Loping Question
- Thread starter kaneranch
- Start date
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push him out of it-- ie--go fast
You are probably trying to get it too slow or collected too fast.
Start all over-ask for some more control(ie slow down)-- and watch for the sidewise stuff-speed up again if you feel it. Over and over.
You are probably trying to get it too slow or collected too fast.
Start all over-ask for some more control(ie slow down)-- and watch for the sidewise stuff-speed up again if you feel it. Over and over.
born2run
Well-known member
Sounds to me like your horse is "cross-firing". You famaliar with this term? The horse canters on opposing leads in the front and rear legs, resulting in a loss of balance. Try to get more flexion out of him. Bending helps, or simply slow down and have him go through the transition again.
CattleAnnie
Well-known member
Almost sound like he might be 'crossfiring' , which is loping on different leads fore and hind or just plain travelling on the wrong lead.
Very rough to ride...had a horse that used to do that on occasion...not nice.
Best bet with that is to slow things down, and start working on getting him travelling in the proper lead again.
Find a nice safe area for you to work in, and start doing some figure 8's at a walk. As he settles in to the work, ask him to step up to a trot in that pattern.
Let him keep the trotting gait until he starts to relax while he's doing it (with high mettled horses this can take some time, but generally I find it's better to let them work their edge off before moving up to the lope).
Once he's confident and travelling easily with the trotting, gently ask him to lope when you're right where the two circles of the figure eight meet.
Keep your inside rein up (and therefore the outside rein lower), as this discourages the horse from dropping his shoulder and picking up the wrong lead.
If he's in the proper lead, his inside shoulder (to the circle in the direction you're travelling) should be leading first.
If he starts his lope on the incorrect lead, just slow him back down to the trot, and then cue him again as you approach the circle crossing.
This can take a while with some horses, as some come by it naturally, but others just seem to have two left feet when it comes to leads.
Well, that's about all I can think of, off the cuff, but then I'm sure no professional trainer. There's lots of folks on here with more know-how that will hopefully add more ((hint - hint to the horsemen and women out there)).
Here's a link that helps explain leads (it has a pop-up ad, but the content is pretty worthwhile irregardless):
http://horsetales.bravehost.com/training.html
Take care and good luck getting him smoothed out.
Very rough to ride...had a horse that used to do that on occasion...not nice.
Best bet with that is to slow things down, and start working on getting him travelling in the proper lead again.
Find a nice safe area for you to work in, and start doing some figure 8's at a walk. As he settles in to the work, ask him to step up to a trot in that pattern.
Let him keep the trotting gait until he starts to relax while he's doing it (with high mettled horses this can take some time, but generally I find it's better to let them work their edge off before moving up to the lope).
Once he's confident and travelling easily with the trotting, gently ask him to lope when you're right where the two circles of the figure eight meet.
Keep your inside rein up (and therefore the outside rein lower), as this discourages the horse from dropping his shoulder and picking up the wrong lead.
If he's in the proper lead, his inside shoulder (to the circle in the direction you're travelling) should be leading first.
If he starts his lope on the incorrect lead, just slow him back down to the trot, and then cue him again as you approach the circle crossing.
This can take a while with some horses, as some come by it naturally, but others just seem to have two left feet when it comes to leads.
Well, that's about all I can think of, off the cuff, but then I'm sure no professional trainer. There's lots of folks on here with more know-how that will hopefully add more ((hint - hint to the horsemen and women out there)).
Here's a link that helps explain leads (it has a pop-up ad, but the content is pretty worthwhile irregardless):
http://horsetales.bravehost.com/training.html
Take care and good luck getting him smoothed out.
born2run
Well-known member
Both my mares will cross-fire occasionally, but doing what I posted seems to pull them out of it. When I was young and inexperienced my pony mare did it consistently, since I had no clue how to correct it.
cowgirl580
Well-known member
cross firing can be uncomfortable. have a mare that couldn't do a left lead to save her life, or mine. she would lope/canter whatever in the left lead going to the right. didn't seem to faze her a bit. :roll:
