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Expert
Posts: 1561
  
| We have a up and coming mare that performs pretty darn good in a couple pens and just horrible in one. Should we focus on riding in the good pens and gaining her confidence or should we mix in running at the problem pen until it clicks with her? |
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 Owner of a ratting catting machine
Posts: 2258
 
| There's some pens I completely avoid. Why ruin rider and horse confidence on a pen that's just difficult? If that pen is needed for earnings, go and slow work often, watch videos, and figure out if it's truly the horse or if the rider is having difficulty setting up in there for a good run. |
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Expert
Posts: 1561
| Were not chasing points or anything but would like this mare to be a rodeo horse at some point.
Im thinking its best to avoid the problem pen while they gain confidence. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 1062
Location: Probably On the Road to the Next Barrel Race! | sometimes its best to avoid certain arenas... |
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Veteran
Posts: 276
| Especially if you are looking for a seasoned rodeo horse in the end game, keep trying to perfect this pen that you may struggle in. Determine what is the root cause of the problem, because in the rodeo world, chances are you will encounter it again. Is it the ground, the approach to a certain barrel, etc? Figure it out and what you need to do to overcome it. Watch other horses and see what those who have success do vs those who struggle as well. Rodeos are not always won by the fastest horses, most often in these crazy set-ups you have to run in, they are won by those who make the least mistakes. I love side gates, hard approaches to the first, barrels on the fence or in the wide open, etc. The more obstacles for everyone else, I feel like the better my chances are to just come in there and make a smooth run and take home some money. |
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 Saint Stacey
| I'd probably avoid it for awhile and get confidence built up. What pen is it? |
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 You get what you give
Posts: 13030
Location: Texas | I avoid certain pens with one of mine because she just won't work in the ground there. Why waste a run in a pen she's not going to work worth a darn in..
Not to be confused with seasoning a horse where you take them to a new area with all the music and sounds of a big show or rodeo, and it takes a while to get them used to that... I'm all for that kind of deal. But when I know for a fact this horse won't work at THIS pen because of something that will never change.. not going to waste my horse. |
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 Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
Location: Phoenix | Maybe go slower at that pen to build confidence? |
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 Expert
Posts: 5293
| I actually had an open 1D horse that died at age 33 and I ran him from a 3 year old. He was the PUSH style. Ran in a halter and you could NOT push him past a barrel. There was 1 arena he would RUN OFF, LAP THE ARENA, would not work. Weirdest thing. I just never ran him there. SOmetimes horses just have their favorites and those arenas they wont work in. |
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Expert
Posts: 1561
| hammer_time - 2015-03-23 1:47 PM
Maybe go slower at that pen to build confidence?
Thats what we tried, close to 2 seconds off and she was still strung out and losing her footing. |
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