Questions and Answers

Go Tucker Go is working on getting some forward on her horse. She has gotten her walk and trot going and is ready for more.


She asks - One problem I have had recently is he dives in when he feels me bridge the reins to jockey smack his backside to get moving and my riding instructor is afraid if I let him do that and don't correct him for it immediately it will become a problem.

Go Tucker Go's trainer wants her to stop him and restart him to get him going again.

First off - Do what your trainer says. You have to go with her instruction to build confidence between the two of you. It's really important.

Second - She has a valid point. When a horse extends himself into a "death trot" it's actually harder for him to put himself in the lope. He's all strung out and hollow backed and just slamming you all over the place. It makes it tough to get his belly up, his hind legs under himself and go.

So, stopping him and starting again will accomplish two things. It will stop the teeth jarring trot. It will give his rider a chance to regather him and it's adding a stop and start to the program. So it's more work for him. All good points.

The only problem I run into with this method is if I'm riding a lazy galoot who's smarter than I am. This kind of horse will figure out I'll stop him and regather if he just keeps trotting. Which gives him a rest and gets us off the original mission, which is going forward. So that's what he does.

I don't mind if a horse trots into his lope for quite awhile. He can trot 3 or 4 steps as long as he's just trying to get under himself. If he go into the death trot I get mad. But at first I just push him through it, so he learns I mean LOPE when I smooch. Then I pull him down for the death trot, but not until I'm sure the horse gets the lope cue.

I would suggest a combination of the two methods. My way you have to practice when the trainer's not there because it will piss her off at me and I don't want that. So shhhhh, this is just between us.

My point here is, he has to go when you say so. That's all. So I don't care if he dives. We can address that later. He's using the dive as a way to distract you. And it's working. Now your correcting something else without fixing the first problem. So he's winning. The smart old galoot.

So one day when you are alone you're going to fix this nonsense.

Get on your horse. Walk him around some, but that's it. We want him a little fresh. Ride with your reins bridged from the get go. That way he can't tell what your going to do.

From a standstill I want you to smooch. Once.

Than you will over and under him with your reins until he is loping. Whack! Across his shoulders please. You don't have to hit him hard. Start soft, just swinging the rein back and forth hard enough to get a rhythm going. Increase the sting as needed. Always start soft and build your pressure. Every time.

I don't care if he dives, you won't either because you're not going to steer. You are simply going to spank him until he lopes. This is about loping, not steering. Hang onto the horn if this makes you nervous.

As soon as he lopes you can relax. If he only lopes two steps that's OK. Let him stop.

Then do it again.

And again.

Until he blows on out of there when you smooch. Always smooch first.

The trick here is to stop him the second he breaks gait. As long as he lopes you sit quiet and leave him be. If he breaks gait, stop him and start him again. This is about loping. Not steering.

When he will lope off one smooch then we're ready to keep him straight.

Have him on the rail. Smooch. By now he'll be hustling, trust me. Wait until he dives.Then take your outside rein, spin him in a little circle towards the rail (not a pretty spin, just turn him around) Stop, breathe, go back to the rail and ask him to lope again. Repeat until he knocks it off. It may take awhile. He'll try to trot again, he'll try to not go at all....ignore him.
The only two tools you have is the spin towards the rail and the over-and-under after your smooch.

Be patient. Always start soft. Always wait until he dives. Let him make the mistake. The circle will be the unpleasant work he does off the rail. Loping along the rail will start feeling pretty good.

Don't worry about leads right now. This is about going when he's told to go. When he's straightened out, loping when he's told and staying on the rail, then you can worry about leads.

Then you will walk him forward, set up your lead departure, then smooch. If he can lope out of the walk he will have an easier time getting into his lead.

So now we go to our pluggy walk-trot transitions. A different problem BTW.

Tucker is walking as told and trotting as told but he's lazy and resentful about it. Too bad Tucker.

We're going to cheer him up.

It's time to bring in our legs.

Get Tucker walking. Move your seat in a forward, sliding motion and lightly bump with your calves in the rhythm of his walk. He will probably raise his head and swat his tail, maybe speed up a little, just stay with the rhythm until he's used to it and cruising along. Don't pump your seat too much. It won't help, it looks freaky and people will mock you. Think of it as a kagel exercise, important to do, but not something you want people to see you doing in line at the grocery store.

Now stop. You're hands are quiet. You relax your legs and take them off his sides. You quit moving completely. Your shoulders slump, your head drops, you're a rag doll. Exhale down into your seat. Think of yourself as a sleepy, relaxed, lead balloon. He should stop. If he doesn't, hang in there and keep exhaling. Sit relaxed, heavy and silent until he stops.

Sit for a slow count of 10. Breathe.

Now, sit up with energy, look straight ahead and put your legs back on him. Squeeze, if needed, half the time they'll go just from your energy.

Find your rhythm again. Now increase the speed of your seat and bumping. Keep it up until he speeds up his walk to match your increased rhythm. Relax your legs. Keep your forward thoughts and energy, don't let go like you do for the stop, but sit quiet. As soon as he slows then activate your legs and seat and put him back into his fast walk.

Now, get him going and then stop him again. Try to stop him before he slows down. Then get him going, speed him up, slow him down, stop, just mess with him. Get your cues clear.

When you've both got this part of the exercise down pat, then once he's walking along increase the speed of your bumping until he trots in order to match the rhythm of your seat and legs. When he trots, let him go a few steps then stop him with your seat. Repeat.

Now Tucker should be really listening, he should also be wondering what the heck your up too.

Get him trotting. Sit relaxed with your legs lightly bumping along in his rhythm. The second you feel him slow down increase the speed of your seat and bumping until he is going a little faster than you want. Then relax your seat and let him come back down to the desired speed. Sit quiet and controlled, but keep a rhythm going with your seat and calves.

Play with this. Make him walk fast, then slow, then fast. You decide the speed. Make him trot fast, then slow, fast, then slow. Then when he's trotting at the travelling speed you want, relax and let him go.

He will learn to be happy maintaining the speed you want, because the transitions are hard work.

He will begin too seek the place you want him in and try to stay there.

Does this make sense?

Don't apply this to the lope yet.

He has to learn to lope along on the rail first.

Let us know how it's going.