Hey All, my QH is a powerhouse. We have very deep snow, so riding in it daily is like leaping over snow heaps. We have never really gotten to the slow collected canter, she tends to want to race with speed exhilaration. Any advice on how to move to a slow controlled canter. I am hesitant to pull on her mouth, want to keep her light, and when i do she just keeps on racing. For the next few mo our riding will be mountains and trails in deep snow. SHE is highly trained and knows what to do. The problem is being rusty on discipline, and she is 8 mo new to me and I am the novice here. Thanks, Robin

I too am anxious for replies to this post. I have a powerhouse at the canter as well. When trying to slow it down he is very animated, loping in place!

Most people that struggle with this dont ride thier horses enough,that doesnt sound like your problem but you might not be riding him hard enough.Dont be afraid to get your horse tired.If it was me I would longe him for a while until he is tired,then get on him and trot in some circles or figure eights for a while,and when you have control over his speed at a trot try loping.When he lopes slow stop and let him rest.Right now your horse doesnt value rest,but if you work him hard every day for a week or so,loping slow will seem like a good idea to him.This has worked on many horses for me,good luck.

I'm going to take a different tact that "working him enough"...

each gait builds upon itself...if you don't have a confirmed, rateable jog, it's unlikely you'll get a confirmed, rateable lope. Even if YOU do have a good rateable jog, you'll still have to work for the lope.

a few things to check, since you state that your horse is trained (my question..for what? different activities will require differnt things!)

But here they are-
your seat position and leg position. is your seat quiet (needed for a quiet lope) or, when your horse canters, are you really moving your hiney along? <g>, or even hitting the saddle with your tush? <g>). are your legs soft and long, or are you clutching?

can you rate your horses other gaits? in other words-jog, extended jog, trot, extended trot? same at a walk? do you know how to ride a shoulder in, leg yields and increasing and decreasing circles? all things that will help with the canter.

i just had a lesson in collection...how do YOU define collection? Collection is essentially, suspension and elevation...can you do this at a walk, and a jog...in other words...can you define each footfall of your horse?

i know, i threw a lot out there...but it's not really a "stick this bit in the mouth and go at it" answer....

betsey

Betsey is on the right tract. This is not a "one step question" I disagree that "tiring you horse out by lounging" is the answer. I like to keep all the energy and life in my horses and guide it in the direction I want.

You must be able to have collection and contol at a walk before you go to a trot/jog and the same control and collection at a trot before attempting a lope/canter.

I vary my speed when I trail ride, doing lots of transitions, but only after I have the control and collection needed.

I would try to canter in circles until your horse begins to "rate" himself at the collected speed you want. Use only the inside rein, with some outside leg pressure to aid your horse. Watch your seat and your body position to help him do this task. Practice with an excersize ball in the house and notice how the ball goes away from the "lean" your horse will do the same thing.

I would say that "lots of wet saddle blankets would also help" but after reading the posting about "wet saddle blankets" if done that way, not much would be accomplished.

The position a person sits also has a lot to do with the speed the horse takes. If a person leans forward, the horse will speed up. If a person leans back slightly the horse will slow down. The first thing I see many people do is to lean forward in an attempt to anticipate the faster speed which only tells the horse to go faster. Get the horse into a canter, check your position, and then sit up straight and see if the horse slows down. Then lean back slightly and see if the horse slows even more.

The horse travels from the back end first. Slow the back end down and the front end will slow down.

I also agree that if they cannot adjust their speeds at a walk or a trot, they sure won't collect at a canter. Start with collecting at a walk and a trot and then work on it at a canter. Work on getting the hind end of the horse up underneath which will lift the back which will lead to collection.

There is an "exercise" called the wind down. Kind of what peaeye discribed. When your horse gets going too fast take him in a circle making it smaller and smaller until you feel him slow down. Then go back to a straight line. If she speeds up repeat. Like peaeye said just use the inside rein...

In the Jan. issue of WH Martin Black talks about the rider's position when riding and how it affetcts the horse's performance. A good article to read, I think.

Paul

I am no pro but "Excellent advice"! Getting her to listening to you, be aware of the signals you are sending in the seat and saddle, use the circles for control and ride Rosie so she learns rides are the long haul (which it sounds like you do!).

Paul, I agree with you on the balance article in the January Issue of WH. As I was reading this thread that is exactly what I was thinking of! In fact, I am anxious for the follow up articles!

I attended one of Clinton Anderson clinics and as I understood his approach with this type of issue was 'wet blankets' but the kind of moisture the HORSE generates not the garden hose! I still laugh at that! But first and foremost, you must be safe.

NW That helps me. Dillon has nice collection at the walk and canter. He is powerful and when he goes into a lope I feel a strong lift with him so I tend to lean forward. I am still learning the canter, getting my balance and I think Im leaning forward so as not to feel like Im going to end up off the back of him. For me its getting my balance.

Wow, excellent input eveyone, Rosie and I have a lot to work on, thanks much!!!

Robin & Rosie

My wife used to ride one of my old rope horses. He had been used extensively as a team roping horse for many years. Of course he was trained and used to explode out of the box and go from a stand still to flat out with just the squeeze of your legs. When I rode him outside the arena, he transitioned nicely and smoothly. When my wife rode him she couldn't get him to transition slowly. She was leaning forward in anticipation of the explosion and that only made him go faster. After I got her convinced that she wasn't going to fall off the back of the horse, she started doing a lot better.