JULY 2012 THE RIDER /41


he should start to relax in about two to three minutes, and then move him to a different position in the line. Even if he does not relax, rotate him within the trail ride line anyway.


Pairs Trail Training By Lynn Palm


Many riders have prob- lems with the horse that always wants to be “the leader of the pack” usually has experience being on trail rides with other horses, but he may demonstrate this tendency as early as his first trail ride. Most likely, this characteristic will become more and more of an issue the more trail rides he goes on unless his rider learns how to deal with it. First of all, the answer is not just getting a stronger bit. This only will intensify the horse’s anxiety and desire to get in the lead.


Also, do not complicate the scenario by taking this kind of horse out in a large group which will only over-stimulate him and make him more diffi- cult to work with. Instead, trail ride with only two to four hors-


Building A Partnership with Your Young Horse Training Outside the Box, Part 6 goal.


es at most. Be sure you are rid- ing with people who understand your goals and are willing to work with you. To safely school this type of horse on the trail, you need to ride with peo- ple who are generally safety conscious and who do not mind stopping and changing gaits and positions.


A horse that is inexperi- enced at trail riding or that is in his earliest stages of trail train- ing will be the easiest to train to accept whatever spot on the trail the rider chooses. The key to this training is to have the rider change the horse’s posi- tion often on the trail ride. The more the rider does this, the more the horse will accept the rider’s commands and allow his natural instincts to take care of his rider. There are two training methods to accomplish this


Single File Trail Training Set up a trail ride training scenario where you and your horse are among two to four horse/rider combinations in sin- gle file. Start with your horse in the lead position for a short time of about two to three min- utes. Next, shift positions in the line so that he is the second horse. Stay in that position for a short time, and then move him back to the lead. Continue to lead for another short interval, and then shift to the third in line. Hold the horse there for a while, and then take him back up to the second position. From there, rotate into fourth position for another short segment, and then back to third, and so on. Always start in the lead position. If the horse is in front,


Once you have practiced rotating him within a single file line, ask your fellow riders to pair up so that they are riding two abreast. Bring your horse to the lead position with another horse/rider pair. Your horse should begin to relax. Stay in the lead position for two to three minutes, and then, with you partner, rotate into the second position in line. Again, if he does not relax, move him any- way. Stay in the new position for two to three minutes, and then go back to the lead. Contin- ue changing positions through- out the ride.


Other Trail Training Tech- niques


Leg Yielding is one of sev- eral other techniques that you can use to keep your horse’s attention while you are on a trail ride. When you are riding single file, ask your horse to leg yield to the right side of the trail by using your left leg aid. When you reach the trail’s right edge, go forward, and then ask him to yield back to the left edge. Do these maneuvers in short seg- ments, and be sure to do them in both directions.


Transitions can be mixed in with the short segments of yield- ing to teach the horse to keep his


attention on you. Examples of simple transitions to use include: walk to trot, trot to walk, walk to lengthening walk, trot to lengthening trot to slow trot. The emphasis of this training is based on the theory that the more the rider does short seg- ments of changing the horse’s position, riding in pairs, yield- ing, and simple transitions, the more the horse concentrates on the rider rather than following his herd instincts.


Stopping is always a good option if the horse starts to get anxious while training on the trail as well as being a good training tool in itself. If the horse jigs around when you ask him to stop, get off. Spend some time with him on the ground until he relaxes. When he does relax, get back on and resume the trail training process. If he does not relax, he is telling you that he has inner energy that needs to be released. This proba- bly means he was not prepared enough for the lesson. You may need to walk him back to the barn, especially if the situation is making you fearful, nervous, or frustrated. On the trip back to the barn, do in-hand maneuvers such as turn on the forehand, turn on the haunches, backing, and leg yielding. These maneu- vers will help the horse learn to focus more of his attention on you.


Safety First Always!


While practicing these trail training lessons, keep these safe- ty precautions in mind:


1. When riding in a group or with only one other person, always call out to the other rider(s) what you are going to do, or designate one person on the ride to call out each short segment. Always make sure everyone is ready for what is coming.


2. When riding in single file, keep at least one horse length distance (eight to ten feet) between horses. When riding in pairs, respect the same distance between partners and the horses in front. Most trails are too nar- row to allow this distance between riding pairs. Therefore, it is important for riders to learn to read their horse’s ears and body language to determine if he accepts the other horse and rider in close proximity. 3. Always keep the one horse length distance rule, especially on trails where turns do not allow the horse in back to see the horse in front of him. A horse will not always accept this situation, and he naturally will want to run to be within sight of the horse in front. It is good trail etiquette for a rider in the lead to slow down around a turn to allow the rider(s) behind him to remain one horse length behind. The rider who is behind should ask the lead rider to slow down in order to keep the lead horse within view of his/her mount. My E-Book, Training Out- side the Box, is available online at www.lynnpalm.com along with other valuable training products. You also may contact us at 800-503-2824.


ACTHA Canada Riders Have Grit


By Lawrence Cannon Three days of rain preceded the start of the American Competitive Trail Horse Association’s Competitive Trail Chal- lenge held June 3rd at Rab- bit Run Farm near Flesher- ton Ontario


Undaunted by the weather, 51 riders with true grit donned their slickers and headed out to chal- lenge the 10 kilometer trail with 6 natural obstacles and raise money to support PRANCE (Pegasus Riding Association Nuturing Chal-


increased value.


A uniquely Canadian addition to the trail ride was the THREE RIDER TEAM CHALLENGE. For a small additional fee of 5 dollars per rider you could join up as a rider team of three and combine your scores for a chance to win flashlight hoof picks and multi-tools for each team member.


lenged Equestrians) in Port Elgin.


This group of hardy riders represented a broad spectrum in the recreation- al horse community. There were horse and rider teams from the show circuit, the jumping arena, cutting and team sorting as well as dedicated trail riders. Some riders came only to experience the beauty of the trail that meandered through rolling hills in the Flesherton area of Grey County. Others came to challenge them- selves and their horses over the 6 natural obstacles. The


horse and rider’s perfor- mance over the obstacles were scored by obstacle judges.The resulting scores were used to determine overall performance within each of the three competi- tive divisions; OPEN, PLEASURE and JUNIOR. Traditional horse ribbons were awarded in each divi- sion for 1st through 6th place. Placing in the rib- bons earns a horse points to be entered in the ACTHA permanent registry. Earned points stay with the horse for life in the registry giv- ing the equine partner noto- riety,distinction and


At the end of the ride all riders and horses returned to the start point safe, sound, soggy and down right happy. Follow-


ing the 10 km trail adven- ture was a hot lunch pro- vided by the Grey Bruce Roller Derby Girls and a hearty bonfire offered an inviting place to chat and warm up at while you ate. While the scores were being added and ribbon winners were being deter- mined, riders had a chance to win more prizes by par- ticipating in the BANK ROBBER KNOT TYING CHALLENGE. This side event involved effective slip knot tying accompa- nied by a first aide task.


This fun challenge tested important skills required on the trail in an emergency. Both segments of the knot tying challenge were judged for score in the same concept as the trail obstacles.


Overall this first 2012 ACTHA Canada trail ride was a tremendous success. Some riders departed that afternoon with ribbons, while some departed with really nice prizes. All par- ticipants left with the satis- faction of having helped raise $535.00 for PRANCE. Most impor- tant of all for me was that everyone departed with a smile on their face and the desire to ride again in the next Canadi- an ACTHA Competitive Trail Challenge, tenta- tively scheduled for SEPTEMBER 30th, 2012.


A huge thank you to all the riders, their horses and all the volun- teers that helped make this wet day so enjoy- able. An equally tremen- dous thank you to those business’s that supported


us in this great trail adven- ture. Including but not lim- ited to:


Great Lakes Agra/Bio cube, The Horse Habit, Ionson’s Saddlery, The Saddle Shack, Blue Water Feeds, Cedarview Horse Supplies, Greys on Grass, Grey Bruce Roller Derby Girls, Casualty Care Inc., The Rider and many more. Lastly, I would like to offer all riders a sincere invitation to join us on our next great trail adventure.


Every ride is 10 km long with 6 natural obstacles, but the ride location moves every time and the obsta- cles change accordingly. Never the same trail twice so every ride is a new adventure. Open to all dis- ciplines. Rain or Shine we ride


Look us up on face- book or www.actha.us See you on the trail. Ride Safe, Ride with a Pur- pose.


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