Category Archive

Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Lessons From The Saddle”

How not to use barrel racing drills and exercises

Barrel racing drills and exercises have been used for years to train and school barrel horses. An important point I want to make is that while the word used is “drill” this doesn’t mean you need to drill these exercises into their head or drill them into the ground doing them. Exercise is maybe a more appropriate word to describe …

go the same distance around each barrel, going the same direction circling from the outside in (inside out is another drill). Some horses will try and drift off, others cut in so it is your job to keep them on the track for a perfect circle keeping their body balanced throughout. This is a lot of work for the horse so don't overdo it and only go as fast as you can do it correctly. Starting at a trot is a good warm up.

4 Corner Barrel Drill

3 Barrel Exercise

Do several barrel racing drills with this one setup. http://BarrelRacingDrills.com

Here is a barrel racing exercise for you to try. I use this one a lot and you can do quite a few different drills with just this one set up . HOW: Set three barrels up in a row (equally spaced) and you will be able to work more than one drill with your setup. In blue I’m trotting …

With second barrel, you want to make sure you are riding right up into the turn and getting your horse up into the "hole" (past barrel) before starting the turn (green).

A solid approach makes for a solid exit. With second barrel, you want to make sure you are riding right up into the turn and getting your horse up into the “hole” (past barrel) before starting the turn (green). So often the horse and rider enter second barrel too wide, or in an arc (and hip to outside) which will …

Make sure your horse is leaving the second barrel straight and strong (green line). The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so be sure to keep your horse between your hands and legs to help him stay on the line.

Check your tracks whenever possible. The red line indicates where many people accidentally end up. Make sure your horse is leaving the second barrel straight and strong (green line). The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so be sure to keep your horse between your hands and legs to help him stay on the line. Look up …

Check your tracks to make sure you are taking the most efficient path to your first barrel. Less steps=Faster time

This seems pretty obvious when you look at the picture, but this can happen really easily, even to experienced racers. Check your own tracks to make sure you aren’t taking extra steps on the way to your first barrel. The tracks didn’t show up as great in the picture (and the curve looks more exaggerated than in person) but the …

Lessons From The Saddle 1 If you are having a problem with just one barrel, isolate that barrel and that problem. Don’t go through the rest of the pattern and start again just to work on your second barrel (for example). This image shows how I will approach and turn my second (in black) and if I’ve not happy with …

I’m using myself as an example of what NOT to do. It turns out (as usual) that the video doesn’t lie. I had a pretty good run, our first outdoor run of the year and we placed second in the 1D against a group of horses who were also just getting rolling this spring. Not a big jackpot, but big …