Hey everyone. For the most part i know how to canter: outside leg at the girth. However, what I’m confused about is the rein. I had some trainers tell me it’s inside rein shorter and some outside. Which way do i bend my horse? And i positive my body towards the outside with more weight on my outside too right ? Just want some clear instruction on how to ask for canter better
How to canter
- Thread starter Juliaaaa.i
- Start date
Just like walk or trot you don't wan either rein shorter, even on a 20m circle - and I assume at this stage you aren't cantering smaller than that - you only need a degree of inside bend that can be created without shortening the rein. Weight aid I wouldn't fuss about at this point, putting your leg in the position to ask will shift your weight anyway, over-emphasise it and you'll unbalance you and the horse.
Outside leg just behind the girth, inside one on the girth - to create bend and ask for the correct lead. You still want to be sat evenly, and have even reins, though at the moment of transition it can help to soften the inside hand a fraction if the horse isn't very forward.
My experience of learning to canter (in a school) as an adult is that it depends on the horse. And also which lead you want, as most horses have a natural preference for one lead or the other.
Most teachers will ask a beginner to canter from trot at the corner at the end of the short side of the scvhool and the beginning ot the long side. The inside rein may well be slightly shorter to create the bend to go round the two corners. However, if the inside bend is too pronounced in the preparatory trot, the horse will find it difficult or even impossible to canter.
And most RS horses, having transitioned to canter, will go straight down the long side but tend to cut the corners at the far end of the school, as if now cantering a circle. To prevent the horse cutting the corner the student needs to keep a contact on the outside rein to prevent the horse turing in, but without slowing the horse or blocking the canter. You can practise this in walk and trot.
It is easier said than done. One thing that helped me was to be asked to canter the whole way round the school. One doesnt actually have to do this but thinking of the canter as a long distance circuit rather than a short dash down one side of the school helped me to steady the horse.. Horses dont need to go fast to canter and indeed our RI used to teach the walk canter transition, on the straight before progressing to trot canter.
Most teachers will ask a beginner to canter from trot at the corner at the end of the short side of the scvhool and the beginning ot the long side. The inside rein may well be slightly shorter to create the bend to go round the two corners. However, if the inside bend is too pronounced in the preparatory trot, the horse will find it difficult or even impossible to canter.
And most RS horses, having transitioned to canter, will go straight down the long side but tend to cut the corners at the far end of the school, as if now cantering a circle. To prevent the horse cutting the corner the student needs to keep a contact on the outside rein to prevent the horse turing in, but without slowing the horse or blocking the canter. You can practise this in walk and trot.
It is easier said than done. One thing that helped me was to be asked to canter the whole way round the school. One doesnt actually have to do this but thinking of the canter as a long distance circuit rather than a short dash down one side of the school helped me to steady the horse.. Horses dont need to go fast to canter and indeed our RI used to teach the walk canter transition, on the straight before progressing to trot canter.
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