# Old Riding Videos



## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

Okay so they're not that old, but these are the first couple of times I've ridden a horse in ten years. I just bought my stallion, Smoke, in May of '09 but was only able to truly start working with him beginning the 10th of August when he was moved to a nearby boarding facility. These videos start on the second time I've ridden him...ever. What I want to do is show these videos, and then when I get some new ones I can see if there are any improvements or if I've gotten worse.
I'm a novice rider anymore, so advice and information is always welcomed, but please remember to let me know what I'm doing correctly as well. ^^

So I'm pretty sure he was scared of his shadow in this one, that's the only think I can think of. Anyway, second time ever riding him.





Okay, I don't know what his problem hi with that one wall, but he always wants make a sort of U around the middle of it. He still does it, and I don't have a clue why.





These were taken on the same day.





So getting him to gallop is actually quite difficult. He's pretty lazy. I actually hated galloping before I got my own saddle. The one I'm using in this one is too big and I am really loose in the stirrups and I would lose them when he got up and actually going. I'm not sure how I look galloping him now, but I look god-awful in this video.





And just for the heck of it, this video below is the second day I've ever worked with him. He was being a typical stud the first day, and was completely out of line. He wouldn't listen, ignored the fact that I was even there, wouldn't back up, wouldn't go where I wanted to, and just wouldn't pay any attention...so despite my troubles (very much mine) in this video, he was doing very well. Also, one of the trainers helped me correct a lot of the lunging problems, like showing me how I should always remain in line right behind his shoulder while lunging so he doesn't pivot away from me. Well I've since had to get a lunge whip because no matter what I do he'll just pivot away, and I've tried everything. Basically he's just being stubborn now, not confused.


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

Wow I haven't watched that last video in a while. I must look like a crazy person chasing him all over the place. XD The trainer who was working with me basically told me to pretty much act nuts. Stomp your feet, wave your arms, kick a little dirt if you have to, anything to get him moving. I just never realized how weird I looked doing it. Anyone have better advice on getting a horse of almost ten years of age to lunge better without a whip?


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## I love Arabs (Nov 19, 2009)

Um that video of "galloping" wasnt much of a gallop it was a canter on the wrong lead AKA Counter Canter...


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

And that wasn't much of a critique. I said I was a novice, didn't I? -_-


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## Romantic Lyric (Dec 31, 2009)

I have a question. If you're a novice rider, why do you have a stallion?


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## I love Arabs (Nov 19, 2009)

^^ I was wondering the same thing!?!






To the OP
Just pointing that out... Besides you posted that info was wanted you got info you werent galloping you were cantering, dont post if your going to get so defensive!


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

That was hardly being defensive, but whatever. I'm not here to discuss why I have a stallion. I'm here to get tips on riding.


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## I love Arabs (Nov 19, 2009)

Just stating the obvious :wink:


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

What's obvious to you, isn't always obvious to me. That's why I came to this place.
I just started riding again, and won't be able to get lessons until spring. I'm trying to figure a few things out on my own before then if I can. I was never taught about leads or anything specific in the gait department.


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## I love Arabs (Nov 19, 2009)

Okayyy but no need to be rude when I was giving you info!!


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

I wasn't attempting to be rude, so you have my apologies. My mood today is a bit soured due to people on a different forum. I have to start getting used to people giving advice who are actually being nice about it instead of acting like they're high and might while everyone else is just stupid and useless. -Eyeroll-


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## I love Arabs (Nov 19, 2009)

i also noticed that you bounce alot in your seat, try to sit deeper and on your pockets more... it will help your horse get into a better rythym (sp? sorry about that) and make hime smoother. Are you planningto make him anything? (barrel horse, Western pleasure, reiner, roper, cutter) or just all around trail/fun horse? that might help with critiques too. Hes very prety and seems to have a nice calm temperement.


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## Romantic Lyric (Dec 31, 2009)

Here's what I think. I think you have a really nice, sensitive, well-trained horse. He's not being "stubborn" or "out of line," in fact, I would call him one of the least stud-like stallions I've ever seen. 

THE GOOD

You don't bounce around very much for a novice rider.

You look relaxed.

THE BAD

You have kind of a chair-seat, but that's a common western rider problem.

You steer WAY too much with your hands and not enough with your legs. Also, when you do steer with your hands you tend to over-correct, which means if he starts drifting you go: "Whoa!" and pull a little too hard in the opposite direction. Steer your horse like you would steer a car. If you have a sensitive sporty car, steer it more carefully. If you have a big clunker, you can exaggerate your cues.

You seem like you just kind of sit on him, which is probably why you have trouble getting him to canter. You need to cue him, and cue him for the correct lead too. It'll be much more comfortable for you and for him (not to say that counter-cantering doesn't have its purposes, but it doesn't for you at this stage in your riding career).

Also, if you're going to lunge him. Do it with a lunge-line, not a longer lead rope. That's part of the problem of why he's turning into you. You need a little more space. Also, use a whip. Don't run after him and "act like a crazy person."

That's all I can think of right now. Lessons are good. I'm sure you'll progress nicely if you get a good trainer.


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

Yeah, I forgot to mention about that. I do bounce a lot in the seat, but I'm slowly getting better at it. Some of my problems in that area were because of the saddle too. The one I was using in these is too big for me, and everyone at the barn uses it. I didn't have one of my own at the time, and the stirrups were too long on this one and one was longer still than the other.
He'll probably just be my fun horse. I don't think he has the drive or the speed to be a gaming horse, and I just don't like the look of WP. I can't stand that unnatural lope or when their noses are dragging on the ground. He's bred to be a halter horse, so I might do that in the future, but I haven't shown in years. I'll need more practice than him, I'm sure.

Thank you, he is very pretty and I'm proud of him. He really is a calm and pretty tolerant horse.


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## ak_showgirl (Feb 15, 2008)

I would deffinatly work on a lot of ground work with him...You mentioned that you were working with a trainer? That is very good, especailly if you are just getting back into riding. I agree with the above post, really try to sit deap and push those heels down, it may sound crazy but having your heels down really helps you with your balance and an overall more secure seat. Are you planning to breed or are you planning to geld him? In the first video his something about his trot/jog bothers me, he looks really stiff in his hind end... I might just be seeing things thouch.. 
Best of luck!


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

RomanticLyric:

You're right, in these videos he's not being studly at all. I was referring to the first day ever working with him. He was still very good for a stallion, but had little respect for me or anyone else.

Yeah, steering for him and I is a big problem. I'm not too keen on how to steer all that well with my legs, and when I try he thinks I'm asking him to go faster. Sometimes he'll just downright refuse to turn no matter what I do, and I practically have to reach down and pull his nose to my knee.

I need to learn all the cues and understand what I'm doing, which is why I can't wait to get lessons. The trainers at the boarding facility are great, but I'm not sure what their process is. I could easily be wrong, but it seems like they only teach things like "kick/squeeze to make it go, pull this way to turn.."
I've never had a lesson from them, so maybe that's not true, but if it is I'm not sure what to do about it. There aren't a whole lot of people around here to train with.


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

ak_showgirl said:


> I would deffinatly work on a lot of ground work with him...You mentioned that you were working with a trainer? That is very good, especailly if you are just getting back into riding. I agree with the above post, really try to sit deap and push those heels down, it may sound crazy but having your heels down really helps you with your balance and an overall more secure seat. Are you planning to breed or are you planning to geld him? In the first video his something about his trot/jog bothers me, he looks really stiff in his hind end... I might just be seeing things thouch..
> Best of luck!


He's getting a fertility test done first, mostly because the people who owned him before said he never settled a mare, but I don't think they tried all that often. If he can produce I'm going to breed him a couple of times, and then get him gelded. He's not really an accomplished horse, and the only two things going for him as a breeder are his color and temperament. I love him to death, but people usually want to see more experience in showing of some sort with a stud. He was bred to be a halter horse, but hasn't even done that in a while.

I'm not sure about his hind end, but he did have a bit of a problem in the front for a little while. It is a long story, but eventually he was shod in the front and hasn't had a problem since. Also may I note that it could of been him not being used to having a rider for a little while, but I don't really know.


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## Romantic Lyric (Dec 31, 2009)

Phantom Legacy said:


> RomanticLyric:
> 
> You're right, in these videos he's not being studly at all. I was referring to the first day ever working with him. He was still very good for a stallion, but had little respect for me or anyone else.
> 
> ...


Just one major thing to keep in mind. Horses move AWAY from pressure, just like people. If someone puts pressure on your left arm, you're going to shift to the right, right? Ideally, you want to be using almost totally your legs to tell your horse *where* to go, and your hands to refine *how *you want them to get there. Your legs are all important because the hindquarters is the engine of the horse (kind of like a VW), and your hands *only *control the front end of the horse. So you want your steering to be a combination of both, with most of it being leg, especially for a lazier western horse.

Cues for cantering:

Right lead canter/Clock-wise
-Make sure your right leg is supportive, bring your left leg back behind the girth and kick. 

_Making sure the horse is bent to the inside also helps, what that means is if you were to draw a decent-sized circle and put your horse on it, his body should conform the curve of the circle._

Left lead canter/Counter-clock-wise
-Make sure your left leg is supportive, bring your right leg back behind the girth and kick. 

_Sit up nice and tall, no leaning, and he should pick up the correct lead._


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

Thank you, I'm going to try to do some more leg work with him. I have noticed that he tends to pick up the wrong lead even when I'm not on him and we're lunging. He'll usually correct it on his own rather quickly, but now that I know how to recognize the wrong lead, I've noticed in other videos that he does it a lot even without me on him.

So if it's the left lead canter, and my left leg is supportive...I'm having more weight on my left leg, or should it still be equal? Sounds like a stupid question, I know, but it's hard to think about when I'm not sitting up on him.


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## Romantic Lyric (Dec 31, 2009)

Phantom Legacy said:


> Thank you, I'm going to try to do some more leg work with him. I have noticed that he tends to pick up the wrong lead even when I'm not on him and we're lunging. He'll usually correct it on his own rather quickly, but now that I know how to recognize the wrong lead, I've noticed in other videos that he does it a lot even without me on him.
> 
> So if it's the left lead canter, and my left leg is supportive...I'm having more weight on my left leg, or should it still be equal? Sounds like a stupid question, I know, but it's hard to think about when I'm not sitting up on him.


I say supportive because when you cue for the canter ( pull your leg back and kick) a lot of horses will take that as a cue to move over. They shouldn't, but they do. I tend to just...think about my left leg, and perhaps put slight pressure, depending on the needs of the horse, before I pull my other leg back and kick. For me, it's insurance of a kind. Try not to think of it as weight, so much as a "presence." Your outside leg is a sharp, one time (hopefully) cue, your inside leg is a presence.


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

Alright, I think I understand what you mean now.
The next thing I have to work on is corners. In the arena where I'm just trotting him, that's the only one I'm able to work in unfortunately. When he canters, he tends to go right into the corners of the arena, almost as if he's going to run into the wall. He does it a lot while lunging too, and I think it's because that's the side of the arena that the gate is on and he wants to turn around and stand right beside it instead of continuing on. I'll just have to work on it for now until the snow clears out of the round pen.
Thanks a lot for your help, I'm sure it will come in handy when I go to work him again. Let's hope I can get some more updated videos. Those were all back in August/beginning of September. ^^

Oh, and I've begun riding him bareback the last couple of times I've been to the barn so I may work on my balance. I need a video or two of that as well.


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## 2hot4u (May 2, 2009)

he is such a gorgeous colouration!
not much on western critiques, so i will stick,with that


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## BoarderCowgirl12 (Dec 30, 2009)

Your feet are WAY to far back in the stirupps
Your feet are flat, Toes need to be up and heels need to go down
You are way to tense/stiff-loosen up a bit
The reins are WAY to far apart and FAR to high
That is most definatly NOT a gallop!!! It's a counter CANTER..taken off from the RIGHT lead
In teh last video it loks like you have NO idea what you are doing! there is no way he is going to walk in circles for you with how short that "lunge line" is...you should get a real LUNGE LINE....not a lead rope. He is ignoring simpley because the lack of communication your are giving him. Instead of using your HAND to get him to walk in a circle for you get proper training equipment, lunge line, and a whip. When lunging you are supposed to stay in one spot not fallow the horse around.


BC12


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## Romantic Lyric (Dec 31, 2009)

BoarderCowgirl12 said:


> Your feet are WAY to far back in the stirupps
> Your feet are flat, Toes need to be up and heels need to go down
> You are way to tense/stiff-loosen up a bit
> The reins are WAY to far apart and FAR to high
> ...


Let me clarify, when you lunge, you are supposed to stay in one spot, but that doesn't mean you should just be spinning around at one point - that's a good way to get dizzy fast. When I lunge, I walk a very small circle, so in a way, I am following the horse around, but I walk this small circle within the same area.


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## ThunderJumper (Dec 11, 2009)

Yeah I agree with boardercowgirl it would of helped a lot if you had a lounging whip..

Beautiful horse  I really like his coloring


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## BoarderCowgirl12 (Dec 30, 2009)

RomanticLyric said:


> Let me clarify, when you lunge, you are supposed to stay in one spot, but that doesn't mean you should just be spinning around at one point - that's a good way to get dizzy fast. When I lunge, I walk a very small circle, so in a way, I am following the horse around, but I walk this small circle within the same area.


Well, i didnt mean like just spinning around in circles. She just shouldnt be chasing after the horse:wink:


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

I do have a lunge whip, and that is what I use now. I was never used to using a lunge line, which I had at the time, but he was still not doing what he was supposed to even with the trainer. When I worked him in the past with lunging I always used a whip, but back then he had a major attitude problem which has since dissipated. Our progress has increased tremendously with lunging, so that is something I'm happy with.


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## Tymer (Dec 28, 2009)

I have something that no one has mentioned yet that really bothered me.
In your training video when you were initially leading him around he was putting his head in your face and really standing close. Its not urgent, but be sure he understands to get out of your space. Having horses that respect your personal bubble are very convenient to walk with (and lunge.) This also makes it so that you can walk with the horse on a longer lead with less pulling movements and more pushing or releasing the horse where they need to go.
Unfortunately, I haven't lunged or ground-worked a horse in a very long time and completely forget how to do this. Sorry.


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## wannahorse22 (Dec 27, 2009)

Keep the persistance,patience,and effort you had while training!


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## Phantom Legacy (Nov 27, 2009)

I know what you mean. This was his very first time being outside at the new boarding facility, and he was excited about all the horses and whatnot. He's a lot better, very respectful of my space. He has his moments, but is always corrected. For all the time I spend in the saddle I spend about 50% more on the ground making sure he has his manners. It is where we progress the most.


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## wannahorse22 (Dec 27, 2009)

good place to start!


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