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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 725
   
| What's your opinions on turning styles? Can they be trained, or is most of it natural due to (conformation, motion, etc.)
What are some of the fastest/most efficient turning styles you've seen? |
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 Regular
Posts: 62
  Location: Oklahoma | I think it depends on the horse. Some horses don't get low and use their butt to push them through a turn, they use their whole body. I have seen many tall horses "run" around the barrel and I have seen tall horses sit and turn around the barrel. Same goes for little horses. I have seen some "run" around the barrel, and I have seen some sit and turn the barrel. I think some of it comes from how you train one also. |
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 Take a Picture
Posts: 12838
       
| I have to agree with Mark Burt. Any horse is good for three pivots on the inside foot before they lose that foot as a pivot and have to step out. The way you have to do this is to help your horse rate and get its back feet up inder him, let him begin the turn and pick up to help them finish the turn. You never lose momentum. You actually accelerate in a curve. Why so you think roller coasters go around curves? Not to scare you! Any horse with any conformation can be taught this. Obviously, for some horses this will be easier because of conformation.
I will say that a roll back is the least efficient because if you are going one way and suddenly go the opposite direction you are going to have to stop to do that. |
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 Expert
Posts: 5290
     
| I'm a firm believer you can't FORCE a horse to work a certain way. You have to meet them in the middle on what is the preferred way to turn and how they want to do it. I ran an open 1D horse years ago who was 16.3 hands tall and weighed probably 1350 in shape. you were not going to get him to bend around a barrel. He was just to big and body mass to do it. But he loved running barrels ( I ran him in a halter with reins on the side rings) and he ran in a roll back style. Like a freight train. Didn't even really rate, jist blew in there, went to the hip and he was out of there in 1 motion. He outran a LOT of bendy horses. It really just depends. Had I schooled him to be bendy etc he would have hated it and quit running so cost me more time. lol |
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Veteran
Posts: 264
   
| I used to think you could alter the horses style to fit your own....then came a long my current horse. For a solid year I tried to make him into something he wasn't. He has a stiff rollback style turn. Soft and extremely broke, make a run on him and you'll want to bang your head against the wall. Finally I gave up and let him do it his way and stopped trying to make him the 4x4 style that I am used to. Is it perfect, far from it. Definitely more my issue than anything. I'm completely re-learning to fit his style. |
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Expert
Posts: 1531
   Location: Oklahoma | I prefer the butt draggers and rollbackers , and ones who drop and cow , 4 wheel drive , over run past and run around. The first three are fastest . You also learn which type handle trashy ground best . I find a free running roll backer /slingshoter the easiest as you just have to get clear but on the other hand drop n cow just needs room , they rarely hit and it is smoking fast. Because I grew up on ex reiners, I do not do big pockets and run around futurity style well. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 972
       Location: Texas! | This is an interesting thread. Would anyone care to share videos of each of the styles they like or of their horses. Love seeing all the different ways horses work and win on the pattern. |
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 Take a Picture
Posts: 12838
       
| WYOracer - 2017-05-05 1:12 PM
This is an interesting thread. Would anyone care to share videos of each of the styles they like or of their horses. Love seeing all the different ways horses work and win on the pattern.
Mark Burt videos barrel races. He slows down the videos and analyzes how the winnng horses turn. Not sure he has ever ridden a barrel horse but he has access to the videos of many winning horses. He says that these winning horses pivot three times in a turn. The push off to the next barrel. Can't link to the video but check you tube for Shelly Gish kiss your money good bye. That is the way this horse turns. The horse was 6th out of 500+entries. |
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 Expert
Posts: 1631
    Location: Somewhere around here | WYOracer - 2017-05-05 12:12 PM
This is an interesting thread. Would anyone care to share videos of each of the styles they like or of their horses. Love seeing all the different ways horses work and win on the pattern.
I don't have this horse anymore, and keep in mind that I think this was his second or third barrel race, but I LOVED his 4x4 style that wrapped around the barrels. Hated the horse, but wish I could have my horse run and turn like this.
https://youtu.be/XcYcMdav9zA |
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I just read the headlines
Posts: 4483
        
| Ed Wright told us at a clinic that the rollback style was the fastest BUT he didn't train that turn because those horses typically were the ones who hit the most barrels, usually with their hip leaving the barrel. |
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 Saint Stacey
            
| WYOracer - 2017-05-05 12:12 PM
This is an interesting thread. Would anyone care to share videos of each of the styles they like or of their horses. Love seeing all the different ways horses work and win on the pattern.
https://youtu.be/kLxcEUZ7kkA
https://youtu.be/S09engmmUnc
https://youtu.be/7SvyBQDCeC0
This little mare is just quick and snappy in her turns. She's been a lot of fun. I ended up buying three other 1/2 siblings to her. All out of her dam. All of them are really quick footed. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 618
 
| FLITASTIC - 2017-05-03 2:10 PM
I'm a firm believer you can't FORCE a horse to work a certain way. You have to meet them in the middle on what is the preferred way to turn and how they want to do it. I ran an open 1D horse years ago who was 16.3 hands tall and weighed probably 1350 in shape. you were not going to get him to bend around a barrel. He was just to big and body mass to do it. But he loved running barrels ( I ran him in a halter with reins on the side rings) and he ran in a roll back style. Like a freight train. Didn't even really rate, jist blew in there, went to the hip and he was out of there in 1 motion. He outran a LOT of bendy horses. It really just depends. Had I schooled him to be bendy etc he would have hated it and quit running so cost me more time. lol
I think this is the second time you've posted something like this and I am so grateful. I ride 3 different horses and they all ride different. I kept trying to get my 1D horse to improve by making him more bendy, broke over at poll(he is but runs with his nose out in front, he's OTT) etc in the run bc that's what "professionals" kept telling me to do, it slowed him down. Now I just leave him alone during run and let him have his nose out in front instead of tucked he's a lot happier and back to normal |
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 Expert
Posts: 1612
   Location: Cocoa, Florida | I have only sold a handful of nice horses but from my experience and riding 3 totally different styles right now you Cannot change the way one wants to run or turn. You can slow work one, like others have said, and help them along the way but I believe they pick their own turn style. I wanted my colt to follow his nose around like my mare but he wants to run stiff and square, which is fine but it's not as smooth and fast as my mare. He will bend all day long in slow work but when it's time to run he doesn't. It doesn't make it right or wrong, just not my preferred style. My young mare "cows" the barrels, she's quick on her feet and sits hard but it's smooth, she's naturally bendy and quick footed, this is my favorite style.
I'm also running a "run around" mare as well, she's the smoothest of them all but it's not quite as fast, however she doesn't ever loose her momentum.
I think after riding so many different styles you really get a nack for what you like best! |
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Veteran
Posts: 103

| I have ridden many different styles of successful barrel horses and I am a firm believer in letting them pick their own style and just help them do it more efficiently. Trying to change a horse's style makes for an unhappy horse and slows them down - in my opinion. |
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 You get what you give
Posts: 13030
     Location: Texas | This bay mare of mine had the most efficient and fast turns I've ever ridden. She was also fast in-between the barrels. She was very fun to run. https://youtu.be/x5MR7elEG3g https://youtu.be/-EsbWlfUdCA https://youtu.be/Hz-CJwWnmB0 The sorrel mare I'm posting was very bendy and wrappy... you couldn't feel the power in the turns that I could with the bay, but she clocked right with her, just different. https://youtu.be/Fib0WfRTtDQ https://youtu.be/qcwYx_vqSUw https://youtu.be/l2XhKpz9wis |
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 Take a Picture
Posts: 12838
       
| If you watch these videos carefully, they are all using that inside pivot foot three steps then pushing off. |
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