Process
Once you have started your horse on a walk around you, aim a point down an imaginary straight line and walk toward it. As you walk down this line, you should change the direction every half circle _ hence the name!
As you practised in the Lunging and Full Circle exercises, you should turn toward your horse’s hind end and make him yield the hindquarters by crossing his legs, pivoting on his forequarters. Once the horse pivoted a quarter of a circle, point to the other direction, and push your horse gently with your flag until he moves the front legs through, pivoting on his hindquarters. From here, send your horse walking on a circle until he completes again half a circle.
Repeat the process until the horse gets relaxed, walks peacefully, and pivot on his hind end first, then on his fore end.
Q&A
Please, review the Q&A of the Full Circle exercise, as questions are quite similar.
What if my horse walks behind me instead of changing direction?
That means you should work a little more the Full Circle to get used to the moves, and have more fluent and clear cues. Anyway, be consistent, do not give up and keep putting pressure with the flag until your horse finally changes direction.
What if my horse does not cross correctly his hind legs?
In that case, forget about the change of direction, and insist on the crossing his hind legs. Once you are satisfied, do not change the direction, keep on a full circle for a couple of circles, and finally get back to your straight line.