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Re: [RC] [RC] pacing and ride times - Dawn CarrieHi Donna,
You're thinking about it the right way...realizing that rough ground, etc. cuts into your "average," so that you need to add in some faster speeds on good footing to make up for that.
As for trotting ruining gait...I hear that a lot from gaited riders (no offense intended), but it's really not true. My husband usually trots his Paso Fino, but his horse still gaits just fine when asked. He has taught his horse to do either on cue. Well, except for the first few miles of a ride...Diamante insists on gaiting, because it's easier to break into a canter from gait. LOL He's quite a fireball at the start.
Trotting...7 mph isn't a very fast trot...my 14.2h gelding's preferred working trot is around 12mph, and my 15.1h gelding's preferred working trot is around 9-10mph, although both horses can and do trot faster than that. My husband's Paso likes to settle into a 9-10mph trot too, once he gets past the idea that he can overtake and pass all the horses in front of him. LOL
Yes, pacing is something you learn, with lots of miles on your horse. Does you GPS show you the current speed you're going? If so, keep that setting on the screen, and look at it frequently. You will soon get a "feel" for what it feels like when your horse is travelling at 5 mph, 7 mph, etc. Then practice guessing how fast you're going before you look at the GPS. This will help you maintain a good pace during a ride. Another way to do it is to mark out 1 mile, put your horse into one gait, and time how long it takes him to do that mile...for example, have your horse do his "normal" gait for the mile and time it...then canter the mile and time that. And so forth.
At a ride...be a miser with minutes. If you feel that you might be close on time, be sure to not waste a minute here, two minutes there. Stop for your horse to drink, and when he's done, don't tarry...head on down the trail. With our guys, we stop for them to drink, and if they don't within about 30 seconds, we head on. This does two things...it doesn't waste time, and it teaches them that water stops are for drinking, not lolly gagging and looking around. Be sure to leave your hold right on time, unless you feel that your horse needs more time to eat/rest.
Mixing up the gaits your horse does is a good way to use different muscle groups and reduce fatigue of any one set of muscles...do some gaiting, some trotting, some cantering, etc.
Hope to meet you at Armadillo in a couple weeks...
Dawn Carrie, Texas
On 10/8/07, Donna Deyoung <skyhorseranch@xxxxxxx> wrote:
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