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reins. As you begin to ride, start at a
walk, and ask him to give his chin;
you’ll accomplish this by using your
hands and feet together.
Once you feel your horse give to
the pressure and stay bridled up at a
walk, you can increase the diffi culty
by jogging. Progress to extending the
jog, loping, and extending the lope. It
may take a couple of rides before your
horse is totally comfortable doing this
exercise, but as you progress, continue
to change it up by throwing in diff erent
maneuvers, like circling, into your
routine, When your horse is able to
give in the face, you’ll notice he’s more
accepting of your hand and guidance.
Counter Canter
Being able to counter canter is a must
in all-around competition. A horse
competing in those types of events is
required to counter canter and lope diag-
onal lines while maintaining cadence in
his body and brokenness in his face.
When you fi rst ask your horse to
counter canter, there’s a possibility he’ll
struggle with loping a full circle and
might fall out of lead in the hind end or
try to change leads all together. Counter
cantering is a maneuver with a high
degree of diffi culty, and It’ll take time
before your horse is strong enough to
lope a full circle while staying collected,
in the bridle, and in the correct lead.
To see how your horse handles a
counter canter, start by circling on the
correct lead. When you reach one end of
your arena, head longways on a diagonal
line from corner to corner, making a
half-moon arc on the correct lead. Once
you’ve completed your diagonal and are
now on the opposite side of the arena,
you’ll create that same half-moon arc at
a counter canter.
This way, your horse has more room
to counter canter without breaking
down to a jog or falling out of lead.
Once your horse is able to do the half-
moon arcs at a counter canter, you’ll
build up to a full circle on the opposite
lead without losing his body position
or cadence.Changing Leads
It’s really important that your horse is
comfortable changing leads, as you’ll
be required to change leads in almost
every class you compete in, whether it’s
horsemanship, Western riding, or even
a trail class.
While in some classes—like horse-
manship or trail—it’s acceptable to
perform a simple lead change, to earn a
score with a higher degree of diffi culty,
your horse should be able to change
leads in a willing manner.
For a class like Western riding, your
horse must be capable of doing fl ying
lead changes without losing speed or
collection as you maneuver through the
cones or over the pole.
To evaluate your horse’s lead change,
go back to your counter-canter drill, and
instead of going the opposite direction
while counter cantering, make your
change as your horse is crossing the
long side of the arena.
The fl ying lead change is a diffi cult
maneuver that usually requires an ad-
vanced riding skill. If your horse doesn’t
have a fl ying lead change, or you’re newat changing leads, it’s best to seek the
advice of a professional to avoid creating
a negative riding experience that could
cause more problems down the road.Going Over Poles
I’ve seen horses of all sizes and all stride
lengths go into trail and Western riding
classes. It doesn’t matt er what size your
horse is, but rather if he’s able to get
over the pole.
If you’ve never gone over poles before,
start by going over a single pole at the
walk, then move up to a jog. Once you’re
comfortable jogging over that pole, test
your horse’s skills at the lope. Counting
your horse’s strides as you approach the
pole will help you put your horse in the
right spot to correctly go over the pole at
the right point of his stride.
Next, you’ll put two poles out—3 feet
apart for one-stride jogs, 6 feet apart for
one-stride lopes. This helps you learn
where your horse’s feet need to be to
clear a series of poles properly.
Pay att ention to how your horseMike Hachtel, Collinsville, Texas, has
trained horses for more than 35 years.
The American Paint Horse Association
Professional Horseman has won major
events in multiple breed associations,
and his clients have won in classes rang-
ing from showmanship to trail. His main
focus is Western pleasure and hunter
under saddle classes. He’s been a judge
for several associations, including Nation-
al Snaffl e Bit Association and APHA.If your goal is to compete in showmanship,
pay attention to how responsive your horse
is to your cues on the ground. Ideally, your
horse should move out of your personal
space if you ask him to back up. If he doesn’t
move, you know you’ll have to focus more
time on ground work.