Cantering When Asked To Trot, Not Shuffle Along.

Joandripple

Joandripple

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This morning I decided to try and get some proper work out of my lad. Brief description of us: He is quite a lazy 13 year old Warmblood, prone to spooking when asked to do anything that involves exertion and i am a mature and not really fit/confident rider. Since I've had him we have done happy hacking mostly with the odd lesson and local show in the summer, But six months or so ago we started having lessons with a very good instructor. All going well and now, at last the penny I think has dropped as how I really should be riding to get the best from him, it's took long enough! Anyway I'm rambling on now.

So off we started, and all was going great guns from halt to walk transition, he got a smack with the whip and a couple of pony club kicks and got the idea that I meant business and after a couple of bucks, he got the message! Then I squeezed for trot, lightning reaction - brill I thought. But after about 15 strides he slowed, so big kick but instead of trotting he cantered! Oh well, I thought at least he's gone forward but then I could not bring him back to a sensible working trot. He just decided to go faster down the long side and I had to resort to really pulling him back to slow down! I did feel bad about pulling him up but it had to be done. So gathered ourselves up and started again, did this about 5/10 times with little change. So, I changed tactics and went back to the halt, walk transitions, did some LY and SI and finished.

Have any of u lovely peeps got some advice I can gleem to stop this problem of him breaking into canter when asked to step up his trot to a decent working trot. Thanking you for reading this rather long winded post.


Jo
 
Oh bless him

First I would make sure that once he has gone forward you make sure you leg is right off, ie couple of inches off. Then if he rushes off into canter bring him back straight away, if he doesn't come back quickly enough halt and rein back
Just keep repeating above he will eventually get the idea
 
As he is generally lazy and has started to go forward from a lighter aid I would continue to canter rather than pull him up, when he wants to stop cantering keep him going until you ask for trot, he should soon realise that you want trot not canter on your terms not his.
Other things to try are asking for the good trot then doing a downward transition before he drops back, a couple of steps in walk and up to trot again keep repeating until you find he actually holds the trot for longer, if he canters instead of trotting and it starts to become an evasion use a small circle to bring him back to you rather than having to pull against him, a very useful exercise is to do a 10m circle in walk, trot as you come off that onto a 20 m circle then go onto a 10m to come back to walk, it helps you focus on riding forward through the transitions and you can build on the trot each time.
He may genuinely be finding the work hard so keep the sessions short, aim for some good quality trot work but if he tries to canter remember it may be because he finds it easier than really using himself in trot.
 
Bp interesting point and if he was just cantering that's exactly what I would do :)
However agree trying it your way first would be best. Then if he was still 'running off' I would pull him up :)
 
soulful, if he initially went into canter without the big kick or was a generally forward rushy type I would do as you suggested but I think in this case with a naturally idle horse it needs to learn that go means go, by bringing him back he may decide that he really cannot be bothered, it is by experimenting that the key will be found so the OP has some things to try, hopefully something will be right for the horse.
 
He's a tad confused I think at the moment. Scrap the Pony club kick - which I'd be horrified if my Pony Club kids did - and use your schooling whip to back up you light, vibrant taps with your legs.

If you get canter, allow him to canter on, go on a 20m circle and ask for trot. By cantering off he has probably lost his balance and as such finds it hard to come back to trot easily.

Decrease the size of the circle if he still doesn't come back. It will steadily get harder for him to keep going in canter on the circle.

Ask for your increased work in small amounts from polite leg aids - no kicking- if the first aid is ignored then give a second, if that is ignored then a tap with the schooling whip.

Another thing to consider is his physical ability to increase the length of steps, some horses find it hard, try asking to lengthen out of shoulder in, so a few strides of shoulder in engages inside hind more, then ask for longer steps out of the shoulder in and across the diagonal of the school.

Finally one thing we are often guilty of, multi tasking! Make sure that your head is thinking about how you want your horse to go, so often we are physically riding the horse but mentally writing a shopping list or deciding what to cook for dinner.
 
be positive said:
soulful, if he initially went into canter without the big kick or was a generally forward rushy type I would do as you suggested but I think in this case with a naturally idle horse it needs to learn that go means go, by bringing him back he may decide that he really cannot be bothered, it is by experimenting that the key will be found so the OP has some things to try, hopefully something will be right for the horse.
Click to expand...

Fair enough. :)
 
THANX for your replies. We went out hacking this morning and he was a star, considering he has not left the yard for two weeks, due to holiday and me organising the kids back to school etc.

Soulfull he is generally an idle horse, so BP has hit the nail on the head, he does find it easier to canter rather than working trot! BP suggestions sound like the way forward because yesterday I could not bring him back to trot, it did feel like he could have carried on cantering for ever! Even on a 20 m circle.

Tnavas - if I back up the leg with the whip he usually bucks in disgust! I do honestly think he finds it hard and is unbalanced and is genuinely telling me that, but I am sure we will get there.

Tomorrow I shall be practicing some of the suggestions and will try the let him canter until he runs out of steam,so to speak, then send him on some more before asking him to trot first in our warm up. I will you all posted on our progress.
 
Little up date - had a good session this morning. Went back a step and only asked for halt, walk and trot. All really good, some lovely forward transitions, although really leaning/not softening to outside rein. So much so that I resorted to using the balancing strap (have not used it for ages!). But the results were amazing, no leaning at all, not rushing into canter and some lovely forwards trot work. I think it also helped keep me focused on sitting back and not tipping forward. So up short of today is that it will continue until GG can manage to balance on his own. Same again tomorrow, me thinks, then a canter along back fields where the stubble is to finish off our seession! Thank you for al your replies.
 
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