Help! Eventer going showing how do I ride a canter serpentine?....

[Chloe_GHE]

I've found some exracer classes to take Soap to and in the ridden part it says you have to show all 3 paces, a bit of gallop, rein back, and a canter serpentine.....now what does that mean?....

canter serpentine?...... do I get to change leg in the middle each time, or are they expecting a flying change, or worse do they want counter canter?...

baffled of Wiltshire needs your help please!

 

[_Rach_]

No idea .................
Simple change i guess, but does that mean you go back to walk to change, or drop back to trot.............
Cant you make sure you practice all options then make sure you don't get pulled in 1st so you can watch one and then copy them?

 

[Moggie]

A transition through trot is fine, walk looks even better if you can do it! Definately not counter canter as quite a few of the ex racehorse judges around are not schooled or have knowledge of schooling, and would probably think you were on the wrong leg. I've been accosted in a warm up and told my horse was "not moving straight" when in fact I was doing shoulder in and leg yields!!

If you want an extra bit of show off, you would see in hack classes will do their transitions with one hand, perhaps to halt and rein back too - and you will notice that in showing a serpentine isn't anything like a dressage serpentine ..... from what I've seen where you would do the "straight bits" parallel to an imaginary short side, showing people make them more like short diagonals.

 

[Chloe_GHE]

Thanks guys so if I'm doing a simple change is that canter walk canter?.... or canter, trot few strides, walk canter?.....

_Rach_ I think it' pretty much guaranteed we won't be pulled in first! hahahah I'll snoop on what everyone else does and copy the good bits!