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[RC] energized horses/making them that way and then toning it down! - heidi larsonAsh, my arab gelding is really a pretty lazy guy in training rides, it did help to ride him with other more competitive horses. I used to lament when I first started riding him that he only knew 2 speeds, slow and slower. Now I cuss him at times because he gets into the "search and destroy" mode at rides. I've been known to announce at the first vet check that he's up for sale! :) He's been better since we bumped up to longer distances and his 80 miler at Santiam this year was by far his best start. I never leave with the starters and we just slowly overtake riders. He has a big trot and loves hills, so it gives us an advantage. However, he's still been known to be an idiot, and we do ride in just a simple myler snaffle. One thing I hear at rides alot are riders complaining how their horses just "can't or won't slow down", no matter what they do, and they usually follow up this sentence with, "so I just let him/her go." It's hard for me to keep my mouth shut (so far I've done well) but there is one sure fire way you can ALWAYS slow your horse down and that is "GET OFF AND WALK!" It works every time and although it totally pisses my horse off, that's what I do when his brain falls out. He's learning that it does him no good to throw a tantrum and try to control the speed. I've let many a horse pass him as we're walking down a trail or road until I deem it time to get back on. Sometimes I've gotten off 3 or 4 times in a 50 miler and sometimes I never have to, just seems to depend on the day, ride or ????? We've even given up a first place race for the finish as I don't want him winning the "I need to beat that horse in front of me" mode. I like that he's competitive but I don't want brainless. He's way more likely to stumble if he's paying more attention to the other horses and although I sometimes let him pick the gait, I pick the speed. After all, I buy the oats! Heidi and Kalasha (did she call me lazy?) --- Chrystal Woodhouse <Chrystal@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: Funny I was thinking of this very thing this week as I started to condition/train my 6 yr old Morab mare for my daughter and as my back up endurance horse, when I got her last fall she was quite a handful, rearing.spinning and spooking, then she got FAT over the winter and this year has been totally easy and quiet!! SO easy and quite actually that I don't like riding her much, it seems I am always asking her to move forward ( not even fast just **obviously** forward would be good :-)) this is such a huge change from my ***real**:-) :-) :-) horse , the only thing I have ever done with her speed related is try to get her to stop!!! So I have been wondering as I am riding this new horse if it is possible to get them to eventually go forward at a decent pace ( I am assuming time and conditioning will do some of that)) but how far will/can they improve?? To have a competitive horse do you need a fireball that is going to provide you with lots of campfire stories relating your "war wounds" /helmets smashed/time spent in the hospital etc......-) or have people had sane, slowish horses that have sped up???? Chrystal :-)
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