How To Teach Flying Changes?

[Eventer96]

Right I have been working hard lately on working on his medium and collected canter, preparing to teach him flying changes. Could somebody please give me some advice on how to go about this. Need to know what I need to do and excercises that will help us acheieve a nice neat flying change. I know it will take time would just like to be enlightned by somebody with a slightly more cluded up dressage brain

Thanks in advance

 

[Parkranger]

I did them by mistake on Ty - cantered across the diagonal and then asked for canter on the other leg with my legs, half halt and correcting his bend and it worked.....sure it's not the right way though!

 

[Booboos]

I only know this from books, not experience, so try it at your own peril!!!

To prepare for flying changes you should have spot on walk to canter to walk transitions, and strike offs on either leg wherever and whenever you want (e.g. harder places like a 15m circle or up the centre line).

Then work on walk to left canter, to walk, to right canter for a few transitions and keep making the walk steps fewer and fewer until you ask for the change without the walk.

Happy to be corrected if this is nowhere near right in practice though!

 

[Snowysadude]

ParkRanger that is pretty much it, you could practice on a figure of 8 though, starting with simple changes and trying to get as little trot as possibe before going off on the other rein, to get flying changes you just half halt, change the bend and ask for canter on the other rein (well thats how i do it showjumper style - cant see it being much different dressage style!)

 

[katie_and_toto]

You could try asking over a pole on the ground, or a raised pole, makes it a little easier

 

[Seahorse]

If you watch Carl Hester's fantastic elastic thing thats on Horse and Country TV he shows you how to teach flying changes on there, using the lovely Valegro.
I tried it today on my horse and he actually did one, much to my surprise as we have been struggling with them for ages now.

 

[jumptoit]

[ QUOTE ]
You could try asking over a pole on the ground, or a raised pole, makes it a little easier

[/ QUOTE ]

I did this and it works a treat the only trouble is that (I many be wrong but as far as I know) eventing and PC wise you will be doing counter canter before changes so teaching them can confuse things a little.

 

[camilla4]

Don't know how correct it is, but I've usually taught from counter canter. It's so easy and natural for the horse to change to the "correct" leg from this. I find they seem to have accepted it farily well. I then move on to figure of eight with change in the middle from walk.

 

[beckieswann]

[ QUOTE ]
You could try asking over a pole on the ground, or a raised pole, makes it a little easier

[/ QUOTE ]

this is how we have always done it, and seems to work a treat!

 

[xXxTraversxXx]

canter, walk 5 strides, canter
canter, walk 4 strides, canter
canter, walk 3 strides, canter etc etc

a pole would help, but i would suggest you do it very gradually and spend 1 schooling session doing this exercise (dont expect changes), then a couple practicing simple walk, canter or trot canter transitions in different places around the school, and then another working towards changes.

 

[xXxTraversxXx]

Just watched carl hestors video - ignore what i said before, not very helpful, as pretty much the same as shown on video! good luck with the changes

 

[cyberhorse]

Can you do half pass in canter? If so use this. Rather than maintaining the canter in counter canter round the next corner (or returning to trot to swap) ensure you have enough support and try asking for a change of bend. See if your horse gets the idea they often will swap easily as it feels natural to change and also they are nice and collected and listening from the half pass.

 

[camilla4]

[ QUOTE ]
Can you do half pass in canter? If so use this. Rather than maintaining the canter in counter canter round the next corner (or returning to trot to swap) ensure you have enough support and try asking for a change of bend. See if your horse gets the idea they often will swap easily as it feels natural to change and also they are nice and collected and listening from the half pass.

[/ QUOTE ]

That sounds like a good idea - as I said earlier, I do teach from counter-canter, but I can see how building up from a half-pass would enhance this.