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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 542
 
| I want to discuss how, when, why you are using them. Also, did you make your own "cowboy martingale" pics would be awesome? Different people all have very different views and styles they prefer on these types of equipment please share yours! |
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 Namesless in BHW
Posts: 10368
 
Location: At the race track with Ah Dee Ohs | We gallop alot of our race horse with draw reins. You best know how to use them though. |
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Expert
Posts: 2122
Location: The Great Northwest | These are aids and horses are not alike so they are used for a lot of reasons. These aids should be use as just that, so don't get to depending on them. |
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Married to a Louie Lover
Posts: 3303
| I’ve used all of them at one time or another.
My brutally honest opinion - you MUST have developed the ability to “feel” the horses mouth and the ability to give and take quickly. You must understand how to ride one off your leg. And you must know what you are trying to accomplish by putting the tool to use so you know when to quit using it.
I’m guilty of the above. But working through those mistakes has helped shape my thought process around what I’m doing when I get on a horse and what process will get me there. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 542
| I'm just going to state I use these things and have for a few years and I was helped to learn how to use them so please no warnings and such. I used to be a lil barrel racer that thought "oh no nothing on their head" or "no those are just gimmicks." I now see they are a tool that in the right hands can give quicker release and better communication :-)
I wanted to really discuss the types of martin gales, draw reins etc we all use and hopefully learn from each other. Different trainers especially reined cow horse vs. cutting have greatly different opinions of the forward motion created or hindered by each type of individual set up you use. Example: head down vs. nose down or lateral flexion vs. not being able to get their nose.
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Expert
Posts: 2122
Location: The Great Northwest |  WoW! It's mind blowing the various ways to apply and for what reason. A person could write a book on each one using common problems.
Best for some people to just use the standing tie-down. The horse figures that out easily when not intervered by poor hands and legs.
Another thought is to work with a trainer that has a lot of experience. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 542
| I feel like this thread is heading the direction of the Molli Montgomery Facebook post about cowboy martingales..... this is such a touchy subject |
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 Off the Wall Wacky
Posts: 2981
Location: Louisiana | total performance - 2018-04-09 6:15 PM
We gallop alot of our race horse with draw reins. You best know how to use them though. Â
Draw reins can be quite terrifying on a strong horse that was "taught" how to tuck his nose and run through it LOL...bought a set of draw reins, put them on my gelding who I did not train, and once we got stopped, I vowed NEVER AGAIN 
My normally well-behaved boy put his chin to his chest and took me for a ride.
I get all the martingale names mixed up LOL, but I grew up using a martingale with split reins. Now, I do like using my martingale reins (with rings) from L&W, although lately it seems I use them less and less and just ride with split reins and no "tools."
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Veteran
Posts: 141
| The best trainer and jockey I know uses a running martingale a lot the time and refuses to use a tie down on a younger not seasoned horse. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 542
| joemama - 2018-04-10 6:53 PM
The best trainer and jockey I know uses a running martingale a lot the time and refuses to use a tie down on a younger not seasoned horse.
I know of 2 trainers that feel the same way. They think it teaches a young horse to look for the "bump" of the tie down rather than naturally trying to stay in frame and in actually causes them to have a "crutch" rather than them just learning to travel and stay collected.
Recently rode with an NRCH trainer that basically gave us barrel racers down the road for using them first without teaching the horse to stay in frame and driving from the hocks. They use any martingale as a weighted system to give quick release and after talking with some barrel people I've realized very few people actually use them the way most other disciplines do.
People that don't know what they are doing will get one front endy and "dumping" on their front end just simply trotting and loping. BUT they were intended to teach a horse to have flexion while maintaining frame.
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Expert
Posts: 2122
Location: The Great Northwest | The horse in a tie-down do respond in different ways to a tie-down. It is the horse by himself that responds to the tie-down. The tie-down gives control but that's all. Some horses being sensitive will collect up but your not in control of that response. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 542
| skye - 2018-04-11 4:43 PM
The horse in a tie-down do respond in different ways to a tie-down. It is the horse by himself that responds to the tie-down.  The tie-down gives control but that's all.  Some horses being sensitive will collect up but your not in control of that response.Â
I love tie downs and they were def my go to after a bonnet. But now a martingale and then a tie down or bonnet once on the pattern is my go to.
I'm recently feeling like my colt even scotches his nose out in the round pen to touch it before stopping...not liking that...I'd rather him wear a bonnet or ride in a martingale for awhile to get him driving from his hocks more.
I just started riding in a weighted martingale (one that has large rings on the fork and rein stops) and it straight makes one why more touchy and feely because it gives them a quicker release. Which is wonderful bc when you add speed you've got more feel with side to side flexion. Of course they stiffen up with speed but I'm so loving the feel when loping squares and circles in it! Most barrel people seem so crazy against it tho when they have never rode in one to feel the difference. It's a much different feel than setting ones head or them just tucking that nose and still being hollow through their back on you.
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 542
| total performance - 2018-04-09 6:15 PM
We gallop alot of our race horse with draw reins. You best know how to use them though. Â
Yes ma'am we got the ones they make for race horse draw reins and bits specific for working them in draw reins they are nice tools to have for the trashy ones! We bit ours up in a loomis to help them when they start running down the track and we didn't want that far of a work for them lol |
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