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Mastering Extreme Trail
Trust and Instinct
By Mark Bolender
36 / Sport and Trail Magazine
hen you watch a well trained trail horse pick its way through difficult obstacles it might look easy. The horse seems bold and confident, as though there’s almost no effort on the rider’s part. We all want that perfect horse in order to achieve that perfect ride, whether on the trail or in the show ring. While great horses and riders make it look effortless, arriving at perfection is far from easy.
This example highlights how trust and instinct are woven tightly together in the horse’s mind. They can separate in an instant, as was the case with this horse and rider.
Just like with people, trust by a horse must be earned. To earn it you must step into the world of the horse and understand its rules of conduct. Theirs is not like our world at all. And if we treat them with our world values and principles they will not understand. Consequently, they will never learn to trust.
To understand their world I have four simple rules for training. They are rules of their world, not ours, and are crucial to gaining their trust.
1) They have no equals. If you watch a herd of horses you soon appreciate that they kick, bite and play rough in establishing a clear pecking order. Their world is brutal, yet fair and clear.
2) They like to follow. However, they will only follow a clear and consistent leader. The herd’s leader is essentially an alpha mare. Eating is most favored next to the leader. If the leader is strong the herd feels secure; all is quiet and they follow the leader.
3) They try to please. They try to please those they regard above them or superior in the pecking order. If number one wants to eat where number two is, then number two must move. If number one wants to walk in the barn first then the herd waits for number one to walk in first, then they follow. If number one wants to cross the creek to the next pasture they all follow. They all try to please the leader and those they regard as superior.
4) Instinct drives all of it. Instinct isn’t right or wrong, nor good or bad. It just exists. It seems mysterious and frustrates us because it’s a different kind of intelligence.
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though there’s almost no effort on the rider’s part. We all want that perfect horse in order to achieve that perfect ride, whether on the trail or in the show ring. While great horses and riders make it look effortless, arriving at perfection is far from easy.
The single most important factor in achieving this is trust. The horse must trust the rider and vice versa. Trust results from proper training. We all talk about trust and how it’s so critical to a great ride, but I think few riders and trainers really understand the complexities of this trust, and it may not be what you think it is.
While giving a clinic in Palm City, Florida I watched an interesting situation develop that illustrates this point. A rider became too tired to ride and then asked her friend and trainer to ride the horse for her. This was a gentle horse but not very trusting. It needed time to think before being pushed. Within minutes the horse was frantic. It quickly became such a danger to the rider that she had to dismount.
The explanation here is that the first rider’s confidence had grown over two days of careful coaching through obstacles that were difficult to navigate. The horse learned to trust that rider. The second rider did not trust the horse to do its job and the horse sensed it. She tried to force the horse and in doing so she tightened up. To make matters worse, the rider didn’t understand what the horse was telling her. The horse interpreted this tightening up as fear or lack of leadership and its instinct took over. Trust in the rider was lost.
© Hal Cook