Fall 2019 / 81rollback. Start by trotting or loping
one direction; once you know you’re
straight, ask your horse to stop. Perform
a 180-degree turn to the outside (toward
the arena rail), and immediately drive
him out of that turn and trot or lope the
opposite direction. Be sure to practice
this both ways so you can see if your
horse is stiffer going one direction over
the other. If your horse struggles with
the rollback, chances are, he’ll struggle
with turnarounds, as well.
If you don’t feel like your horse is turn-
ing around properly, certain parts of his
body could be stiff, or he could be heavy
in the face, and you may need to go back
to the basics to get him soft and supple
before working the turnaround again.Face Control
A horse that doesn’t give in the face, or
one that likes to pull on the bit, is going
to have a more difficult time steering
through a pattern than a horse that
stays framed up and collected. When
your reins are too loose, you risk the
chance of not having total control overThe turnaround is a key element in all-
around events. A horse that competes in
a class like the horsemanship should be
able to cross his outside leg over his inside
leg in a smooth manner while holding his
hindquarters still.Test your horse on large half-moon arcs to
help him get comfortable counter canter-
ing before attempting a full circle.If you plan to compete in an event that
requires going over obstacles, try trotting
your horse over a single pole to see how
he responds. If he likes to pick his feet up,
you are on your way to being able to do(^3) trail and western riding.
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where you’re guiding your horse, which
causes your body to go out of position.
This is why you’ll notice most riders
prefer to ride with a shorter rein in
pattern events, like horsemanship, than
in a class like Western pleasure.
To work on this with your horse,
start in a snaffle, and shorten up your
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