Riding tip for October

     October is a great month for back country riding.  The weather is cooler and wildlife is everywhere preparing for the winter months ahead.  This brings us to a topic that in my humble opinion is not discussed enough.  Should I ride my horse the same in the back country as I do in the arena?

     There is a multitude of differences when it comes to the environment that you are riding in.  When riding indoors your horse will not be hearing the same sounds and viewing the same abstract movements that is witnessed on the trail.  I am referring to trees, grass, the shapes of rocks and dead fall, the rise and fall of the terrain itself, the sound of wildlife, the wind, and even the sounds produced by the rider due to the wind.  For this reason it is important that you are aware of your horses additional senses that are at work when outdoors and in the back country.  Nature gave your horse some amazing abilities including a keen sense of smell, sight (about 220 degrees of view with its head down in a grazing position as compared to our 180 degrees), and hearing that is far better than ours.

     So how do these things affect how I should ride my horse on the trail?  Four words "heels down, toes out".  When riding in an arena particularly a finished horse, position in the saddle front to back, pressure in the stirrups at the appropriate time and so on all help your horse prepare for the variety of maneuvers that are often found in performance events.  Because arena riding involves helping your horse in those maneuvers from sliding stops, spins, lateral movement and so on, most riders have a tendency to ride with a flat heel most of the time which means very little pressure or weight is in the stirrup.   By pressing down with your heels, which makes you place more weight in the stirrup, your toes naturally have a tendency to point outwards and your hind quarters moves towards the back of the saddle.   The result is a more stable rider for trail type conditions.  This is essential; why?  Example:  Picture yourself at the base of a mountain trail, the birds are chirping, you can hear the wind blowing through the aspens and pines, the smell of nature is all around you, when all of a sudden a prairie chicken or whitetail deer jumps out of the bush beside you.  More often than not your horse will shy away from this sudden and unexpected movement.  When this happens the arena rider, if riding with a flat or raised heel, most of the time ends up looking up at their horse from the flat of their back, while the back country rider with the "heels down, toes out" method more often than not is able to stay in the saddle.

     I am involved in both types of riding and can tell you that proper technique on the trail is as important as proper technique in the arena.  You as the rider have to simply make sure that you have a clear understanding of what your horse is sensing and apply the correct riding technique when the time comes.

Marc Garner
Rocking Heart Ranch Ltd.
www.rockingheartranchltd.com

The herd is growing

September was quite a month for the ranch.  We earned the braggin rights to selling one of the highest selling weanlings in Southern Alberta at Perlich Auction on Friday Sept 30.  Keith Robertson and Debra Symes are the new owners of arguably one of the best foundation bred quarter horses in the area in their purchase of this bay roan weanling stallion.  This little guys dam has "on her papers" within 4 generations King, Doc Bar, and Two Eyed Jack with another shot of King within 5 generations.  His sire has on his papers Blue Valentine within 4 generations and a couple more shots of Blue Valentine and Joe Hancock as well.

This month also saw the addition of some awesome horses from Willingham Quarter Horses in Coleman Oklahoma, Weaver Quarter Horses from Big Sandy Montana, Treasure State Quarter Horses from Chinook Montana, Prairie Blue Quarter Horses from Southport Manitoba, and BB Quarter Horses from Erickson Manitoba.  All have one thing in common>>>>>Proven foundation bloodlines with many having a large percentage of Blue Valentine, Hancock, and Driftwood.  These are pedigrees that get it done every day.