what am i doing wrong?

[Silver1]

i can trot Eliza, but Eliza has a western trot so smooth you can barely feel it, apparently i "don't trust" Missy, the first time i rode her at a trot i nearly bounced out of the saddle, yesterday i rode her at a trot again and i apparently still don't trust her, i love riding her, but I jsut can't stop bouncing! Doesn't help that when i finally said "No, I can't trot her today" the kid i swapped horses with fell off, and i was a stride away from stepping on him. We found out later, that her cheek piece was twisting her bit in her mouth, is this the cause of us bouncing? I suppose not, since a bit, how ever uncomfortable, wouldn't make her stride more rough. Anyway's, i've learned a few things since riding Missy yesterday, 1 i wasn't sitting on my seat (hard to when she keeps hauling her head forward, which i also found out why) And second i was holding the reins to tight, so she was pulling me forward to ease up on her mouth. I feel like such a monster. Will any of these things help me stay on?

[fionahogg]

Well for starters, if she was uncomfortable in her mouth then this could affect her trot and how easy it is to ride. If she is working in a nice forward trot then it is much easier to ride because she is happier and her back is not all tense. If, however, she is uncomfortable then she won't really want to work forwards and relaxed so this might make her back tense and therefore it is harder to ride the trot. This also is true if she is unschooled and doesn't work forwards very well. She may have a bouncy trot because of this - again her back won't be soft and relaxed. How old is she and how well schooled?
Second, she could have a really big trot - by this I mean if she is well schooled and moving with plenty of impulsion and has natural athleticism and appears to bounce along she is said to have a big trot - then this is hard to rise because the back is lifted so much it pings you out of the saddle unless you also have a very supple lower back and excellent balance.
Third, if you don’t trust her, then you will be more likely to tense up on her. If you and tensing your hands around the reins then chances are you are tensing somewhere else in the body. If you tense then you won't be able to absorb Missy's movement very well and this may be why you bounce. This won't help you stay on, in fact it will do the exact opposite!
Are you having trouble with sitting or rising trot? If it is sitting, then you need to learn to absorb the movement of Missy's back by moving your seatbones with the horse. I understand you like to ride a lot with a pad as opposed to a saddle? Well it’s easier to learn to feel this movement with the just a pad - there's less between you and the horse. When the horse steps under his belly with, say, the right leg, the right side of his back dips down. When this happens, you need to dip your right seatbone, and vice versa when the left leg moves under. When the right leg is about to push off the ground, the right side of his back will push upwards. Your right seatbone needs to move up slightly, and vice versa when the left leg pushes off. This happens in all three paces, but at different times depending on the movement of the horse's legs in that particular pace. For example the movement is roughly twice as fast in walk than in trot. Canter is more difficult. You will find it easier to sit to the trot for about 6 strides after the transition from walk to trot. This is because the transition helps to lift the horse's back and this makes it easier to feel the hind legs moving. As soon as you start to lose it then go back to walk and try again. Gradually you'll be able to sit for much longer periods comfortably. There is little point in trotting round trying desperately to sit to the trot but all you end up doing is bouncing. This is because you will just be getting tenser and making the horse tense - it's impossible to ride well when you're both tense!
If you are struggling with rising trot then you need to think about swinging your hips forwards and backwards with the horse's stride. Some people find it easier to think of pushing their stomach forwards. Use the knee as a pivot, don’t straighten the leg out and just stand up; the knee needs to stay bent and supple. Be careful not to tense up the knee. Keep your hands still and don’t drop them too low. Look up and keep your back straight.

Good luck with trotting. It's like riding a bike - once you've mastered it, it's easy!

Also take a look at: http://www.newrider.com/Kinder_Way/The_Paces/rising_trot.html
and http://www.newrider.com/Kinder_Way/The_Paces/sitting_trot.html

Hope this helps some!

Fiona.

[Silver1]

thanks, no, this was a mix up between Val and I, she said never let go of the laces on the reins, and so i ended up clenching them to keep a hold of them, and we ended up fighting.

also, i think the reins are just a little to short...she oughta be able to put her head down with out so much fuss...

[JackiAH]

It may just have been because you were holding the reins to short, but when a horse throws his/her head up, it could be because of their mouth also.

Pal had a cracked tooth a few months ago, and it was still a bit jagged when I rode him. When I pulled on the reins he would throw his head up or sometimes buck (or even rear... ugh).

Just wondering, wouldn't you have seen the cheek-peice twisting the bit when you tacked her up? It's always good to check through all of your tack before and after you put it on the horse. Trust me, I learned this the hard way (ended up bringing Pal out into the ring, mounting, then having the saddle fall off to the side as I tried to fix my stirrups! I didn't fasten the girth on the western saddle correctly... *hangs head*)!

Jacki

[Maci]

Light hands will help make the trot much easier, because she won't have to worry about fighting you from hard hands, and she can concentarte on her trot. I think you need to get an independant seat at trot first, because it sounds like you are pulling on the reins for support and balance. Once you have that, you can then worry about your hands.

To get that independant seat, ask if you can be lunged with a neck strap (a strap that goes around the horses neck that you can grab, instead of pulling on the reins= easier on the horse)! Do both sit trot and rising trot holding the neck strap, and once you feel secure and comfortable, try holding the saddle instead. Then you put your hands on your hips and eventually out to your sides. That's what I did when I began riding. Of course, you don't rush it all- you take time and make sure you feel secure at each phase. it all helps you develop an independant seat. Once you have this, you can go back to the reins (with a neck strap still on incase you need it), and trot but concentrating on using a lighter hand. It also helps to concentrate all your weight down in your legs.

It Sounds Confusing, But Once You Get The Hang Of It, You'll Understand What We're Saying!
Good Luck, Maci :)

[Silver1]

er...i'm kind of new at this, just last week i put the halter on backwards :(

another thing that might have caused a bit of a problem, when the farrier pulled her shoes and put new ones on, he discovered 2 HUGE stone bruises on her front feet...

[Maci]

I know now it must sound like we're saying blah, blah, blah, blah about how to try and solve this riding problem, but don't worry, once you get the hang of it and gain more experience through riding and being around horses/horse people, you'll begin to understand what we're saying!

The best thing you can do now is keep at it, practice and ask lots of questions!

Good Luck, Silver1!
Maci :)

[Silver1]

i understand,
i like the idea of a neck strap...