A surcingle is a strap made of leather or leather-like synthetic materials such as nylon or neoprene, sometimes with elastic, that fastens around a horse

Horse

The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...

's girth

Girth

In graph theory, the girth of a graph is the length of a shortest cycle contained in the graph. If the graph does not contain any cycles , its girth is defined to be infinity....

 area. A surcingle may be used for ground training

Horse training

Horse training refers to a variety of practices that teach horses to perform certain behaviors when asked to do so by humans. Horses are trained to be manageable by humans for everyday care as well as for equestrian activities from horse racing to therapeutic horseback riding for people with...

, some types of in-hand exhibition

Halter (horse show)

"Halter" is a term used to describe a type of horse show class where horses are shown "in hand," meaning that they are led, not ridden, and are judged on their conformation and suitability as breeding stock...

, and over a saddle

Saddle

A saddle is a supportive structure for a rider or other load, fastened to an animal's back by a girth. The most common type is the equestrian saddle designed for a horse, but specialized saddles have been created for camels and other creatures...

 or horse pack

Packhorse

.A packhorse or pack horse refers generally to an equid such as a horse, mule, donkey or pony used for carrying goods on their backs, usually carried in sidebags or panniers. Typically packhorses are used to cross difficult terrain, where the absence of roads prevents the use of wheeled vehicles. ...

 to stabilize the load. It also is a primary component of a horse harness

Horse harness

A horse harness is a type of horse tack that allows a horse or other equine to pull various horse-drawn vehicles such as a carriage, wagon or sleigh. Harnesses may also be used to hitch animals to other loads such as a plow or canal boat....

.

A basic surcingle is unpadded, attaches around the horse by means of buckles or rings, and has no other hardware. A training surcingle, sometimes called a "roller," has many extra rings attached, running from the ribcage up to the withers area. It usually has padding to relieve pressure on the spine. A variation of this design is used for equestrian vaulting

Equestrian vaulting

Equestrian vaulting, or simply Vaulting , is most often described as gymnastics and dance on horseback and, like these disciplines, it can be practised as a non-competitive art/performance or as a competitive sport. Vaulting has been an equestrian act at the circus from its early days. It is open...

.

Uses of the Surcingle

Many trainers first teach a young horse to accept girth pressure by strapping on a surcingle before a saddle

Saddle

A saddle is a supportive structure for a rider or other load, fastened to an animal's back by a girth. The most common type is the equestrian saddle designed for a horse, but specialized saddles have been created for camels and other creatures...

 and girth. The surcingle is commonly used for longeing

Longeing

Longeing or lungeing is a technique for training horses, where a horse is asked to work at the end of a long line and respond to commands from a handler on the ground who holds the line. It is also a critical component of the sport of equestrian vaulting...

, often as a base from which to attach training equipment such as side reins

Side reins

Side reins are equipment used when longeing a horse, running from the bit of the bridle to the saddle or surcingle. As a horse training tool, they encourage flexion and softness in the horse's mouth. For longe work with a rider up who does not carry ordinary riding reins, they help calm and...

, overcheck, lauffer reins (sliding side reins), or chambon

Chambon

A chambon is a piece of horse tack. It is a strap that runs forward from the bottom of the girth or surcingle, and forks. The forks continue to a ring on either side of the bridle or halter, at the base of the crownpiece. Running through those rings, the forks follow the cheekpieces to the bit...

s. A surcingle is also important in long lining or ground driving, as it provides rings for the long reins to run through. Double longeing, using two longe lines, requires the use of a surcingle to thread the longe lines through the rings.

Compared to a saddle, a surcingle allows more precise adjustment of side reins due to the placement of additional rings. While a saddle only provides one height to attach the rings (the girth buckles), and can be uneven or at the wrong position, a training surcingle places rings at more appropriate locations for ground work. Many surcingle designs allow the side reins to be attached at several different heights along the sides of the horse.

Placement of the Surcingle

When used without a saddle, a surcingle sits just behind the withers. When used with a saddle, the surcingle runs over the seat near the pommel. A surcingle is also used over the top of certain types of pack saddle

Pack saddle

A pack saddle is any device designed to be secured on the back of a horse, mule, or other draft animal so it can carry heavy loads such as luggage, firewood, small cannons or other weapons too heavy to be carried by humans, etc.-Description:...

and pack to keep the pack bags and swag in place. A surcingle is usually used with a pad, and fit to the horse's back as carefully as a saddle would be. It is tightened enough to prevent slipping, more when used with a saddle and rider, less when used for ground training.