My internet has been out and I just got a chance to see Josh's video. Personally, I love the single rein work, find it very powerful and use it with my horses. It's what I used to train Stormur.
I've done the clock exercise. You imagine the horses hoof at the center of the clock, and move it to the various numbers. 12 o'clock is forward, 6 o'clock is back, and the other numbers give you varying degrees of lateral movement. Being able to move the front outside foot to 11 o'clock prevents the horse from falling in on his inside shoulder. It keeps the horse out of your space on the ground and keeps you safe. It is part of the process to teach a horse to align itself and be able to correctly bend and carry itself on a circle. One of the big problems I have with many of my students is that they want to use the outside rein to pull the horse to the outside when they fall in on the inside shoulder. This pulls the horse out of alignment in their spine and makes them stiff, and can, over many years, cause spinal damage. By using the inside rein, you keep the horse in alignment and teach them to lift the withers and free up the shoulders. You can teach the horse to put it's head whereever you want it, by releasing the rein (and/or C/Ting) when it's in that spot. I, personally, do not want my horse's head that low, nor with that degree of lateral flexion, though there may be times when I might accept either/or both. Please keep in mind that this is just one small step in a process. It is not the goal of the training. You are not seeing the end result here. Mary Sand Lake, NY
