I got a copy of "Principles of Driving" before starting my pair a couple years ago. I think that purchase was based on Hardy's recommendation back then. I found it very helpfull and recommend it to anyone. Bob A Raymond, Ca --- Hzlax@xxxxxxx wrote: > I have not read the book "A Teamsters View" by Steve Bowers, but > did read > with interest the preview of it in Driving Digest (Jan/Feb > 2006). Yes, it is > coming from draft hitches, so some of the details (and terms) do > not apply > completely to carriage driving pairs, but many of the > fundamentals are certainly > very similar, and I think one can always learn from the other > faculty as well and > it pays to think the concepts through. > > I did find however a couple of items in that short preview that I > couldn't > follow. He writes "Pleasure pair driving reins are manufactured > with a definite > right and left line being different from each other to allow the > teamster to > drive from a position directly behind the right-hand horse." > Perhaps he is > right, but I have never heard that before, nor have I seen any > such reins that > were made different (other than one having the buckle at the end > and the other > the billet), nor do I see why that would be necessary, as sitting > to the right, > we just take the right rein a couple of inches shorter into our > hand than the > left rein and that takes care of the difference. > > Further down he describes the problems with a Leaning Team and > explains the > differences in measurements, and how far the horses would need to > travel apart > (or together) depending on how much longer the coupling reins are > adjusted to > the draft reins. He gives an example and writes that when > coupling and draft > reins are equal in length (e.g. adjusted so that there is no > difference in > length between them!) that then the bit centers of the two horses > would be 26 > inches apart. I can follow the math of his explanations, and how > he arrives at the > 26", but don't see how that would be correct and how they would > be 26 inches > apart. Instead I think if draft and coupling reins would be > exactly the same > length then bit centers would be zero inches apart, or not? > > Perhaps some of you might have read the preview or the book and > can help me > understand these two items? What am I missing here? > > My favorite learning books are "The Principles of Driving" by the > German > National Equestrian Federation and "The Art of Driving" by Max > Pape. Both have > good explanations on the pair reins as well as other aspects of > pair driving. > > On the subject of draft hitches: I really have not seen any > snobbery from > carriage folks against draft drivers or their hitches. I always > have seen only > interest in the other side. We all can always only learn from > each other. I am > happy to note that seems to be clearly the sentiment on this list > as well. If > some folks read Marjeans comment differently then I think they > probably > misunderstood Marjean. I certainly have nothing against draft > hitches nor draft horse > folks, quite the contrary, I am VERY fond of them, having grown > up with draft > horses and learned much of what I know from teamsters. > Hardy > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com _________________________________________________________ To Unsubscribe, change to Digest or Vacation mode go to: http://www.drivingpairs.com/dpmem.shtml `````````````````````````````````````````````````````````