14 / Sport and Trail Magazine
STRAIGHTNESS AND TURNS
Straightness, that elusive thing we strive for
under saddle, is easily taught while pulling
a cart. You will see right away when a horse
is falling on a shoulder. Adjustments must
be made through half halts or in tough
cases, by moving the shoulder to the
opposite direction one step and asking for
straight again. After a number of those
adjustments they will begin to carry
themselves there. Teach them to stay
straight on their own. If you find yourself
hanging on a rein to keep them from
drifting somewhere, they are not doing the
work themselves. Doing the work
themselves means that they are properly
carrying the majority of their weight in their
hind ends, and the forehand is uphill with
light, free shoulders. They cannot be heavy
on the forehand. Straightness
shortcomings become turning
shortcomings. To one side they will make
sharp fast turns as they fall in on the inside
shoulder. To the other side their outside
shoulder will pop out to the outside and
you will feel as if they are over-bent and
avoiding the turn. Turns are done correctly
from the haunches, with lovely cross-over
steps of the forehand. We teach this
maneuver in the long lines prior to hooking
so that they understand the movement
first. The shafts can intimidate some horses
at first. If they hit a shaft with their hip they
get nervous and claustrophobic. The better
they can turn properly, prior to hooking to
the cart, will be to the benefit of building
the horse's confidence.
WHOA
The key to safety in driving. The horse must stand square, patiently, in order to be harnessed and hooked. Accidents happen most often, during the hooking or unhooking process, so it is where we place a lot of emphasis on being well established. Being halter trainers, our horses already have a firm grasp of standing quietly on all four feet. They must also understand whoa, because bringing a horse back from a tense moment is a must in the cart. Driving is not like riding, where you have the option to bail. If something is getting out of control, you have to be able to shut it down. A loose horse with a cart attached is a horrible scene.
Once they have learned each of the main parts, forward, turn and whoa, pulling a cart becomes a breeze for them. They build confidence in their work ethics. Conditioning and muscle building is easily done, which we value to a great degree for our halter horses. Talk about putting on a strong loin and haunches. Pulling the weight of the cart and the handler, transitioning of gaits with that weight, all help build a muscular hind end. And all is done in self carriage.
"But what about the check? Doesn't it force a horse into a hollow and an unnatural position, or ruin the horse's gaits?", is the next question we always get. A number of riders tend to have a very negative perception of checks. Yes, when you look at the old photos of carriage teams, the checks are firmly in place, setting the heads high and "proud". However, a check, like any other piece of equipment has a