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Teach Your Horse Focus with this Obstacle Challenge Mountain trail is based on real life situations found working on the ranch or navigating a trail. With the International Mountain Trail Challenge Association (IMTCA), it has become a discipline that shows off the perfect trail horse. This horse moves boldly and …
How to Plan Your Ride for High Scores by Brent Rollins In this article on cowboy racing I will offer tips for improving your performance as well as sharing some experiences from my first race. Remember, the most important thing is to have fun so try to stay calm. Competition …
My Introduction to a Popular Equine Sport by Brent Rollins The first Extreme Cowboy Race I ever saw was on TV with Craig Cameron commentating. It looked like great fun. I had heard of the race through a few people and was curious about it. Little did I know how …
Gain Success Navigating a Frustrating Obstacle by Mark Bolender The raised back-through can often be a frustrating experience for the horse and rider. I commonly hear this: “I don’t understand why my horse will not trust me more and just do it.” Often their horse is pushy when being …
The Performance Demands of Backcountry Riding As a trail rider you are a high performance rider, and your horse or mule is your high performance partner. By “high performance” I’m not only referring to the various extreme trail riding events we often see. Even away from judges, spectators, crowds and …
Strategies to Help Make Every Ride Count When training a horse, there are so many things to take into consideration that it can become a bit overwhelming. One article says this, a video says that and another clinician said something different. How does a person know what to believe? It …
Applying Observations of Balance to Under Saddle Work Alice riding with a garrocha poleLast month we observed balance primarily from the ground. I asked you to watch balance shifts within movements along with rhythm, carriage, and overall structure of the horse. We looked at some specific maneuvers and attempted to …
One Step at a Time Through a Water Obstacle by Marilyn Pineda Navigating a body of water—even if it’s only a puddle— very often results in the classic “I don’t want to” response from horses that have not yet developed confidence in their trail training. While it’s possible for …
Become an Effective Leader by Working with Your Horse’s Natural Instinct by Mark Bolender The principle of “thinking it through” applies to both horse and rider and is a powerful tool if used properly. It is a change from just lunging the horse next to a scary obstacle (which …
Train Your Horse to Calmly Negotiate Rolling Logs by Mark Bolender A scramble is an obstacle designed to teach the horse how to walk through a set of small rolling logs that move. This obstacle is a result of a real trail situation where I was riding near Mount …