Scared to canter?????

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Amber1012

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Ok so a new girl on my yard (she's a novice if this makes a difference, although so am I) but anyway, she told me that she is scared to canter, she has lessons with a riding school who have a great reputation but says she hates to canter as she feels so unbalanced and falls off a lot when trying to do it but even before the Falling off she had a fear of cantering but says she cant explain why. I've never heard this before so wondered if anybody else has had this experience when learning to ride or knows of this happening to anybody else??
 
Understandable. I remember my first canter and it felt scary, I don't mind admitting it.
You soon get over it though!

Might be worth getting a lunge lesson so she doesn't need to worry about anything other than relaxing and understanding the seat she requires. You might find she is tensing up with fear leading to a poor seat, leading to a possible exit from the horse.
 
About 50 years ago I went on a riding holiday. I was about 11 and never ridden before. The 5th time I rode they had me doing my first canter out on a moor. (Silly people). I was petrified, the pony just went faster and faster until I came off and broke my arm. It was a few years before I dared canter again, I was quite happy to walk and trot, but canter, no way. Overcame it eventually, but never liked galloping.
 
Doug said:
Understandable. I remember my first canter and it felt scary, I don't mind admitting it.
You soon get over it though!

Might be worth getting a lunge lesson so she doesn't need to worry about anything other than relaxing and understanding the seat she requires. You might find she is tensing up with fear leading to a poor seat, leading to a possible exit from the horse.
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Yes this makes sense. First time I cantered I was really nervous but she seems to be really scared bless her. I'd just like to add I don't mean to sound erm.....I don't know what word I'm looking for but I'm not mocking her for this, just thought if anyone had any advice I could pass it on as it really seems to frustrate her also. Good advice! Thanks :)
 
Misty05 said:
About 50 years ago I went on a riding holiday. I was about 11 and never ridden before. The 5th time I rode they had me doing my first canter out on a moor. (Silly people). I was petrified, the pony just went faster and faster until I came off and broke my arm. It was a few years before I dared canter again, I was quite happy to walk and trot, but canter, no way. Overcame it eventually, but never liked galloping.
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Oh! I can imagine that would put u off for a while! :-/
 
After a fall at the start of summer, I began to have panic attacks if the horse I was on went in to canter - really inconvenient when you should be exercising polo ponies!! I spoke to the other groom and I was put on the safest, most comfortable horses for a while just until I could cope. I had to push myself to get on with it though.

A friend of mine is quite nervous about cantering - she's avoided it for the past couple of years. Now she's having lessons with one of the instructors at college and today she cantered for about 3 or 4 dozen strides on each rein! The instructors advice was to do something you don't like doing three times. From her experience: the first time is awful; the second time is unpleasant but manageable; the third time things tend to click. I really like the basic premise of this, though obviously each stage will take a different length of time for different people.
 
Misty05, my first ever canter and gallop was on a riding holiday too, only I did stay on and it was the most wonderful feeling in the world!

Op, I totally understand what your friend is going through, and I think a lot of it comes from initial riding lessons. At walk and trot we can be led, and that is a nice feeling having someone to support you. At canter you simply have to go it alone, and that's scary. Learning on the lunge will be very helpful for her - my old instructor deepened my seat by lunging me with no reins or stirrups and with my eyes shut, and no voice commands for the pony, that was wonderful.
 
Me too - I cannot canter to save my life! I can't jump either, but then my overall riding skills are very, very poor and I am very unbalanced, so these days I either just hack in walk or don't ride at all.
 
Not that unusual even for more seasoned riders. I share a horse and owner had not cantered outside of the school for two years. She managed a few strides twice in the summer which was a great achievement for her. The first time I cantered it scared the wits out of me. I could hear my brain scream " Too FAST! :D I soon got used to it though. Not much option with my RI who as soon as I got the hang of staying upright took my stirrups away. After that it was easy :)
 
With little kids, they often have them on the lead rein and just introduce it out hacking. Pony canters to keep up, go in a straight line, and then stop when the horse does. In the school they have to work so much harder at staying balanced whereas out on a hack they just have to hold tight. This only really works if you have 2 well behaved horses who don't race and don't take a lot of pulling up/ getting going though.

When I got my old boy, I was very nervous of cantering. We don't have a school, just a big field, and so I started in there just cantering holding the pommel down the side of the field, pulling up, trotting the corner, then kicking on again. It felt less like the wall of death and like I actually could steer and think because everything just happened slower. I went from crying and holding the pommel to going XC and doing dressage in about 8 weeks! SJ took a bit longer, more like 4 months...
 
I used to hate canter and used to cry if my instructor tried to make me.

I have since learned to love it (from riding a succession of superb confidence-giving riding school ponies and having instructors who wouldn't take no for an answer!)

Still a total wimp over jumps though.
 
I do so know howall of you feel, OK ,so I have pt to pt ed evented hunted prettywell done everythingelse BUT , that loss of nerve , it never hit me until Inhad the smash of my life.Somthing inside of me has burned out. I do so love everything equestrian yet yet on a one to one basis I know I am broken!OMG
 
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If you tense up in canter, you're more likely to come off! I agree, rather than trying to solve the fear, try and help her understand how she can be secure in canter and the issue will resolve itself. The only thing I can say is, deep breath, relax, and push your heels down.
 
listen to pigeon ,dont listen to me , I realise tht what I have said is negative , I dont want to evEr be negative in the sport i LOVE
 
Thanks guys :) I spoke to said girl earlier and told her afew of the replies - didn't realise she could have posted herself as she's also a member of this brilliant forum - anyway, she was really pleased and also i think a little touched that I took the time to try get some advice for her :) bless! She said she thought if she posted to say she was scared to canter she would be criticised and would feel daft- ive told her to look for the thread and read all the comments and she'll realise she's far from alone on this :)
 
I think it's something most people go through :) Try and find a horse with a really smooth canter for her to practise on, and then just canter as much as you can until it's boring :) Also, smile, even if you want to cry. It tricks you into feeling more confident, works for me lol
 
Darling,I have raced and galloped with some of the best of them ,yet for a small fall , I know how bad it can get, Darling girl , with three quartetrersof a ton of horse just how brave doyou want to be .
 
I am on lesson number 4 with a new instructor and i told her right from the start i was scared to canter as 2 yrs ago when i last cantered on my horse i lost my balance, came off and broke my shin bone and ankle. Put me someone elses horse and i will do it but theres something in my brain that stops me from doing it on my own. Anyway right from my first lesson she told ne i am more than capable off doing it but i just couldnt, until this sat just gone. SHe told me she wanted me to canter just a few strides and i had an almighty meltdown about it. I Was shaking, crying felt really sick and just couldnt do it so she got me to calm down and carry on walking round the school then she told me to trot and push for a faster one ( all the time she kept talking to me) then she told me to sit and ask quietly for a few strides of canter, next thing i knew i was cantering down the whole length of the school. It was fab! And i stayed on! It was an AMazing feeling once my heart had stopped racing and i had stopped shaking lol. Apparently all my friends on the yard was watching and burst out cheering and clapping as they were so pleased for me. She will get there, tell her to get a good instructor that understands nerves and confidence issues.
 
How about a few sessions on a mechanical horse that does canter. She could get her balance, seat & feel at canter. No nasty falls to worry about. Then take that experience on to a horse. Should be a lot easier.
 
POLLDARK said:
How about a few sessions on a mechanical horse that does canter. She could get her balance, seat & feel at canter. No nasty falls to worry about. Then take that experience on to a horse. Should be a lot easier.
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This ^
A brilliant way to either learn the basics, or to improve on what you have already with no worries about the horse doing 'something' that may cause you to be insecure.
Local RS to me makes all new clients who haven't ridden before have a min of 6 lessons on the MH before they graduate onto a living one :)

The MH has a huge advantage over being lunged, as on the lunge an insecure new rider can feel pulled by centrifugal force and struggle still to keep seat & balance.
OP, hope your friend manages to get the help to progress :)
 
I am helping my friend who has a fear of canter. First of all i bought her a lesson on a mechanical horse, she loved it.

We then moved onto a canter out on a hack, put my very steady lad in front, found a slightly uphill short track, advised a light seat and off we went, we have done this a few time and she is now no longer nervous, although control is a bit lacking.

The next step is cantering in the school, this i will leave to our YO who is a riding instructor.

Agree with Fuzzy Furries post re cantering on a lunge, we did try that and she felt really unbalanced, again will leave that to the professional.
 
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I found canter really hard to start with. All I seemed to do was bounce about while everyone else looked so happy and relaxed.
Anyway eventually a good instructor explained that I needed to breathe! I was holding my breath waiting for the bouncing to stop and this was making it all worse. The only thing that helped was for me to sing or have something to repeat over to myself (even the word canter). Having a horse with soft movement would help too. Try a highland pony if you can borrow one. Else put her on the lunge and control the pony's speed to give a slow canter for only a few strides at a time, though it has to be long enough for her to get into the movement. Alternatively can she take a light seat until she gets used to to the pace and then practice sitting to bring back down to trot, gradually building it up?
 
I think learning to canter in an arena because the horse never really gets into it's stride before having to navigate a corner. No problem if it's a well schooled balanced horse but less so if you are on a typical riding school horse who trots fast, falls into canter and then breaks back into a jaw shuddering trot the moment it gets the chance. I taught my young daughter to canter on a hack along a nice grassy track up a slight hill - admittedly you need a horse that stops nicely/doesn't get silly and one you can hack out! Good luck to your friend!
 
Cantering in the school is hard for the learner, you have to balance and get a grip of the controls on the corners!

Out on a hack however on a nice slowly rising hill, and falling into a few strides of canter then back to walk is the best way to build confidence both for human riders and green horses.

My mare is very good at nursing newbies out on a hack. If you can find a horse which will canter alongside your friends sensibly out on a hack, that'll be perfect. Make it fun!
 
Definitely try a mechanical horse.

Also suggest she try cantering with her bum out of the saddle in a light seat so she doesn't get bounced about.
 
I was petrified of cantering for ages but now I love it!! Its a horrible feeling though being asked to do it and feeling like a fool for being scared. My instructer made me holdi on to the saddle with my outside hand then then I could always pull the horse up with the inside rein (I think thats the right way round, i havnt used this technique in a qhile.. Well I havnt ridden in a while). But then we went onto having lunge lessons and in the end after a few she was making me canter round with my eyes close (you get to know your balance allot better with your eyes closed) and with no stirrups and reins, after that I loved cantering!!
 
I don't remember being scared to canter when I learnt to ride. But when I got my mare, my first horse. I rode out with everyone from the yard I was buying her from They told me to canter up on side of the field whilst they went up the other side. I thought it was weird but done that anywAy. She cantered on the spot then. She bolted and I came off. She f'd off into the woods as I tried to catch her, off she went again. This time crossing a very busy a road at the 40mph section. Through the village and back to the yard. So needless to say I was scared to canter her again for a long time. I've had her 13 yrs and can honestly say it's only been the last 4 yrs that I've actually trusted her 100%
 
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