[RC] Trot - apleg8'nAh my dear Dana! First lucky you going to Tevis!! have a blast! The key word in your post Dana is...TEACH. Again, it is whatever you like to do on your horse and also with a horse that is in the gait that lends itself to only be able to do a ventroflex gait yes, it is important that they can round out the backs. That is why I like TWH or TWH crosses because of the variety of gaits that will allow them to do just that. I could never ride my STB mare in the sport. She can only do the rack unless I let her go back to trotting and my decision is that I won't ride a trot any longer so she is out for me in endurance or even as a trail horse. When I refer to knowledgeable I am talking dyed in the wool gaited horse enthusiast. People that buy these horses for what they were intended for....smooth gait all the time. Now taking them into this sport is a different story and if your horse needs to trot to round out or if you like to trot your horse just because you like to trot, no blisters off my hiney. I just don't happen to be one of them. Dartagnon just learned this winter how to do a RW and I am so happy for this because as you said, the rack which is almost the same as the largo is ventroflexed and he can't maintain that position for 25 or 50 miles and stay sound in the long run. But then he has other gaits as well and being proficient at the canter ( at not 23 mph cowboy Ed) at 9mph at the rocking chair canter he can round out and the flatwalk, but now at the RW he also can round out and still maintain a nice under 10mph pace. So again to each his own, there are other gaits that gaited horses can to other than a trot to round out, switch gears, use the various muscles and I just prefer to use the gaited gears rather than go back to trotting...which as you said Dana, I would have to TEACH them how to do. Have fun at TEVIS! amber rackinfool www.applegaitnendurancehorses.com =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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