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Trail Obstacle Clinic |
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Friends old and new gathered from near and far to take a good look at how our horses react to Trail Obstacles. Trail Obstacles were defined as man-made creations that might show up on a Trail Course at a horse show, or that might be created for one of the new events occurring lately: Trail Trials. Whatever the obstacles, navigating them takes the same set of skills for both the horse and the rider, and these same skills are needed for obstacles that might show up on any trail ride. There's another, more abstract, good reason for activities like working trails obstacles, and that's to provide variety and challenge for our horses. Horses have curious minds, and enjoy a good challenge: both mental and physical. It's our responsibility to be sure that those challenges don't present physical danger and aren't mentally overwhelming to our horses.
New friends! |
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Banner Gate Not really a gate at all, this is actually a banner strung between 2 poles. It requires the same moves as an ordinary gate, but has the added challenge of flapping in the breeze: creating both unexpected sound and motion. It's bright white and reflective on one side, and an advertisement on the other.
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| Krista started her explanations with Dave demonstrating on Pockets. | |
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| Pockets was checked in to the gate and to Dave both. He's relaxed with the gate out of both eyes. | The puff of dirt lets us know that with the gate on the left eye, Pockets is no longer ok. |
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Dave hops off and goes through every motion of opening and closing the gate at a pace that's comfortable to Pockets. Pockets now has an understanding of both what's expected of him, and what he can expect from the gate. |
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We all knew that there are 3 steps to
working a gate: We might even add a release in between each step. At the very least, a half halt, and quite possibly a full stop with a good rub on the neck. A minute could be long enough. Maybe 3 steps is all opening a gate will take. Someday. On some horse. But for today, on horses and riders in various shades of green, there are maybe 15 steps! -Make friends with the gate, as needed Stop and relax at this point was a big
problem area for most riders. They've been going just a little too fast
and the horse is getting a little anxious. The rider's instincts are
to just get it over with, so they hurry on through. The horse has gotten
a bit more worried, and now feels that the rider is worried, too. To
add to it, maybe the gate moves or makes a noise and the horse wants
out. Big problem!! -Line up again. A rider can break this down into even
more little steps, as their horse requires. The point is to get your
horse comfortable and relaxed. Getting the gate open and closed is pretty
much irrelevant, at this point. Once the control is in there, then the
motions can smooth out and speed up. But that's a long ways off. The release, between every step, as needed, is critical. Remove those rest periods as your horse lets you know he gets it. Start stringing movements together. It's easy to go too fast, and it can have a lot worse repercussions than going too slow ever could! |
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| Sheri has shown both in ridden and in-hand trail classes. She understands that she should be teaching Skeeter the pattern from the very first step. And he's new to this. | She also understands that in between each movement, there should be time for Skeeter to reflect on what he's just accomplished, and know that good work brings good rewards. |
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The First Step, Making Friends with the Gate, is important. And it's important to know how important it is to your horse. Is he honestly afraid of the gate because it's a new monster? Or has his rider taught him that if he dances around a gate, he gets to go on to do something else? If your horse is the former, take as much time as needed, even in the middle of a show!, to let your horse know the gate is OK. And go around it if you need to. If your horse is the latter, now is the best time to start fixing this. Get real no-nonsense, and explain what you'll be expecting, from now on. Jim Neubert says that you don't need to murder the horse. Just don't take no for answer. 'Hurry up and get it over with' proved to be a stumbling block for nearly every horse and rider. Things seemed to be going along just fine, when suddenly they weren't. Invariably, just a moment's hesitation to let the horse think it over, would have saved the day. |
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Skeeter did very well,
and Sheri's decided to give it a try bareback.
Everything is going along just great, until Skeeter took a step away. He seems to be wondering just what happened. |
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Mary Jo on Mystic got through the gate just fine. Mystic's ears show her concern, and her reins have gotten a little too long for good control. They'll loose the gate soon, but will continue working to find success. |
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Syd realized at this
point that she'd lost Miss P, and recognized that she just wanted to
hurry through and try to save the gate. The next time through, Syd was
able to keep Miss P's attention by stopping after every movement and
bringing Miss P back to her. This made the process a series of little
motions, rather than one big, overwhelming movement. Syd and Miss P
did a great job.
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Cristie and Ida have
been working on getting control of Ida's feet, and it pays off in a
smooth gate.
Cristie asks for a soft feel, getting Ida's attention and preparing her for work. Cristie lines her up (well, almost) to the gate, and stops. She takes the gate, and stops. They move through the gate, taking several half-halts along the way to get the turn sharp and crisp. There aren't photos, but there are lots of scratches during the stops. |
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This isn't much more exciting than watching paint dry, but this pair gets this gate open and closed in no time at all. Notice that in feeling for her horse, Cristie keeps the reins in one hand when she can, but picks up both reins when she feels that Ida needs a little extra support. Now that their task is almost accomplished, we hope that Cristie will notice that she's loosing Ida. We know that she does notice, and Cristie takes her up in time to finish smoothly. We also know that Ida is passionate about patterns. If they were to do this gate the same way twice, doing it ANY differently, FOREVER, would be a real challenge. With this information, Ida gets a few minutes to soak on her success, then they do they exact opposite pattern: they open the gate from the other side, and the other end, and they open it backwards. |
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If there was a theme for the day, it was be creative! in how we look at the obstacles. Think about how our horses see each obstacle. Use our imaginations to address each obstacle at a level that suits your, and our horse's, experience and abilities. All were encouraged to find the easiest way to accomplish each obstacle and start there. Then look again from a different perspective: stop in the middle, stop and back up, back into the obstacle, side-pass down the poles, go over sideways. The challenges are limitless! |
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Medical Bag What at first appeared to be just a line of barrels, proved to be a pretty big challenge for some horses. At it's simplest, the rider was to walk up to the medical bag and make friends with it, pick it up, take it down to another barrel, and leave it there. Or just make friends. Rubbing the horse with the bag proved to be a pretty wise move, too. Once again, isolating the steps proved to be the challenge. When the horse was pressured to move at a faster pace than they were comfortable, a big bugger usually followed. And to make it a bit more complicated, a rider could pick up the pace between barrels, pick up the bag and/or drop it on the move, move the bag around the horse while moving, hand it off to another rider. Several horses learned what dropping the bag to the ground was like. And not usually intentionally!
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Judi and Bravo are
old pros at this. Judi has shown Bravo the bag. Confident that he won't
be bothered by it, they don't linger with unnecessary introductions.
A shire, Judi can't actually reach the bag easily from his back, and
gets out her handy tool. She uses an extension to
reach the handles of the bag and bring the bag up to her. |
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Two important concepts were repeated with each obstacle. #1-Make the necessary introductions to each obstacle. Let your horse explore, but only as much as needed. This is work, not play time. If you're confident that your horse is comfortable, as Judi is with Bravo, there's not need to fuss around. Just get down to business. #2-Take one step at a time. Then take a break for as long as needed to bring your horse back to you. Then take another step. The object is to get the job done and time is of no importance at this point. We all want our horses to have a good experience, and the next time will be even easier. The alternative is not only to have to teach the skills of the obstacle, but to have to overcome a fear we've instilled in the horse ourselves. Joe Wolters has said that we aren't doing this for today, we're doing it for tomorrow! |
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Cami and Tonka have
advanced to returning the bag on the move after a nice stroll around
the other obstacles.
Tonka looks relaxed and willing. |
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Syd and Miss P approach
the bag with a little less than enough introduction, and Miss P makes
her opinion of it all known.
Very wisely, Syd puts her right back to work as though nothing has happened. Had Syd made a big deal of the bag, Miss P would have, too. As it is, they'll come back and complete the task. |
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Sheri starts out just right with baby
Skeeter. |
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They've returned to
the barrel and Skeeter looks just a little dubious.
Rather than toss the bag onto the barrel, and risking a big reaction to the movement and sound from Skeeter, we'd want to see Sheri take a break, then ask Skeeter to approach the barrel a little closer. Then set the bag down on it. For Skeeter's education, and for Sheri's safety. |
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The Bridge Bridges are a pretty common occurrence both in the show pen and on the trail. They come with all sorts of challenges and this one isn't too intimidating. Except for the indoor/outdoor carpet. For whatever reason, several horses at the clinic thought this was all wrong. There were several ways to make this a bit more of a challenge. Stop anywhere along the bridge. Back up or continue on. Back off the bridge. Back onto the bridge, and maybe back all the way across. Turn around in the middle and change directions or continue on. |
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Cami gave her horse his head and just asked him to walk on over. Which he did, without hesitation. |
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Toby doesn't have a whole lot of trail experience, but this bridge doesn't seem to upset him in the least. Scott asks for a soft feel, Toby gives to his hands, and they walk over. Something seems to have caught Scott's attention off to his left, but Toby stays focused on where he's going. |
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The Chute
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Mary Jo sets Mystic
up for a turn around her inside leg, then takes on the challenge of
backing through.
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Sheri takes Skeeter through. |
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Noodle Crossing These are just swimming pool exercise noodles. They're foam and flexible. That's an old piece of carpet on the ground. The idea is to just walk through them. It's great practice for riding through brush on the trail. If your horse can walk through here without a panic, there's a good change he can get tangled up in a rope or a fence and wait quietly for help. Krista moved these a little farther apart to get started.
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Toby's never seen anything like this
before, so Scott lets him check it out for as long as he'd like. They
come back later to give it a try. |
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Judi takes Bravo through. Shires are known for their calm demeanor, and Judi rides horse patrol on Bravo. |
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| Skeeter has let Sheri know pretty clearly that he isn't happy with this, so she's gotten off to show it to him. |
Skeeter's old friend
Toby gives a little calm reassurance.
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Cami and Tonka are taking a little reassurance from Mary Jo on Mystic, too. Mary Jo might want to lengthen her reins just a little so she can sit a little more balanced in the saddle: just in case Mystic should decide she needs to leave quickly. |
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The Trash Box All kinds of obstacles rolled into one. Easiest would be to walk across it parallel to the jump. Forwards and backwards. Then maybe side pass the poles. Walk over the trash first, then the jump. Then the jump with the trash after. Pick up the bucket and do something with it. Walk it, trot it, canter it. Do it backwards. |
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Sheri
isn't making a big deal out of this, so it isn't a big deal for Skeeter,
either.
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Cristie takes Ida across with no objections. Cristie would be more helpful for Ida if she took her down the middle of the oxer, though. |
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That was so much fun,
they've decided to take the bucket for a little walk.
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Bravo liked the bucket so much, he decided to send it for a walk on it's own. |
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The ever imperturbable
Bravo is guided softly by Judi over the jump and through the trash.
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Syd
gives the sometimes reactive Miss P a moment to consider, then gives
her a little reminder that she's to pay attention and walk on nicely
through the plastic.
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| Mary Jo and Mystic seem to be moving through smoothly, though without much impulsion. |
That lack of impulsion
is probably what caused Mystic to drag a foot and knock over the cross
bars.
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Cami takes Tonka through
and remembers to show her appreciation with a gentle pat on his whithers.
It's so easy for us to forget to show that little bit of thanks to our horses who serve us so well. |
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Mail Box The mail box seems to be a good place to slip in a little creativity and here is no exception. The door is attached to a 'musical' greeting card: it's plays the sound of sheep baah-ing. The mail box was situated very close to the very exciting waterfall, so didn't get a lot of use, though Krista demonstrated on Flint. |
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No
matter what the obstacle is, the steps remain the same.
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Waterfall The waterfall presents a good number of the things that can upset a horse. It looks solid and impassable, and we ask them to go through it. Impossible. It makes noise. It touches them in all sorts of places where horses know they shouldn't be touched. It's claustrophobic. It's plastic, and well, it's just wrong. And not only all of that, but once you get your horse self through it, it comes around and nips him on the butt. Wrong in every way! All part of what makes it such a useful tool!.
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Magic looks pretty
relaxed, in between the waterfall and the mail box. Krista will help her through the waterfall. |
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Like all horse training should be,
the waterfall is slow work. Cami is asking Tonka to stop and watch. Deb waits her turn on Magic with Miss P and Mystic behind her. |
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Krista starts Deb's horse Magic and
is at the 'set it up and wait' stage. Krista might suggest that the rider would want to look out through the waterfall, to help Magic know that's where they'll be going. |
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You wouldn't want to wait too long,
either. Dave has made the project just a little easier on her by pulling aside some of the strips of plastic. Now that Magic can see that she has a place to go, she's willing to walk right through. They walk quietly through several times, and let it rest for today. |
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Aware that Pockets isn't likely to think
this is a good idea, Dave applies gentle steady pressure to Pockets,
encouraging him to go forward. Dave could scare him through, but then he'd just have a new problem to fix.
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| When there gets to be too much waiting, it can be counterproductive. Krista rides up behind Pockets on Magic, to give Pockets a little confidence. |
Pockets has only managed
one step to the side with his hind end, so Krista adds a little more
pressure with a tap from her rein.
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Dave has created an opening for Pockets by moving several of the plastic strips aside. This space, along with a little pressure from behind, is enough to get Pockets moving in the right direction, He goes through with a little more enthusiasm than Dave would like to see, so they'll come back soon to get Pockets moving through quietly. |
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And now he has it. Dave has made a space for Pockets and led him through the opening enough times that Pockets feels more trustworthy. Dave has gotten in the saddle. Dave continues to create a space for Pockets, and Pockets is not without some tension, still, but he's willing to go through, with Dave on his back, and that's a big step. And enough for today. Pockets is going to be a trail horse for Sheri and will need courage and confidence for his work. Dave will continue on until Pockets knows he can handle this type of pressure. |
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 They
work through the enthusiasm and Mystic goes through peacefully. |
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Mary Jo's first trip
through the waterfall on Mystic is a little more lively than she might
want.
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Flint shows that having
a space to go through makes this whole deal a lot easier.
Although she still doesn't just love it, she's willing to go on through. Krista has enough confidence in the situation to ride through with a soda! |
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On the Trail The afternoon was spent working on getting a job done. A trail ride around the property shows just what this work has accomplished as the horses navigate steep and narrow trails with a new confidence and control. |
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Bonus Exercise Miss P has never been known for loving the concentrated work that she's done today. She's done a great job, but her patience is all used up and her happy feet just can't slow down. She's just too worried to stand still. Cristie suggests that Scott and Toby show her an exercise that will help Miss P and Syd both shift their focus off the excitement, and give them both a good opportunity to slow down. |
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Scott has picked up
Syd's inside rein, and Syd's picked up Scott's inside rein.
They're effectively steering each other's horse. They key here is to NOT pay attention to the horses, but to look each other in the eye and engage each other. This takes any expectation of altercation between the horses completely out of the picture and gives them both a job to do. The horses can spin around as fast as they want to, but they aren't going anywhere. The slower horse can influence the speed of the worried horse. It could be helpful, too, if both Syd and Scott have a picture in their minds of what they want this to look like. It could be just another way to convey the feeling of what they're looking for. |
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There they are. Scott and Syd have had a nice visit, and Miss P has forgotten all about needing to move. Miss P can move off quietly, and Toby is looking to Scott for what they're going to do next. This exercise is of great benefit when colt starting to get youngsters used to being approached by other riders on horseback. It's also great for crabby mares, and just about any horse who doesn't feel comfortable in close quarters with another horse. Of course, there are horses who are too volatile for this, and riders who aren't ready for it, either. |
| Krista@FromStartToFoundation.com |
831-588-6214
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1425
San Marcos Rd. Paso Robles, CA 93446
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