Hi everyone,

I have been having some trouble with my mare lately, She is perfect in practice with very snappy turns and really fast, however when we go to races shes like a differest horse, she leaves the barrels SUPER wide, no matter how I set her up, it's almost like she forgets the pattern. 

It is difficult for me because she is absolutly amazing when I practice at home or when I haul off property to practice, she feels like a 1D horse, I have tried all the drills in the world, but for some reason she just leaves the backside sooo wide when we make real runs and I am getting frustrated. I've tried giving her lots of room around the barrel but she just bows off at the end.

does anyone have any idea how I can fix this? could it be soreness? HELP please, I am getting so frustrated and i feel stuck.

Thanks in advance!!

Could be something you are doing or possible soreness. A video would be helpful. 

I would bet it is you. 

Different arenas and totally different circumstances. 

I would first have her scoped to see if she is bleeding. She may not bleed during slow work or breezing her through and the stress of an actual run could make her bleed. If she isn't bleeding i would check hocks and stifles. I would bet money it is one of those 3 things. 

She's amped up at a race. Is she really leaving wide or is she bowing out? If she's bowing out, she's not finishing her turns before trying to push out and leave barrels. Try the calming supplements until you find one that works for her. How are her exhibitions at full speed? 

I find that adrenaline at a barrel race will heightened flaws in the barrel pattern that you might not see in practice and or soreness. 

Can you post a video? That is going to be more helpful to determine what is going on.