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This Week's Trinity Schooling Idea *Hard(ware) Decisions*

Most every trainer has a secret stash. It's worth perhaps more money than their car (but definitely not their truck) and they know exactly every single item, it's width, weight, and metal that makes it up. It's a box, or a drawer, or a series of pegs, or a trunk tucked away. . . it's a secret horde of bits that represents lessons learned, trial and error. You can tell a lot about a trainer by their collection: by the ones that come in every size and alloy, and by the ones that lie dusty, dull and tarnished on the bottom.

To the rider new to the game, there is nothing more overwhelming than going to the giant collection of bits at the tack store, and it becomes even more overwhelming when you actually try to start learning about how they work, and determine what your horse likes.

As we dip our toes into the melted snow-water of the spring season, here's a simple guide as well as a few of my thoughts on bits and bitting, when and why and why not.

1. DA RULES Before you consider changing your bit or if your trainer suggests a new one, the responsibility still falls to you as a rider to check whether it is legal or not. If you are showing dressage (which is probably why you're reading this) https://www.usef.org/documents/rulebook/2013/08-dr.pdf is the place to visit. These rules are kept updated, and I make a point to check them every time I consider something "new" on the market, even if it claims to be legal, because it's easy to get confused.

1.Rings These are the 'sides' of the bit. There are several options in the snaffle bits required in anyone showing below third level (where double bridles become optional).

Loose Ring - this is where there is a big, single ring on either side of the mouth to which both the bridle and the reins attach. Pretty simple right? It is. Many horses use a loose ring snaffle through most of their career.

Eggbutt - This has a slightly flattened, rounded area near to mouth. The reins and cheekpieces of the bridle attach in the same way as the Loose Ring. The shape allows the bit to lie quieter in the mouth, and helps direct the horse a little more toward the direction of a direct rein motion. For horses that get pinched easily, or are a little fussy, this is my favorite choice.

Dee Ring - more popular with Hunter Riders than dressage, it is still an effective (and safer than a full cheek because the ends are closed) bit, especially for green horses that may need more help in directing their noses toward your destination. Full Cheek - My least favorite design for a bit, as it can easily catch on things if the horse throws his head around, and when not fitted properly can harm the horse's mouth. This bit has a small ring, to which the reins and bridle attach, but also has a straight cheekpiece that lies against the horse's mouth. It acts like a direct guiding force when the opposite side rein is pulled. I always find it very amusing that you can find many of these in antique shops with the ends bent. We all know how that happened. Baucher - This bit comes in different variations (see the rulebook) and is considered by some to have a slight poll pressure action when the rein aid is used. I don't find it effective in this way, though I have had a couple of horses preferred it and the way that it sat in their mouth simply due to the way it hangs at a slightly different angle from the bridle.

2.Mouthpieces Here's where things get tricky, and change often. The four basic types of mouth pieces you will find in legal dressage bits are:

Single Joint Snaffle - It's the simplest bit on the market, but you will find many variations in angle and engineering on the single joint and the price can go from $9.99 to around $200.00. Seriously. People get really excited about how this single joint sits in a horse's mouth. And if you have ever had a picky horse, you will too.

French Link - This is a dog-bone shaped piece in the middle of the bit, flanked by two joints. it is not rotated, so it lies flat in the horse's mouth, on the tongue. A similar looking bit is called a "Dr. Bristol" that has the flat piece set at an angle to the tongue. It adds severity to the bit. Dr. Bristols are not legal in dressage..

Oval or Bean Link - These are probably the most popular bits right now, and my personal favorite. Like a french link, there is a single 'link' in the middle with two joints. Except here, the 'link' is rounded and depending on which direction the joints connect, rein pressure may cause it to rise up, forward, or at a slight angle in the mouth. It all depends on your horse's mouth conformation. I find that many of our modern-day horses have a shallow palate and these bits are usually the least likely to interfere with the soft tissue on the roof of the mouth, and least likely to pinch the tongue. They also have less of a nutcracker action than a single jointed bit, and can be considered by many to be gentler in good hands.

Mullen Mouth - There are constantly variations on these bits at well. Nowadays, mullens are a bit of a 'last resort' to see what your horse like, but they used to be more commonplace, as they were often employed in driving bits. They are stable, direct, don't give the tongue much leeway for monkeying around, and horses either love them or hate them. Every once in a while I find a horse that just likes these bits, and I just go with it.

Now, there are a plethora of other types: some of the newer versions are the Mylers, the rotating mouthpieces, the faux ports (which don't make much sense to me in a snaffle for most horses), and also the ever popular plastic bits. My advice is this: 1. Plastic - My horses like to chew on plastic and every plastic bit I've ever used regularly ends up looking like a Jack Russell chew toy after a period of time. These MUST be replaced, or your bit becomes cruel, if not illegal. 2. Weird is as weird does - the wheel seemingly keeps being reinvented it seems, when it comes to bits. Anything that looks like something out of a book of medieval illustrations of 'instructions for knights and their steeds', it's pretty safe to say you should steer clear. Again, consult the rules. Simplest is usually better. 3. Moving Parts - be especially careful with any joints and moving parts on your bits - you MUST check them regularly for wear. Metal wears out, and it will create gaps in the joints which leave space for (ouch) skin or tongues to get trapped and pinched. This will leave your horse hating the bit nearly as much as you will hate him. 4. No bit - I'm a traditionalist, and apart from a few cases where I have met horses that had bona fide injuries to their mouths, I would be very hesitant to subject the very soft skin and delicate facial tissue, much less the area around the teeth and chin to the likes of the bitless bridles that I have seen. I've trained quite a few horses in bosals, and it really is magical how horses can learn to interpret signals with their face, but the bitless bridles that engage a leverage around the cheek area of the horse put sensitive tissue in contact with the teeth, nasal structure, and even have the potential to disrupt blood flow. I'm sure there's a few out there that could do no harm, are expertly engineered, and work wonders on horses, but I figure we all should go by the rule, and not the exception. The rule of course, being, use a bit with kind hands, and you should be able to find some common ground: If you chances of achieving Grand Prix stardom are limited by that prospect, maybe it's not just a bit that is getting in your way.

Now, I've been building up to this, so here's my personal rant on hardware. Most anything in dressage can and should be trained and produced with a simple snaffle bit, and a legal one at that. If you catch yourself thinking "what if I tried" . . . ask yourself this: 1. Do I need a new bit or do I need to add depth to my own training tool kit? Have I approached this from every possible angle, even breaking it down as far to explaining it from the ground to my horse? 2. Is this a question of simply strength? And why? Do I need to learn how to supple my horse more effectively? Are my horse and I simply mismatched in our size/reaction time/athleticism? 3. Is this a question of my horse being too forward and I feel like i need better brakes? Am I effective in my half halts? Am I driving too much with my seat? 4. Is my horse too noisy in the mouth because I'm too noisy with my hands? 5. Does my horse lean on me because I let him? Does he actually know how to carry himself, or have I moved up a level without helping him to learn how?

These kinds of questions should go through your head and you should be able to answer them honestly. Now, I'm not saying that you should never try something new, given you have educated hands and the best interests of your horse at heart. My goal is to find what my horse honestly prefers, and what I feel like I can use to keep the most honest line of communication open throughout every ride: Horses truly do have preferences in bits, but as you move up the levels, you should find this to be less and less the answer to your questions. You will find that the bit isn't the problem . . . your money spent on the bright shiny new hundred dollar bit would be better spent on a lesson to address the real issue in your communication with your horse.

Sometimes it's not the hardware you need to replace . . . You just need an update to your body's software.