Re: RC: Re: Snaffle Snaffoo

[Jasmine Cave <toppere@siu.edu>]

The shrake snakkles are in the english catalogue. I ride in a port pelham
because it is what my horse is comfortable in. I started him in my dressage
double bridle but he tries to move like a dressage horse, he does not get
the fold in his knees like I want. A bit does not do this I know, my hose
does it and he gets confused when using the same bridle for different
events that ask such a similar question to the horse. As to how legal it
is, I believe it is fine. I am not showing in saddleseat shows, but at
Apaloosa shows in which there may be only 2-10 competitors in the one
english pleasure class ofered.I must still say that the snaffle has always
been used in the western set. I have the destinction of being the only
person in town that has ever ridden english, I mean this literaly, and all
of the old cowboys have either started a horse in a bosal or snaffle. This
was to teach the horse lightness, then to a curb, than to a spade. It is
just that to show an unfinished horse(snaffle or bosal) was unheard of
until recently when classes for young horses in snaffles and bosals began.
Also I still say that the pelham, gag, elevator came from western or rather
spanish design. During the period BC in assyria and babylonia the rind
snaffle and full cheek snaffles were invented. The greeks and romans then
took this same bit, and for war horses, added spikes to the mouthpiece.
Later the "barbarians"(gauls and celts) invented the curb bit. As time went
on the medieval period began and the snaffle was basicaly forgoten in
europe except in the mediteranian areas where the curb never came into
favor except with nights and nobles. As time continued on knights and
tounaments became spectator sports instead of war and so the use of the
huge draft horse came into being and with it bits that had up to foot long
shanks, two and three mouthpieces and togels or spikes. Considering the
knight had the sword in his free hand and reins and shield in the other he
could move his hand only a few inches up to stop these huge animals. The
same knights when riding out had milder curb(smooth mouth) for that same
horse. In denmark and part of germany this "fad" never caught on. The
continued to use the friesian. In spain it was still the andalusian. Soon
the use of light calvery was popular again and so horses like the friesian,
andalusian, the new TB, arabs, and the new german invention- the warmblood
were all popular and riden with a light curb. The spanish spade was used in
spain and portugal and with enlightenment the snaffle reapeared in force.
The military still used the curb and the english saddle, but others used
the snaffle. In america the cowboys began to start a type of riding all
their own. They used the spanish style left over in mexico and south
america from the spanish settlers there. The horses were started in the
bosal or snaffle and quickly went to the curb and the spade was its most
popular at this time. At the same time the pelham was being used, it came
from the spanish as a transition bit. It came into favor with fox hunters
and calvery units. The gag and elevator bits are recent inventions by
western trainers that quickly where bought by eventers and then to show
jumpers. The reason most people did not see a western rider using a snaffle
is because that horse was unfinished and stayed back at the barn, he was
not ready for work yet. As for hackamores, the assyrians used somthing very
similar to the mechanical hack, the bosal was a recent invention by the
spanish or south americans I can't remember which, and the sidepull is the
most basic and the first type of "headgear" used.Most english riders do not
use sweet iron because it rusts.
jasmine
At 10:40 AM 6/3/99 -0400, Linda_Merims@ne.3com.com wrote:
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>Jasmine Cave <toppere@siu.edu> said:
>
>> ...Miller's carries richard shrake bits that are
>> made of black iron, including snaffles...
>
>I don't dispute that you can find sweet iron snaffles. I see
>them in western catalogs all the time.  But does Miller's
>show them in their *english* catalog?  The point I am
>making here is that there seems to be a kind of cultural
>segregation on sweet iron.  The English-style folks seem
>to have gravitated instead to all the various "German silver"
>blends.
>
>(Richard Shrake, by the way, is a marvelous
>lecturer.  I heard him at the Northeast Horseman's Conference
>this past February and he had many, many interesting
>insights on bit action useful to all disciplines.)
>
>> I ride in a double bridle for
>> dressage so I have a aurigan single jointed loose ring bradoon and a
>> stainless steel medium port sliding cheek weymouth which is a true curb.
>> When on trails I use an "s" hackamore. When doing saddle seat I use a
>port
>> pelham which has loose rings for the snaffle rein.
>
>You should really try using your dressage weymouth (or whatever
>combinations of snaffle and curb bits in a full bridle rigging)
>when you ride saddleseat. Trying to use a pelham to set up a
>horse is like trying to do surgery with a butter knife.  The
>ability to use the sensitive actions of the bits independently
>is critical.  In a pelham, it's like my horse feels he has
>to choose to respond to either the curb or the snaffle action.
>With a full bridle, I get very distinctly different reactions
>with each bit and can blend them very subtley to create just
>the effect needed.  In comparison, using a pelham when doing
>serious work feels like trying to play a piano in mittens!
>And a pelham is *never* acceptable in the show ring.
>
>> All good western
>> trainers start a horse in either a snaffle or a bosal, then graduating
>the
>> horse to a short shanked curb that also has a snaffle ring, then to a
>> "true" curb, than hopefully to a spade. The snaffle has always been used
>on
>> the western set and most english bits like elevators, gags, and pelhams
>> came from western designs.
>
>I am going to have to disagree here, on two points.  Although
>it is now common practise to start a western horse on a snaffle,
>I do not believe that this was "always" so.  I might be wrong,
>but I think that this is something that has grown up over the
>last 30 years.
>
>That most English bits like elevators, gags, and pelhams came
>from western designs is simply not true.  I might be convinced
>on the elevator:  this is a design that I have only recently
>seen come into use on English bits, and then only on jumpers.
>But gags and pelhams have been around, in use, on "english style"
>horses since at least before the turn of the century.
>
>I would, however, concede entirely that the english-style
>hackamore was taken entirely from western designs.
>
>Moreover, I would agree that people who ride English style and
>who want to have more control with just one rein, but who
>can't quite bring themselves to go for a curb might do well
>to check out all these new jumper bits that *are* very similar
>to bits originally developed, in more recent times, as western
>training bits.
>
>Linda B. Merims
>lbm@ici.net
>Linda_Merims@ne.3com.com
>Massachusetts, USA
>
>
>
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