I just spent…well, let’s characterize it as an unreasonable amount of time…staring at this image and trying to figure out the bridle & reins.
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What is he trying to do with those reins?
Stop the dragon? With one arm sort of weirdly back like that? Plus they’re still slack. So…not really.
You could argue that sweeping with the arm like that could work to give a hard yank on a curb bit, something with those super-long Western shanks.
But then that brings us to the bit/bridle setup itself. It’s…basically tied down to the poor thing’s mouth. Not hanging from bit keepers. And the chin strap is WAY too tight.
And there’s no bit groove, where is it supposed to rest? It just slides back into its mouth until it gags the poor thing? Plus that translucent film at the corner of its mouth looks delicate. How does it even slide, when it’s tied down that tightly?
It’s a pretty gentle bit for that hard of a yank and that nasty of a bridle setup, just a mullen mouth loose ring or maybe eggbutt.
On an unrelated note, why is there a buckle in the reins so close to the bit? Isn’t that just asking for a break?
And why are the reins so darn long?
Does this really bother anyone else or have I finally cracked?
beljoeor.com 
Well, you can see the guy behind riding on the buckle basically, and the front guy WAS doing that when his beast spooked and now the embarrassment of being unprepared is showing in the desperate attempt to get back to a reasonable rein length…
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And the reins are that long so that when they get stuck under that articulated neck armor one can shake the rein down the side to free it. But if the rein gets too long, it will be cut by the knife blades on the front armor and leave the rider at the mercy of his beast. Quite frankly, I am not sure you are appreciating the skills required by the rider here :-).
(Yes, I spent awhile staring at this too! Thanks for the entertainment!)
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See, l got stuck on rider position, mostly because the guys toes out, a thing I used to do and it was hard to fix. And I don’t like that banner thing he’s trailing, I see all manner of unnecessary fatal accidents and would not allow it in a lesson.
The really bad part is not being allowed to go to the farm. That is what makes us do this picture thing and no doubt other things. I have a fitted sheet that is supposed to fit but always rides up one corner to expose a white pad. I am getting stuck on that keep trying it different ways to see if there’s some special specific configuration that is best. Wondering about dragon tack seems more worthwhile.
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“would not allow it in a lesson” hahaha *snort*
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I think it’s supposed to be one of those war bridles? You know the kind that is just a bit and it buckles underneath the chin? But then there is a strap above it. So hard to say for sure. Definitely looks like the dragon took off while they were riding on a loose rein. Dragons are so unpredictable!
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I think there is kind of a bridle on there – there is a cheek piece type of strap that looks like it would go over the dragon’s poll. It’s hard to see because it sits under the head armor of the dragon, but you can see the buckle near the bit.
The girth buckles are totally wrong though. The buckle is upside down, which mean the excess strap would have to go up instead of down – how would you keep it from flapping around?
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But what is the structure coming forth from the lizard’s neck? Are they supposed to be odd tusks? Are they there because they’re used in mating displays to demonstrate fitness? Are larger ones preferential to smaller ones? Do they contain some sort of sensory organ within?
No, you’re not the only one with questions.
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😂😂😂
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I’m pretty sure that the knight is riding a mare. She wants to go right and the rider wants to go left. Clearly the knight has let the reins get too long and now is being harsh. He/she is going to be dumped in the next five seconds and you can see his/her desperate attempt to hang on. Clearly he is over-dragoned and need s to go back to the basics.
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I love everyone in this bar.
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Like Liz, above, I am disturbed by the horns/tusks coming out below the dragon’s jaws. However does it manage to eat and drink with these things in the way? And don’t modern dragon riders typically detusk/dehorn their mounts these days? Also, I am not sure that helmet he is wearing meets ASTM standards.
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dying laughing here. that is all….just dying. Tho i have ridden the way the knight is riding (no reins, arm up in a useless manner, etc) when Remus has spun and left me on the dirt before:) HA so i feel himhahahha
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I think that chin strap is actually coming up behind the eye in which case someone put their Micklem on wrong.
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