trotting speed & efficiency

["Michelle Fink" <michrowe@redwrench.com>]

Hi -

I'm just starting to condition my off-the-track mare (before we were purely
training), and have some questions about trotting speed and efficiency.  She
prefers to trot very fast with low action, not breaking into a canter, but
my GPS says she's going about 12-15 mph.  She slows down a bit when I ask
for an easy lope.  She can do a medium trot if I collect her, but her action
in front gets higher and it feels like she's super-collected and floating -
it's not an easy, efficient daisy-clipper gait.

I am wondering which type of trot is most important to develop for our first
year of light competition and which will assist in athletic development the
most.  I planned to ride three CTR's of two days each, and if things go well
a multiday LD in the fall this year.  My thinking is to try and develop
either a slow or medium trot into the basic working gait by giving her lots
of work in it, because I can always speed up and build on the extended trot
later.  Is this correct or is there a better way?  Also, for competition,
which type of trot is most efficient?  The huge ground-eating trot or a
medium trot with more collection?  I can see advantages & disadvantages for
both, just don't have the experience yet to know how the cards fall...

Sure is a blast riding a horse that has lots of "forward", esp. after riding
my sticky-forward MFT. :-)

Thanks -

Michelle