Are your reins too long in a test?

‘Offer the queen an asparagus sandwich on a silver tray’

In junior eventing days, we were told to ‘offer the queen an asparagus sandwich on a silver tray’. This draws attention to the hands being a pair, forwards and giving. A good pair of hands always stands out to me as they are appear to be almost ’proud’ of being where they are. They want to boast how they’re working with a light elastic contact, not shy and trying to hide something.

When you see this mastered, it's memorable.

There’s a simple way of checking if your hands are in the right place and that your reins are not too long. Simply touch your wrists together for a split second in front of your tummy and open apart 6 inches (approx).
It you physically can’t, then your reins are too long. Simple.

In my mind, I like to see elbows slightly to the front of the rib cage, not by the sides as an elastic contact with the elbows this far back will inevitably mean sometimes they may end up behind the ribcage and result in the core having to compensate by tensing and/or leaning forward which will in turn raise your centre of gravity and unbalance your horse.

So smile, breathe, offer the queen an asparagus sandwich on a silver tray, allow your hands to look ‘proud’ of the elastic contact they manage to make you stand out and impress.