canter: which leg?

[Pibstar]

hi - sorry really silly question. Had a canter lesson a few weeks ago and I am going to try it on my own tomorrow. I have gone completely BLANK, is it inside leg back? or inside leg forward. I am sure its back.... please tell me I am right???????:D :D :D

[laurenefb]

Inside leg stays at the girth; outside leg goes back behind the girth!

[buttons]

And remember to SIT UP!!!!

[Pibstar]

outside leg goes back, outside leg goes back, outside leg goes back, outside leg goes back, outside leg goes back, outside leg goes back, outside leg goes back, I MUST REMEMBER, I MUST REMEMBER, I MUST REMEMBER,

i will get it in my thick brain!!!!!!!!! for some reason it wants to got the other way round... wont say it..... must remember.... outside leg goes back, outside leg goes back, :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[Pibstar]

oh forgot to say THANKS - i was concentrating!!!!!!!!!!!!!outside leg goes back,

I am now going to say "outside leg goes back" at the end of every sentence for the next 12 hours!!!!!!! great... found another way to wind up my other half!!!!!:p :p

[Pibstar]

backed fired.... OH is saying forward - but it doesnt outside leg goes back!!!! sorry you must think i am MAD.... i am not HONEST!!!

[Unbeatable-TB]

the way i remember it is that you want your horses inside leg to lead and be the front leg in the stride so your inside leg does the same, it goes forward...leading and being forward to ask your horse to lead with that leg...if that makes sense? kind of hard to explain lol:p

[Nimbus65]

It might help to understand what the horse's legs are doing in the canter (and how it strikes off) and how where we place our legs asks them to canter.

When the horse canters, it starts by bringing it's outside hind underneath it, then its inside hind and outside fore come forward as a diagonal pair and lastly it brings its inside fore forward. By keeping your inside leg on the girth, you're asking for inside bend and slightly moving your outside leg back asks the horse to step under with that leg (outside hind).

Not to confuse you, but some horses are actually schooled to respond just to a tap, tap with the inside leg on the girth . . . no need to move the outside leg back at all. Much easier as the action of moving the outside leg back can actually unbalance more novice riders. Also, on well-schooled horses, that aid (outside leg back) should be VERY slight. Poppy, for instance, requires outside leg riiiiiiiiiight back and aid applied very definitely (almost a kick), while Rocky will go from either just inside leg on, or a very slight brush backwards with the outside leg . . . no need to actually put that outside leg on, it's enough just to move it back very slightly.

N