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Married to a Louie Lover
Posts: 3303
  
| livexlovexrodeo - 2017-05-03 12:11 PM
I can't guarantee it will work, but it worked on my chargy horse.
I spent a week where I loped him every single day for at least 30 minutes straight. I set a timer and he didn't get to stop until that timer went off. The first two days, he never slowed down. My arms were dead by the time we were done. The third day he relaxed his lope about 15 minutes in. By the 4th day, he loped off on a loose rein.
The idea behind it is not to tire them. It's to get them thinking "were loping and I have no idea when we are going to stop so maybe I should go slow". Kind of like how when your horse is bad at standing tied, you tie them up a lot.
Tired horses are good horses - kind of like dogs, kids, and husbands (jk on that last one, but he does get cantankerous when he doesn't have a honey-do list).
For body position I have realized a ton about softening my seat and lower back through yoga practice. It was like a light bulb moment when I truely realized how much tension I was carrying in my lower back. Developing a self awareness when we ride is one of the toughest things, IMO. It's hard to relax yourself on a chargey horse, but it may be one of the more critical parts, especially on young or green horses whose flight instinct is more primed - if you are tense they wonder why and what is going to come get then.
I like a long lope to start to take the edge off and then loping circles, spirals, figure 8's, serpentines, etc. when they start to relax they can continue moving in the direction of travel. When the tension starts to build again, the direction of travel gets changed until we start to find the softness again. I usually use a ring snaffle and 2 hands, releasing all pressure when they start to relax and soften, but still riding them forward off my leg. I'm not a fan of stops unless they are just plain ignoring me, then I'll sit them down, I want to encourage the forward motion, and when they soften and relax I leave them alone.
Remember going slow is hard - it takes topline and muscle. A lot of horses get chargey because they lack this and rely on momentum to carry them forward. So a handful of strides on day 1 may be all you get. Day 5 may give you a full circle and by ride 30 you're pretty consistent. | |
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 Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
  
Location: Phoenix | Is she hot when you trot?
I dont like stopping and backing up unless you are going to stand there and let her soak. I find with stopping and backing and the going forward they just launch out of it.
Hows her groundwork? What does she do in the roundpen?
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 380
| Transitions help a lot with this, but get really good with half halts and finding the perfect time to ask for the lope too. Hard to explain but once you find the right timing a few times and you get the nice transition, you will start to get a feel for it. It feels different with every horse. Also I noticed that when my mare would charge into the lope I would just let her at first. Then while in the lope I would work on collecting and slowing and when she got right where I wanted her I would let her stop and think about it for a bit. She eventually quieted down her transition. It was not perfect but much improved.
Edited by SloRide 2017-05-05 10:10 PM
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 898
Location: Mountains of VA | OhMax - 2017-05-05 1:38 PM livexlovexrodeo - 2017-05-03 12:11 PM I can't guarantee it will work, but it worked on my chargy horse. I spent a week where I loped him every single day for at least 30 minutes straight. I set a timer and he didn't get to stop until that timer went off. The first two days, he never slowed down. My arms were dead by the time we were done. The third day he relaxed his lope about 15 minutes in. By the 4th day, he loped off on a loose rein. The idea behind it is not to tire them. It's to get them thinking "were loping and I have no idea when we are going to stop so maybe I should go slow". Kind of like how when your horse is bad at standing tied, you tie them up a lot. Tired horses are good horses - kind of like dogs, kids, and husbands (jk on that last one, but he does get cantankerous when he doesn't have a honey-do list ). For body position I have realized a ton about softening my seat and lower back through yoga practice. It was like a light bulb moment when I truely realized how much tension I was carrying in my lower back. Developing a self awareness when we ride is one of the toughest things, IMO. It's hard to relax yourself on a chargey horse, but it may be one of the more critical parts, especially on young or green horses whose flight instinct is more primed - if you are tense they wonder why and what is going to come get then. I like a long lope to start to take the edge off and then loping circles, spirals, figure 8's, serpentines, etc. when they start to relax they can continue moving in the direction of travel. When the tension starts to build again, the direction of travel gets changed until we start to find the softness again. I usually use a ring snaffle and 2 hands, releasing all pressure when they start to relax and soften, but still riding them forward off my leg. I'm not a fan of stops unless they are just plain ignoring me, then I'll sit them down, I want to encourage the forward motion, and when they soften and relax I leave them alone. Remember going slow is hard - it takes topline and muscle. A lot of horses get chargey because they lack this and rely on momentum to carry them forward. So a handful of strides on day 1 may be all you get. Day 5 may give you a full circle and by ride 30 you're pretty consistent.
Remember going slow is hard - it takes topline and muscle. A lot of horses get chargey because they lack this and rely on momentum to carry them forward!
This ^^^^^ I agree, OhMax. Weak stifles, hocks, hindquarters, etc., this all contributes to chargey, fast horses. | |
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 BHW Resident Surgeon
Posts: 25351
Location: Bastrop, Texas | The only things I might add to these suggestions is to take them a little "off balance" by tipping their nose one way or the other in straight line work, or to the outside if you are loping circles....basically a counter arc. Another thing would be if they start out at a nice slow lope when you are loping circles and just keep wanting to speed up.....then when that starts to happen, take them into a small counter arc circle - a circle-in-a-circle sort of thing. They quickly learn that getting chargey ends up being harder work. Those are good exercises anyway, even if the horse isn't chargey.
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Location: Washington State | hammer_time - 2017-05-05 3:37 PM
Is she hot when you trot?
I dont like stopping and backing up unless you are going to stand there and let her soak. I find with stopping and backing and the going forward they just launch out of it.
Hows her groundwork? What does she do in the roundpen?
Typically no she's not hot when I trot, when she is I just work on some flexion at the trot and she calms down very quickly when I make her think. She will transition to a walk and woah with just my seat and vocal cue, I've found with her the less I can mess with her face the better. Her groundwork is phenomenal, transitions great and faces towards me in her turns. She's very respectful. | |
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I just read the headlines
Posts: 4483
| smatty - 2017-05-07 9:44 AM
hammer_time - 2017-05-05 3:37 PM
Is she hot when you trot?
I dont like stopping and backing up unless you are going to stand there and let her soak. I find with stopping and backing and the going forward they just launch out of it.
Hows her groundwork? What does she do in the roundpen?
Typically no she's not hot when I trot, when she is I just work on some flexion at the trot and she calms down very quickly when I make her think. She will transition to a walk and woah with just my seat and vocal cue, I've found with her the less I can mess with her face the better. Her groundwork is phenomenal, transitions great and faces towards me in her turns. She's very respectful.
What do you mean "faces towards me in her turns"? Could you be asking for too much bend, thus throwing her off balance which could cause her to speed up? That phrase just caught my attention. | |
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Location: Washington State | GLP - 2017-05-07 7:53 AM
smatty - 2017-05-07 9:44 AM
hammer_time - 2017-05-05 3:37 PM
Is she hot when you trot?
I dont like stopping and backing up unless you are going to stand there and let her soak. I find with stopping and backing and the going forward they just launch out of it.
Hows her groundwork? What does she do in the roundpen?
Typically no she's not hot when I trot, when she is I just work on some flexion at the trot and she calms down very quickly when I make her think. She will transition to a walk and woah with just my seat and vocal cue, I've found with her the less I can mess with her face the better. Her groundwork is phenomenal, transitions great and faces towards me in her turns. She's very respectful.
What do you mean "faces towards me in her turns"? Could you be asking for too much bend, thus throwing her off balance which could cause her to speed up? That phrase just caught my attention.
In the round pen I meant, not under saddle. When I ask for a change of direction she faces towards me, not swinging her butt towards me. Under saddle I don't ask for much bend at all, I will ask for the lope transition going into a corner and barely pick up the inside rein. She's pretty good with picking up her leads though so I don't always have to ask in to a corner. | |
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I just read the headlines
Posts: 4483
| smatty - 2017-05-07 9:57 AM
GLP - 2017-05-07 7:53 AM
smatty - 2017-05-07 9:44 AM
hammer_time - 2017-05-05 3:37 PM
Is she hot when you trot?
I dont like stopping and backing up unless you are going to stand there and let her soak. I find with stopping and backing and the going forward they just launch out of it.
Hows her groundwork? What does she do in the roundpen?
Typically no she's not hot when I trot, when she is I just work on some flexion at the trot and she calms down very quickly when I make her think. She will transition to a walk and woah with just my seat and vocal cue, I've found with her the less I can mess with her face the better. Her groundwork is phenomenal, transitions great and faces towards me in her turns. She's very respectful.
What do you mean "faces towards me in her turns"? Could you be asking for too much bend, thus throwing her off balance which could cause her to speed up? That phrase just caught my attention.
In the round pen I meant, not under saddle. When I ask for a change of direction she faces towards me, not swinging her butt towards me. Under saddle I don't ask for much bend at all, I will ask for the lope transition going into a corner and barely pick up the inside rein. She's pretty good with picking up her leads though so I don't always have to ask in to a corner.
Ah, got cha! | |
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 Balance Beam and more...
Posts: 11493
Location: 31 lengths farms | Good advice on here..counter arc helps teach "rate" naturally, setting them up for a lope departure and then releasing it without asking for the actual lope helps too, half halts and the change of direction. I know on my little mare loping her till she was tired only helped that day, problem is that with a free runner, chargy horse and loping till they are tired you build a horse that hasn't learned to settle in and lope quietly, you've built a horse with a lot of lung power and if you lope them till they are tired today and tomorrow by the end of the week you have a horse you better pack a lunch and have a few hours to spare to lope down. | |
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 I Sell Dreams
Posts: 1654
Location: Freestone TX | I had a daughter of Docs Oak that would rather die at a full out run than ever think of slowing down. I didn't think it was healthy to let her do that until she dropped. I tried stopping her when she'd charge and all she did was anticipate it and start jamming herself into the ground if she felt my body position change at all. She was a fanatic about both: the dead run and the grinding stop and didn't mind doing both of them until she dropped.
I got a tip from an excellent trainer to back her..not a few steps...back her the entire length of the pasture if necessary. And that's what we did. In the beginning, it did take the entire pasture. She would charge and I would set her down easy and then we'd start backing. No rough stuff. Just asking for a nice leisurely back.............forever and ever. About a week of that and I'd taken all the fun out of both the all out dead run and the jamming stop. She stopped doing it. She'd try it again every now and then, but a repeat of the backing exercise would get her mind right again. I really liked this because it took the frustration out of everything for me and her since we were slowing things WAY down in reverse and we'd make our leisurely backward progress to the back of the property. She would relax when in reverse. | |
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 Quarter Horse HIstorian
Posts: 2878
Location: Aubrey, Texas | I am a little different in my approach to it. I try to stay out of their mouth as much as possible- just enough to guide them around. Slowing one down for me starts in my mind, then flows down through my body. Ed Wright used to call it your "body throttle." I absolutely WILL NOT let myself get angry or impatient; it takes as long as it takes. At first I go in rhythm with a horse, then I begin to picture myself as one of those parachute brakes they use to stop drag racing cars. I totally relax my body and roll back on my pockets some. A lot of times I will engage my lower abdomen muscles (I tell myself it's like doing isometric exercise- not my favorite part!) and begin to let my rhythm fall a little behind theirs. I also think of myself as being very, very heavy. They begin to get the picture- they may not get it all in one day but it happens without a fight and you can build on each days' success until you can pretty much influence their speed with your body and attitude. That exaggerated position carries over to when I need to get one to relax walking or standing, as well. When I get ready to stop I just let my breath out in a big sigh- doesn't take one long to learn that cue and they'll stop on their own, nice and soft. | |
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