# Riding a Choppy Trot



## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

Are you posting or sitting the trot? If sitting, I'd change to posting.


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## SummerBliss (Jan 7, 2017)

ACinATX said:


> Are you posting or sitting the trot? If sitting, I'd change to posting.


I've found sitting it easier the few times I have, but I typically post and it's during posting that I have the most trouble.


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## AtokaGhosthorse (Oct 17, 2016)

Good luck on this one. My main horse feels like sitting on a jack hammer. Four years into riding him... still can't enjoy his trot, especially if he's being a jerk and really stomping hard while trotting. The BEST I can do isn't even posting, he's so choppy. I literally have to stand in the stirrups - but I ride western so this isn't just a horrible sin of riding. But he LOVES TO TROT A LOT. And I don't mind that, it's just that he wears me out. He's exhausting to ride.

I thought all these years I just sucked at riding a trot. Nope. It's my horse. All others feel smooth as silk by comparison.

If anyone has the magic bullet answer, I'd love to hear it, so... subbing.


(PS Told my husband yesterday I've decided if I can ever learn to ride his trot well, there won't be another horse I can't ride. So I consider it conditioning for myself and refuse to give him up. He'll toughen me up)


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## Kalraii (Jul 28, 2015)

I am unsure if large trot is the same as choppy. I find it hard to sit ponies coz feels like am on a sewing machine I don't even try keep up and just sit haha. But my girl is huge and is like riding a catapult. At first I wasn't posting in time. Then I was too ahead and launched too far up with not enough time to sit back down. Sitting it was VERY difficult it was just a huge range of motion at speed. What sped learning? Sitting and walk/trot transitions without stirrups. By the time my feet were back in the stirrups my body was calibrated and in time haha. It's worth noting that when she was ploughing on ahead with no regard it was horrible. But see something funky in the distance she went into her lofty trot and while scary to be riding a giraffe was wonderful to ride! Her lazy trot horrible. So really... I guess it can be worked on. But it was by better horsemen and women around me!


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## SummerBliss (Jan 7, 2017)

Good to know I'm not the only one that struggles with a choppy trot xD 

It honestly surprised me to know my guy's trot is super choppy cause he's 16.1 hh so he's got long legs and I figured that'd mean he'd have a nice trot but I guess that's not the case lol. Guess it's time to practice without stirrups and also just acknowledge I may not be able to ride his trot comfortably any time soon. But all I can do is practice and practice I will!


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## AtokaGhosthorse (Oct 17, 2016)

SummerBliss said:


> Good to know I'm not the only one that struggles with a choppy trot xD
> 
> It honestly surprised me to know my guy's trot is super choppy cause he's 16.1 hh so he's got long legs and I figured that'd mean he'd have a nice trot but I guess that's not the case lol. Guess it's time to practice without stirrups and also just acknowledge I may not be able to ride his trot comfortably any time soon. But all I can do is practice and practice I will!


I've learned long legs isn't the indicator of a rough riding horse. I can't explain it, but I know it when I see it now, having had others show me. Pastern angles and how the shoulder ties in to the body and the rest of the leg are 'the thing' to look for. 

The way my horse is put together, he has a jarring piston action in all but his lope - and his lope is like riding a rocking chair. Everything else will beat you to death, and that's why I use the back of my seat - the Cheyenne Roll - as a handle to suck me down into the seat when he gets really bouncy. Sometimes even standing in the stirrups isn't enough to take the 'shock' of the chop out - just takes the edge off. If he's pouting or stressed? It's even worse. I swear he slams his feet down as hard as he can, like a kid stomping their feet when told no.

THE GOOD THING ABOUT IT - he does not get bogged down on muddy trails. He just keeps his sewing machine needle legs going and we pull right through anything. We've been as deep as just above his knees and we just chug right along.


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

My 5' DIL on 13.0 hand Cowboy. His trot will make you pee blood. When he canters, you could sip wine out of a cup or roll a smoke. I two point until we're past his trot...:Angel:


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## AtokaGhosthorse (Oct 17, 2016)

bsms said:


> My 5' DIL on 13.0 hand Cowboy. His trot will make you pee blood. When he canters, you could sip wine out of a cup or roll a smoke. I two point until we're past his trot...:Angel:



Triggers slow lope is glorious. I could ride him all day like that. I just can't get him to hold it long - he either wants to trot or GO HARD AS HE CAN... and his gallop can get pretty rough too.


Ah, the Rough Trotters Club... proud to be a part of it. I get kinda jealous of people who are effortlessly posting a trot on a smooth horse. LOL


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## ChieTheRider (May 3, 2017)

Collecting into a slow lope that's only a little faster than a trot is what helps me when riding choppy horses. 

My grandmother owns a Tennesee walker that I ride a lot and his slow trot is lovely, but then he has this horrible foxtrotty thing that is as fast as a canter but so miserable to sit that I try to keep him from doing it. I wonder if it's a pace, but as I've never seen it from the ground, I don't know. Nobody's ever trained him to settle into his gaits on command so you have to try a little to get him to do what you want.


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## 3Horses2DogsandaCat (Apr 19, 2016)

It's interesting to hear others talk about their horses with rough trots and smooth canters. My Haflinger's trot is terribly bouncy. It feels like his hips are throwing me up and forward towards his neck. I was afraid his canter would be a nightmare, but it's a perfect, gentle, uphill gait.


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## AtokaGhosthorse (Oct 17, 2016)

3Horses2DogsandaCat said:


> It's interesting to hear others talk about their horses with rough trots and smooth canters. My Haflinger's trot is terribly bouncy. It feels like his hips are throwing me up and forward towards his neck. I was afraid his canter would be a nightmare, but it's a perfect, gentle, uphill gait.



I was scared to death to let Trigger get beyond a trot for a LONG time since he bounced me out of the saddle/I bailed on a bolt. 



Now that I've done it more than a few times, I love his lope. I have to just remind myself: It's gonna get smoother, it's gonna get smoother!


I've noticed he has a ROUGH transition between gaits too... anyone else? Is that rough transition part of his choppy way of going? Gina, husband's mare, is almost seamless... even when she digs in to give it a full send and launch us forward from a walk to a run, it's smooth.


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## 3Horses2DogsandaCat (Apr 19, 2016)

AtokaGhosthorse said:


> I was scared to death to let Trigger get beyond a trot for a LONG time since he bounced me out of the saddle/I bailed on a bolt.
> 
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> 
> ...



Me too! I was afraid to ask for a canter; so I was in amazement when mine slipped into his delightful canter unexpectedly. 





Most of the horses I've ridden have a rough transition between gaits. That's why I'm afraid to ask for a canter


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## AtokaGhosthorse (Oct 17, 2016)

3Horses2DogsandaCat said:


> Me too! I was afraid to ask for a canter; so I was in amazement when mine slipped into his delightful canter unexpectedly.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I can never tell if Trigger is about to fall on his face because of his hurried pace, which is his natural walking speed, or if he's about to buck, when he shifts gears. He's never done either, but it's so rough it can be alarming. LOL


4 years... and I'm just now getting comfortable with his transitions. I always thought if the trot was that bad, how much WORSE is the rest of it!? And AT SPEED? I'll never be able to hang on and I will die.


Not true at all. I enjoy his canter... it's... so relaxed and smooth. 



Now to figure out how to get that out of him and get him to maintain it instead of him going Walk, Trot, PLAID. He skips 3rd gear most of the time.


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## Jolly101 (Jul 2, 2018)

I've been there too! The good news is that when you learn to sit his trot, then you'll learn to sit most trots!

First, having your horse work properly over his back makes a big difference. Before you attempt sitting, make sure that he is supple over that back. 

Second, I found that working out at the gym, particularly core work helped immensely. I was able to "hold myself into the saddle better". Bouncy horses hold a challenge because you do need to keep relaxed with the movement, BUT you also need to stay toned to prevent yourself from moving too much out of the saddle. 

Another thing is keeping a good position, which seems obvious, but it is so easy to move out of position if your horse is bouncy. Most often, it is easy for the legs to slip forward, which then causes you to slide back and off your seat bones. Whenever you feel your leg shift out, then I like to think of moving my upper thigh down and back. Another thing is upper thigh position, which will often try and rotate outward, but you want your inner thigh to be in contact with the saddle. Then, your joints need to act as shock absorbers. You need to go with the movement. 

Lastly, lots and lots of practice. At first, just do so in small spurts (a few strides of trot at a time). When you and your horse both feel comfortable, then ride a few more strides. You need to give yourself time to adjust to the movement. 

And a few accessories that could help: full seat breeches and Sekur-Grip.


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## 3Horses2DogsandaCat (Apr 19, 2016)

Since I didn't give you any advice in my original post, I wanted to let you know that this gel pad actually helped. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01G1KGUWY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1 

It seems to absorb some of the bounce.


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## redbadger (Nov 20, 2017)

AtokaGhosthorse said:


> 3Horses2DogsandaCat said:
> 
> 
> > Now to figure out how to get that out of him and get him to maintain it instead of him going Walk, Trot, PLAID. He skips 3rd gear most of the time.
> ...


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## Interstellar (Feb 15, 2020)

First things first, lots of jackhammering gaits can be due to pain. Full saddle fit, teeth, joints, etc. If you have a hitch in your back or inflammation in your joints or your shoes don't fit you'll run short strided too. 

Secondly, horses who go like that are typically inverted and moving incorrectly. They aren't using their back or rocking onto their hind limbs so the jackhammer feeling is their front end taking the brunt of the weight of the trot. Really focusing on riding the horse correctly from back to front, pushing the hind legs under the belly, will help the shoulder be able to free up to smooth out the gait.

Third, take those stirrups off and just tough it out. How do you think Maclay kids can sit any trot and look regal while doing it? They no stirrup lesson every. Flipping. Day. I would be hard pressed to find a non-pro rider better or more hard working than the top five at Maclay each year.


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

Not a fan of no stirrups for a choppy trot. Maybe it is being a male......or old.

Bandit had done relay races where he had to race 10-15 mile legs while carrying up to 300 lbs on his 800 lbs body. He arrived here with a back like a steel I-beam. Two point. Lots of two point. He eventually learned to trust me with his back. But injuries to MY back has kept me from riding the last couple of months. Finally tried a few days ago. He was tense, wound up, ready to go....and reverted to his I-beam back trot. I tried sitting it for a little bit but decided peeing blood wasn't worth it so I stood in the stirrups and let my legs take the impact. After 15 minutes, he started to relax and things went better than.

I'm well past 60, have injured my back more than once and see no reason to torture myself while riding. Or my horse. Legs make good shock absorbers. Some horses need to learn to trust a rider with their backs. And some, frankly, are just built that way. Don't think my BLM mustang pony Cowboy was bred to compete in anything. Neither was Bandit, really. Two point reduces peak impact pressures on a horse's back by 20%. Seems like a more important skill to work than sitting a trot.



> The significantly highest load on the horse’s back was at the sitting trot (2112 N), followed by the rising trot (2056 N) and the two-point seat (1688 N). *The rider was most stable in the two-point seat while transferring the lowest load on the horse’s back*. The rising trot was found to be more stable and less stressful for the horse’s back compared to the sitting trot.
> 
> https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1090023309001488


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## Keira Cloudhawk (Nov 18, 2019)

When I first got my mare, she had the unimaginable trot. Now, she is a very smooth trotter. I would mainly sit through it, but if I ever got uncomfortable, I would kind of 'stand' the trot. Eventually, my trainer would make me drop stirrups and make me sit the trot to build up balance (good ol' times). Anyways, I hope this helps??


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## DanisMom (Jan 26, 2014)

AtokaGhosthorse said:


> Good luck on this one. My main horse feels like sitting on a jack hammer. Four years into riding him... still can't enjoy his trot, especially if he's being a jerk and really stomping hard while trotting. The BEST I can do isn't even posting, he's so choppy. I literally have to stand in the stirrups - but I ride western so this isn't just a horrible sin of riding. But he LOVES TO TROT A LOT. And I don't mind that, it's just that he wears me out. He's exhausting to ride.
> 
> I thought all these years I just sucked at riding a trot. Nope. It's my horse. All others feel smooth as silk by comparison.
> 
> ...


This describes my horse to a T. Jackhammer--very good description.


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