[RC] Drafting and Riding Alone and Training - KimFue
What an interesting discussion Bruce has started :) It has been very interesting reading the different comments on what happens in competition. There is the "silent" language between riders that meet up on the trail and certainly the silent language between horses.
As far as the horses behavior goes so much is "habit" that riders allow to happen because I believe they are not paying attention. As we all know some horses love to follow..... and many times the riders do nothing proactively to break this habit or the learned behavior. How many times have you ridden in a group and it looks like a pack string....one horse following nose to tail down the entire line of riders and horses. Many times riders do not realize that THEY are allowing or creating the situation. My mare has the tendency to be a follower and would love to tuck behind another horse. d have have spent 100s of miles on the trail never allowing her to "follow". She always has an "open window" (a Suzy Kelley term) meaning her nose is NEVER behind another horses butt if the trail allows for it. It doesn't matter if I am 2ft away from the horse in front or 20 feet behind the horse in front she is NEVER directly behind another horse. It is the riders job to teach their horse not to speed up or slow down if they hear horses coming from behind. One of the reasons I carry a crop is because if my mare starts slowing down when she hears another horse coming up I get after her to maintain the pace I have her at. The flick of the ear from forward to back at the same time the pace slows is the classic sign that my mare is "waiting" for the horse. That is never allowed. As far as passing goes, I get after my horse if she tends to slow down once out in front to stay close to the horse that just was passed. It isn't fair to the other rider I passed and it is not maintaining pace. She is not allowed to automatically speed up just because she sees a horse in front and decides she wants to catch up. All of the above is based on the fact that my horse is reacting to the presence of another horse NOT because she is tired or stressed.
I think most riders end up "drafting" because they are not paying attention or because it is easier. When drafting the rider does not need to pick the path on the trail, does not have to rate their horse. The horse and rider in front is doing that for them. I am sure that in the middle of a ride it is nice for the rider to get behind another horse and not have to "think" for a while. It's a nice mental break. If two riders are riding about the same pace it seems to me that the polite thing to do would be to take turns leading unless one has a preference to lead.
I know some people use drafting as strategy and it can be a useful tool, especially if two riders can partner up to make time. It has to be a co operative effort so each rider can use their horse's talents to their advantage. A good hill horse can pull a mediocre horse along up a hill. It is up to the rider that is drafting to know their horse's capabilities and not overuse them. If you have competitive riders drafting off each other, I am sure there are many ways to use the strategy to one's advantage and possibly gain an advantage over your competitor.
