dressage people ,counter canter help ?

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angelish

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well seen as were getting carried away with all this stressaging and i can't seem to get away with "i'm an eventer i'm meant to be pants at dressage" these days ;)

we are attempting counter canter ,we've practiced 10m loops and can now keep our balance changing bend
now we are cantering down long side ,doing half 10m circle - back to track (so now in counter canter ) then "flying change" or splat loose balance into 1 stride of trot then change leg

clever horse knows he's not meant to be on "wrong" leg so helps mum out by changing :rolleyes: , were are we going wrong ?
 
Also making sure your weight is slightly to the leading leg. So if in left canter and do your loop back to the track your weight is over to the left side, towards the outside track, if that makes sense?! Make sure the canter is balanced and not rushed, as it will be easier for horse to maintain the canter.
 
I had the same issue with mine! I agree with digitalangle, keep the bend to the outside and keep an even pressure with what is know your inside leg.
At first i ahd to put my leg even further back and put more pressure on with my leg and basically exagerate (sp) everything. we gradually reduced everything and are back to the normal leg aids/ pressure and bend. I never changed the weight in the stirrups due to the one time I did it completly destroyed (sp) our canter and went off balance .... hope this helps!
 
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think shoulder out - so don't change the bend, if you are cantering left, do canter left, half 10m circle, incline back to the track but maintain slight left bend and think shoulders left so that you don't accidentally change your body position and ask for the shoulders to straighten and go right. once you are on the track you are still on the left rein as its your bend that dictates the rein and not your position in the school. initially i'd keep my outside leg further back so the quarters can't swing and its like asking for canter constantly so there isn't an inclination to change - careful not to push or you may get half pass though :P
 
lbertie w it is 20x40 so should be plenty room just thought more room might help

coss i think you've just hit the nail on the head ,that might be just what i'm doing i might actually be asking for a change with top half of body but keeping leg on ,no wonder poor horse is confused

he is being so sweet and good lately ,really trying hard to please ,so i really want to reward him by making life easier for him by getting it right myself for a change ;)

long may it last :D
 
im no expert but on a few of my lessons when ive done it on riding school horses who can be a bit clueless bless them, i was told to just exsagerate all your canter aids as if you want to turn the other way. so if your on the right rein pretend that you are going on the left rein. and definalty shifting your weight helps:)
 
I am certainly not a "proper" dressage person but have been trying to teach my showjumper (whose flying changes are his favourite party piece!) counter canter. I keep trying to persuade him he might like stressage as well ;) I have found it much easier to teach him in a 20x60 arena cantering across a diagonal to R,S,V or P then continuing to the next marker in counter canter before coming back to trot. We have now mastered the 10m circle loops as well but found these more difficult- I think he was losing balance and impulsion on the circle and therefore finding it more difficult to maintain the counter canter but I am sure someone will correct me if I am talking rubbish :) When he had got the idea that I actually wanted him to canter down the long side on the "wrong" leg it got much easier!
 
As well as your shoulders, do make sure that your head is not "asking" for a change. As you come back to the track in counter canter, make sure you are not looking up the long side, but keep your gaze directly between the horses ears - it really can make a big difference!
 
One trick I have always used is not to ride back to the track but keep them slightly in off the track. I wouldn't exagerrate your aids as this will only confuse him. Minor flex to the outside, sit up straight with your leg on and gently ask him on the inside track. Aim to get one stride more every time you ask for it. So do your back to track, aim for 3 strides in straight line just off the track then pull up and pat. Go do same on the other rein. Each time ask for a stride more. When you progress to wanting it around top corner of the school do your back to track only halfway up the school so he doesn't have plenty of time to figure out he's "on the wrong leg"
 
mine likes to help me out too!

not quite got it yet but have found he gets less confused if instead of looping back to the track I do a 5m loop in from that track at E/B and use the then outside bend to ask for a canter trans on the 'wrong' leg. I find that then because I have asked him to be on this leg he accepts it more and it also stops the coming across the diagonal/change bend/I must change legs moment.

oh and being 14.2 he should have plenty of room in a 20x40 but we as we only have a field we make the most of having a bit more space, which means is steering gets a bit awry we dont have to panic! :D
 
another thing for teaching counter canter - i always make sure the horse really knows the aids, in that i can walk down the centre line and choose which leg to canter on. Then move that to the arena edge - walking past E/B ask counter canter - this will help ingrain into them that you choose the leg and its not down to what they think is best.
training in a bigger arena will help initially as it gives you more time to get back to the track. When you are in a dressage test some judges will mark down quite heavily if you don't get onto the track though staying slightly off it in the training is a good idea to help with balance.
I would do a bigger half circle initially as well - about 15m and start it just before the corner (quarter marker is 6m from bottom end so start to turn 1.5m before the quarter marker) and this will give you more room as you can actually touch the short end of the school giving heaps of room. Then once the horse is more balnaced and has more idea then you can refine it more and more and do it "anywhere" in the school
 
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