As a trail rider, you ride your horse most often at a walk. But do you set the pace for the walk? Or does your horse decide how fast he should go - walking sluggishly away from the barn, keeping you at the back of the pack, and picking up the pace as you turn for home? If this describes your horse, chances are, he's learned that he gets to make decisions, and that he's in charge and you're merely sitting on top for a ride.
To be a fully engaged rider, top clinician/trainer Julie Goodnight will teach you more about the walking gait, how to feel it, and how to cue your horse with natural aids so that he's always moving at the speed you determine.
If your horse speeds up on the way back to the barn, you know that he can walk quickly. It's up to you to teach him that he can walk just as fast when you're heading out and while ambling down the trail.
The walk is a four-beat gait without suspension. That is, your horse always has at least two hooves on the ground and usually three, so there's no moment when all hooves are off the ground (as there is during the trot and lope/canter); therefore, you never feel a bounce. For example, he'll place his right hind, then the right front, then left hind, then left front hoof on the ground. Each hoof placement creates a beat: 1-2-3-4.
The walk is also a lateral gait. As your horse moves, you feel a side-to-side, lateral motion in the saddle.
The walk is the best gait for riding over any precarious or hilly terrain, because your horse needs his feet on the ground for balance as he navigates over logs or around branches and holes.
As you learn to feel the walk's beats and rate your horse's speed, you'll gain confidence as a rider and teach your horse that you're the one in charge.
The walk is a gait to be mastered and refined, not just a warm-up for faster speeds. The trot is a good ground-covering gait, but doesn't allow your horse to place his feet precisely. The lope or canter is fun and fast, but most horses can't keep up the pace for long times, and there's little time to choose a safe path.
Exercise Prep
Natural-horsemanship lesson: Teach your horse to walk at the pace of your choosing.
Why you need it on the trail: When you start out from the barn or are at the back of your trail group, your horse may think that he's in charge and can walk slowly, determining the speed and how much energy he uses. He needs to follow your lead when it comes to direction and speed.
What you'll do: You'll learn to feel your horse's hoofbeats at the walk and become aware of how your body moves in response to each beat. You'll use your body's natural rhythm to help your horse speed up to the pace that you choose and maintain the gait. If he has an ingrained habit of ignoring your directions, you may need to reinforce your natural leg aids with a crop or the reins.
What you'll need: Your saddle and bridle, and either split reins with a long bight (excess), romal reins, or a short crop.
Step #1. Feel Your Horse's Speed
Outfit your horse in the tack listed above. Mount up, and ask your horse to walk away from the barn. Study his walking gait and make sure he's listening to your speed cues.
Notice how much your hips move from side to side as your horse walks. (At a slow walk, you may not feel much motion.) If you're riding with a buddy, notice how far your horse is from the lead. If he's holding back and allowing the other horse to easily pass, he may be cheating you.
Then ask your horse to speed up using your usual cues. Does he react with a faster walk? Or does he become confused and begin to trot? If he doesn't speed up his walk while maintaining the gait, perfect your speed cues with the exercises that follow.
If you have trouble deciding if your horse is walking too slowly, ask a friend to watch your horse's feet. If your horse has little forward motion, drags his toes, doesn't "track up" by placing his hind feet near where his front feet just landed, or hesitates between steps, it's time to work on the walk. (In Photo 1A, note the position of the horse's hesitatingly slow feet.)
When your horse begins to walk faster, he'll pick his feet up higher and step farther. The rhythm of his walk will increase and he'll have more impulsion. (In Photo 1B, note the horse's right front foot has moved ahead and his back feet are poised for action.)
