How many times have you seen people attempt shoulder in or half pass, only to see their horse bulging through the shoulder and shuffling sorta sideways. Or the rider bending the wrong way and thinking they have achieved half pass, or even more common, thinking their horse is straight when it’s actually shaped a bit like a squiggle.

Part of the problem is it’s hard to visualize how your horse needs to move through its body to perform these movements properly. This wonderful illustration is very helpful as it shows how the horse’s body bends from the poll through its spine as well as showing where the power (or thrust) of the hind leg is sending the body.