flying changes...

[only_me]

i was riding my pony in the field today as the arena is too wet, and we finished after 40mins with some beautiful

walk to canter and vice versa. we even got 6 of these on a 20m circle! he was holding himself beautilffy as sumtimes he tends to lean on the bit, so i would love to teach him flying changes but dont know how to ask for them. so...

how do you teach your horse to do flying changes?

 

[rara007]

Im not sure, when mine have been at the level to learn them when i move there head slightly to the other side they changed, but now they do it from voice!

Haz

 

[ISHmad]

If you are cantering say to the left, choose a spot ahead of you where you intend to change direction, then turn to the right. 9 times out of 10 your horse will naturally change.

The other thing to do is ensure that you inhale just as the near hind is leaving the ground and exhale as you turn to the right. It works, promise!

 

[jumpthemoon]

Ask for trot then change the bend and go back into canter on the other lead. Gradually reduce the number of trot strides until all you need to do is turn your body and change the bend.

 

[Tierra]

Using trot strides to change the canter lead is one method... using poles is another. Personally I like to ensure the horse is working comfortably in both true and counter canter, showing a degree of self carriage. That being said, I also tend to introduce changes very early in their work.

The easiest method imo is to pick up true canter, turn up a diagonal, make a transition to trot, switch the bend, ask for the canter on the new leg. As an above poster mentioned, you then reduce the number of trot strides required before eventually applying the aid for a change (change the bend, change the legs)

The most important thing though is to ensure the quality of the canter before you start this work and, as i mentioned, I ensure that the horse can pick up either counter or true canter on demand and maintain it in a balanced fashion (i.e. its a genuine counter canter, not just a "on the wrong leg" counter canter)

Personally I teach them going across the long diagonal because many horses have a habit of kicking out when learning changes. It can be confusing for them and one way of correcting their legs being in a mess is to buck or fly kick (cue a number of broken school fencing poles).

Also make sure you can switch the bend in your canter before you start asking for changes. This will help when it comes to asking for the actual change.

Theres a degree of feeling involved in asking for flying changes so if you're not used to riding them, then sometimes it can be worth asking someone with more experience to introduce them. In the early stages, horses tend to need a lot of help to balance

More often than not when you begin, you'll not get true changes. They tend to change in front and are late behind. Dont punish for this as its still a common learning thing

Make sure to use plenty of praise and keep trying until the changes are clean.

 

[vicm2509]

I would not teach a flying change until the horse is very established and balanced in canter. Ideally the horse should be able to collect and extend in the canter and also do counter canter.

If on change of bend the horse changes lead without you asking this is a sign that the horse is unbalanced. You should be able to get your horse to strike off on any leg no matter which rein you are on before teaching them flying changes.

I find it easier to teach a horse over a pole or a small jump as this is when you are likely to need it, unless you are doing high level dressage of coarse.

Also make sure the horse changes both infront and behind. A lot of horses tend to change just infront in the early stages so canter is disunited.