How to sit a bouncy canter???

princess3681

New Member
Mar 11, 2008
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Plymouth, Devon
Hey

I have just started riding this horse and had my first canter with him on monday! The problem is he seems to have such a bouncy canter and I am struggling to sit really deep in the sit without bouncing loads and in fact ended up coming off on Monday and feeling a bit bruised and battered now!!!!

Any tips for how to sit it better would be appreciated cheers!
 
Trying sitting trot with no stirrups will help you get a deeper seat. Have you cantered before, or is this the first time?
 
Thats the thing I have cantered on at least five other horses now and not had a problem, he just seems alot more bouncy than the others that I have ridden and it feels like it doesnt matter how deep i try to sit I still get bounced out of the saddle! Wanna sort it out as I soon realised falling off hurts hehe! :D
 
Hmm great didnt think of that! Thanks, we have the back person booked to come out soon and will get him checked out! Gonna take him out again tomorrow now the pain is subsiding from my lil fall haha :D hopefully I will be able to sit it better!
 
some horses are naturally more bouncy than others, could you have been tense, that could cause you to bounce more, having said that, I have cantered on a bouncy horse, it took me a few minutes to absorb the bounces, and learn to sit deeper, and relaxe too :D. Get tense, you bounce more and of course off :eek:, hope you feeling better soon.
 
some horses are naturally more bouncy than others, could you have been tense, that could cause you to bounce more, having said that, I have cantered on a bouncy horse, it took me a few minutes to absorb the bounces, and learn to sit deeper, and relaxe too :D. Get tense, you bounce more and of course off :eek:, hope you feeling better soon.


Sounds silly, but I find it helpful to focus on my lower back flexing, and also to visualise my bum in the saddle going forward in a series of curves (hard to show it on here, but imagine a line of smiley mouths ... :):):):):):))
 
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My pony has a horribly bouncy canter. It is beautiful to watch, but not to sit too. I find that leaning right back (further than you normally would) and getting the rhythm there are then going back to normal position helps a lot. And remember to breath, the more tense you are the harder it will be.
 
Are you holding the pony back at all. I ride a really speedy (and often uncontrolable!!) horse who had a really councy canter. I soon realised that it was because I was trying to hold her back because I knew she was known to run off with riders, and by loosening my rein contact and letting her have her head, she sped up a little but it became a lot more comfortable. Also, sometimes taking your weight out of the saddle can help, but I wouldn't recommend this if you're a reasonably novice rider. Ask your instructor for advice because they will know your riding standard and the tempriment of the horse better.
 
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I find it helps to think of your stomach muscles scooping the horses withers up as you are cantering. This centers your seat and helps regulate the tempo. It also helps you absorb the bounce through your hips.
 
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Just relax, and pusy your heels down.
Don't lean forward, and if it's any easier, hold onto the pommel of the saddle and push your weight down.
Push all your weight into your heels, and you can even pretend you have a lead weight on your shoulders, and pretend it is pushing you down and deep into the saddle :)
 
Ask your RI to put you back on the lunge so you can concentrate on your seat and breathing whilst she/he is controlling the horse. Also practise more riding without stirrups. And remember to breathe. :D

Ditto, also on the lunge you can try to close you eyes - you really get more of a feel for the movement and it can be easier to relax into it and go with the movement more. Hope that makes sense??

Good luck :)
 
No stirrups are the best way to deepen your seat, which will help you to get the weight in your legs and heels which will help you to stay in balance with the horse more. Try and be as relaxed as you can as the more tense you are in your upper body the harder it will be to stay supple in your hips which allows you to move with the horse.
 
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Some horses just have bouncy canters. Really focus on trying to replicate the movement of the horse with your hips. You can do this on the ground as well. You could also try riding the canter in half seat but be warned. Doing this can make it hard to sit the cater in the future
 
I think it helps, as others have said, to try to relax and keep your heels really down so that the movement isnt effecting your balance and distracting you from concentrating on sitting to the movement (if that makes sense). The other thing I found, is that when the horse was warmed up, and also when I stood up in my stirrups to give the horse his back as he cantered, and when i focused on making smooth transitions, the canter got much better. And also find out which side is the horses best side to canter in a circle, and start the canters on that side so you can get used to the movement on the easiest side first.. Good luck with it, I'm sure you'll get used to it with practice, its just hard when your not used to it.
 
when i focused on making smooth transitions, the canter got much better.


Ditto that.

A good well balanced transition affects the whole quality of the canter. Better to start as you mean to go on and this is what I have been trying to focus on recently with my mare, transitions to canter from slower and slower trot making the canter slower.
 
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