To Scared To Canter...HELP.

[Nutty Pony]

Okay, I am scared to canter! i have NO idea what it's like and what I should do! Would I fall out of the saddle easily? I am riding western... Trying to 'Speed Up' for gamming! Please help me! Thank You!

[kedwards]

Generally, the canter is a more comfortable and easier gait then a sitting trot, unless your horse has a very laid-back Western jog. The movement of the seat in canter is a slower, rolling or rocking horse type of feeling. You may be suprised by how pleasant and comfortable it is.

You won't likely seriously lose balance in the saddle unless you stiffen up (which pulls you out of the saddle) or lean too far forward (which puts you out of balance with the horse). If you sit back and let your hips and lower back absorb the motion, you should not have any problems.

[lady ridealot]

It does depend on the horse for the smoothness of the canter, if you are lucky enough some horses are soo smooth and comfatable! I would not recommend going on to canter if you are not secure in trot, however theres no way of knowing unless you just go for it! When you do just try to relax and enjoy it, it doesnt feel particularly fast, but i think it is a lot more comfatable and smooth than trot. Just remember to sit up straight, (and if anything lean slightly back rather than forwards if you need to as learing forwards will probably just make the horse go faster and put you off balance!) and look where you are going! keep your feet secure in the stirrups and enjoy!!! :D

Also i have never rode western but out of curiosity what is Gamming?!

[Ruffiane]

When I was starting out in my gaits, one instructor put a strap around the horse's neck that I could use to help steady myself. I'd just hook one finger in and it kept me secure and also helped me conquer my own fears because it was something to hold onto so I didn't have to rely on my own (poor) balance. I don't think Western horses use martingales, but the strap was similar to a martingale.

[lizzy]

It would just be a neck strap, you can use a spare stirrup leather and put it around the horses neck with a little slack, it helps to keep your balance if you need it and gives you something to hang on to other than the horses mouth if things get a bit lively.

Myself and William Fox-Pitt ;) never ride without one - it's the only thing I'm ever going to have in common with a top class rider!

Lizzy

[meeru_Rider]

Horseriding knows no fear
Hiya .. I know what ** talking about .
Well firstly I would say that you should have a dependable horse
now when you start cantering make sure you do a smooth and SLOW canter, so that you can retain your balance. I would advise you to ask somone to lead in front of you and he / she should attach a leading rein so that u dont have to control the horse much and so that you can concentrate on the speed and thrill of canter.
ok then see ya
:o tell me if u have any more problems
my address is ureem@hotmail.com
make sure you tell the subject of your letter so that I dont put your mail in the trash bin.:rolleyes: :D :cool:

[Miriam]

Take it from a n English rider its great. I have problems canteing in a Englilsh saddle but no problme when riding western horses :eek:

[Nutty Pony]

Thanks for the replies! I ride english too and I am TOTTALY fine with the trot...it's getting boring. I'll try these Ideas when it cools off LOL!

[dancing-horse]

I luv to canter, but when I first started it, for the first couple of lessons I was scared to death. It's only because it's a faster gait, and it takes so much more getitng used to than the trot or walk. The reason for this is because you tend to become a little more unbalanced in the canter and bounce around. For this promblem. I pop up in two point and then try sitting. Anyway, the point is, once you start cantering, you'll really love it. I prefer the trot over all gaits, but I do love cnatering as well. Have your trainer start you out cantering on a slow and mellow horse. Starting cantering on a horse with a bad temperment isn't good. Also make sure you can stop the horse or slow him down. Anyway, once you get comfortable in the cnater on the calmer and much more responsive horse, you'll easily move up to cnatering on more difficult horses. It took me a few lessons to get adjusted to the canter, but you may love it on the first stride. Good luck.

[Ruffiane]

Horseriding knows no fear?????

hahahaha

I know a LOT of fear.

[western]

I also ride western too and sometimes I do get scared to canter too. But the question is whats making you so scared ? Did the horse do something or is it just you ? The biggest fear is always the canter because it is so fast then a trot but canter is a wonderful gait that you and your horse can get well at if you show no fear. Horses really pick up a rider when the rider is very scared, but its all in the riders position when a horse feels very comfortable. What tells that a horse is ready for cantering is the riders positon. The positions are shifting your weight onto your tailbone. Somepeople always say to sit onto your seatbone but that makes you very stiff and makes your weight to be on the front of the horse, and really horses hate that becase they are very uncomfortable. So try to find your balance point on the saddle, by shifting your weight way back in the saddle, when going to give the aid to canter. Then give your horse an leg aid by squeezing your leg by the girth. Its very hard to overcome the fear of cantering but in the right moment that you and your horse work togther at it you are going to want to canter all the time. :)

[shirley]

I know exactly what your fear is about. I have been riding for 4 years, have my own wonderful little cob. I have been told by everyone who has ridden him that he has a rocking horse canter, good rolling one and is very comfortable. But still that little voice of doubt and lack of confidence got the better of me time and time again.
But I have got to really trust my little cob and he has never bucked me, reared with me on his back, only has the gentlest of shys too and these I have always been able to sit too. Even when he did not want to go on the road himself and started to bolt back I did not fall off and managed to bring him back to me. So all these things started to build up my confidence in being to stay on and not fall off, also to stay in balance with him. I also listened to a good horsey friend who informed me that if I could sit to some of the things he had done in the past then cantering should be a cinch!!! This got me thinking. So with the aid of another friend whose horse is very well behaved we set off on a hack and around our perimeter rides is a fairly steep hill, which is great to canter up, but as they get close to the top loose some momentum and natually start to slow up. So into trot and then into canter, well my first reaction was to bring my knees up, hands up and ask her to come back to trot, then I thought no, go with his movement, stay balanced with him. So next thing I knew I was slightly out of the saddle and staying in balance with him. Well we flew up the hill and came back to trot which was bouncy, but I stayed with and to my wonderment I had not fallen off. Well I felt that I had conquered Everest. That was only four weeks ago, since then I am getting used to going in and out of canter from trot. Just getting the feel of it and starting to sit in the saddle more. I have not set myself any time limits, only that bit by bit we will get better and tidier. But in the mean time I think my boy and I are enjoying ourselves so much more. He was really hard work during a hack out, but know he goes forward much more readily and we both enjoy ourselves a whole lot more.
It has taken me 4 years to get this far, and if it takes another 4 to get to doing a 10 m circle well so be it, but I am determined to acheive a prelim test sooner rather than later!!!!!
Do only what you feel capable of doing and sooner or later you will pluck up the courage to canter and probably do it very well. I also spent time watching others do their canter and practising it in the car!!!! Just trying to get my hips in the right action etc!!!
Eventually bits of the jigsaw have come together, just as they will for you.
Good luck and enjoy - when you do canter please share the triumph on line

[PromiseMe]

Hey,
Everyone gets a little scared when they first learn to canter...so youre no exception and dont feel like youre the only one who has this problem! (not that its really a problem)
Ive ridden both Western and English, and learnt to canter on Western first, although I no longer ride western now. I think its a lot better to learn how to canter on a western saddle than an english saddle. The horn there...it just makes me feel safer, i know its not enough for me to stay on, but its just a mental thing.
As long as youre really confident at the trot and really good at it, you shouldnt meet too many problems at the canter.
Its fun :) Believe me. You will be LOVING it in a few weeks...or maybe even less.

So how is it going anyways....are you enjoying the canter yet?!

[ANN G]

Hi, I've just started riding again after many years and was a novice rider back then! I've been cantering for the past 4 weeks and have good 'n bad times:eek:
One of many problems I have is trying smoothly to go down from a canter(when I achieve it!) to a trot.The steering tends to go a little astray but I find I'm trying to concentrate on so many things I get muddled and so must my school horse,Frankie!:(
Yesterday I actually managed to do a whole lap of the menage in a canter and boy did it feel good!:D
Any ideas or tips you pick up and can offer would be most welcome....
This a great site and there's lots of people who can help/have real life stories which sometimes bear resemblance to my own trials 'n tribulations.
My manta is HEELS!
Ann

[SwiftSnowmane]

I have been riding since I was 7, though I haven't ridden (regularly) since I went to university a few years ago, but when I had my gorgeous Arab gelding all I ever wanted to do was canter! In fact, I always had to be careful that I varied our rides and didn't canter too much. :o I always wanted to gallop as well, though he would start going too crazy when I did that.:p
This summer I took a trip to the UK and Ireland, and went riding in Wales (near Snowdonia Nat. Park). That was SOOO much fun!!! I rode this adorable Shire mare, and she galloped so fast and uphill too. She even tried racing the Arab gelding we were riding with, and almost won! This experience made me realize how much I missed horses and riding. It really made me miss my baby (my Arab) a lot. :(

Er.....sorry for the tangent. Back to cantering. Honestly, I have no good advice to give you, since even though I rode (and showed) extensively for years, I was never very "professional" about riding. I only ever wanted to have fun, and cantering is definately fun!!!

[aphagirlie05]

Lady ridealot, I think she meant "gaming" or barrel racing, stakes racing, potato race, flag race, keyhole race, pole bending, etc. These are also known as speed events.

Nutty Pony, I'd just go ahead and do it, as long as your comfortable with your horse and secure in your seat, take the big leap into the exciting world of cantering! To ask for the canter, sit deep in the saddle and cue your horse by squeezing with your upper and inner thighs and scooting your hips forward to encourage your horse to canter, if he needs a little more emphasis, bump him on the side with your leg. The canter normally feels like your sitting in a rocking chair, so try to "polish the saddle" and rock with your horse's movement. Don't hang onto the saddle horn as it throws you off balance and prevents you from using your reins properly. You can start out by asking for the canter and going a few strides, then stopping. As you get more comfortable with it, you can extend the amount of time you spend cantering until you can improve enough to practice your gaming patterns and turn on the speed, but in degrees. Make sure you don't ask your horse for "burn out" if you're still not comfortable when he's going slower.