Buy Equestrian Lunge Lines
Although a contentious topic, we must address the issue of correctness regarding the spelling of the word meaning ‘to lunge a horse’; is it ‘lunging’ or ‘lungeing’? According to the British Horse Society (a.k.a. BHS) it is ‘lungeing’, though according to the Fédération Équestre Internationale (a.k.a. FEI) it is ‘lunging’. For the purposes of this sub-category, we will side with the BHS and use the term ‘lungeing’, though for those of you who side with the FEI and prefer ‘lunging’, we have used that term in other sections of the website (you’re welcome!).
For those unfamiliar with the art of lungeing, we will endeavour to explain as best we can without the option to illustrate (though we may provide a short demo if you pop in store, depending on how tired we are): you stand in the centre of an invisible circle and the objective is to keep your horse moving along the outline of that circle, by way of voice commands and a tactfully positioned lunge whip, at the pace you ask of them (though probably best not to ask for gallop if you want to maintain a smart circle and keep your feet firmly on the ground). It is preferable that you remain in the centre of the circle, parallel to your horse’s shoulder, with the lunge line (not in a tangled mess) in one hand for control and the lunge whip pointing to the ground towards your horse’s hind legs for impulsion (think of the shape of a slice of pizza, though try not to think of actual pizza or you may lose concentration and therefore lose control of your horse).
Lungeing is beneficial to a horse’s overall training (and your sanity) for many reasons, such as warming up before a schooling session or competition class (to buck the excitement away before you get on board), to differentiate their weekly exercise routine which prevents boredom, to assess their behaviour prior to ridden work (to determine, unequivocally, that it’s a ‘nope’ for hacking out on a canter track in the wind today), to develop your horse’s balance, to exercise your horse when riding isn’t feasible, to establish a better connection with your horse, to work on your horse’s responsiveness (so they can ignore your requests to ‘steady’ from the ground as well as from the saddle), and to check for lameness.
So, since you definitely need a lunge line, we highly recommend our fabulous collection of high-quality lunge lines from prestigious equestrian brands who understand just how important it is to be able to lunge your horse safely.
If you require any advice about correctly using a lunge line, we recommend contacting a qualified riding instructor; alternatively, please don’t hesitate to contact our friendly Discount Equestrian team – we’re always happy to help!
