I am trying to be a better rider and learn more, so I am working hard in lessons and doing reading on the side. Currently, as I write this in early June, I am reading Karin Blignault's book, Successful Schooling: Training your Horse with Empathy. I love it. She is very clear and direct and focused on how horses learn and how to be efficient in training. Each chapter is filled with useful information about how to get your horse to work long and low. Today, for example, I learned that there are 3 primary kinds of half-halts for very distinct purposes. I defintely want to get better at all the various half-halts, so that I can help my horses with upward and downward transitions, engagement, collection, impulsion. One of my goals this year was to ride softer, but stronger! And I definitely need a half-halt for that.