Trail Etiquette

I think as trail riders we need to have some list of dos and don'ts associated with what is expected from ourselves and our trail partners.  This is going to be a work in progress, please comment below if you think something should be added or amended.

To spur or not to spur...

I'm asked often whether or not I wear spurs when I train.  My answers is always, sometimes.

Progesso

About three months ago I was asked to start a little 3 year old quarter horse named Topper.  He was not completely untouched; his owner is a very good horsewomen and she had done plenty of work on the ground, but she had no desire to go through the trials of starting him under saddle.  He had been worked on obstacles in their arena and she had sacked him out with bags of rocks and bottles.  He longed on a line, but would consistently pick up the wrong lead.  He was sweet, but just a little spooky with new things.  I've worked some horror story horses that looked like they wanted to bite my head off and eat my insides, so this guy was going to be a cake walk.

Words of Wisdom

I'm lined up on my horse Sammy from Medieval Times and we're about to take off down the arena at a full gallop to do one of the games.  Sammy is dancing underneath me and I'm doing everything I can to keep him from taking off before it's time.  I'm still somewhat of a new knight and I put Sammy in the show only a few weeks earlier.  Sweat is streaming down my face and I feel like I am about to lose the battle to keep him still.

"Frenchy!" A voice booms at me from my left.

Mind your P's and Cues

In my opinion, what separates good riders from mediocre riders is their ability to cue.  We all strive to be better at what we are doing and in the horse game it is all about communication.  We want our sweet equine friends to know what the hell we are asking; to get there we need to look at ourselves and what we are doing.  I have ridden with friends who have struggled to keep their horses moving or are constantly having to catch up because their horse isn't stepping out.  These same friends seem like they are constantly kicking and nothing is happening.