During a ranch riding class or competition, your horse will be judged on the ability it has to work forward and at speed while it carries out optional as well as required movements.
Your horse needs to simulate riding outside of the arena and mirror the attitude, versatility, and movement of a horse that is working on the ranch.
Ranch Riding – the basics
What makes a good ranch riding horse?
A horse used for ranch riding competitions needs to be alert, enthusiastic, and have a good attitude. Horses that rein and cow horses make wonderful ranch riding horses. They have the training, the breeding, and the build for the various movements and gait changes required.
Natural movements in ranch riding
Ranch riding is about “natural” movements. The maneuvers must fit your horse. Your horse needs balanced and flowing strides, so the front and hind ends are perfectly merged. The point of a “gait extension” is not just to increase the speed but also to make the stride length longer.
You want to have a forward movement that you could ride for many hours. Your horse needs to lengthen its stride as it goes from a walk to a trot.
What you are trying to show the judge is that your horse is capable, no matter what you might come across during the day out on the ranch. You as well as your horse can deal with it.
Ranch riding transitions
Your transitions in ranch riding need to be fast and immediate yet precise. If your horse takes too many strides or misses even one stride, it will make him miss the next transition. The execution of each maneuver is extremely important to be able to get a good score.
For example: If you are trying to go from a gallop to a walk and your horse stops in mid-transition then that is a penalty because it’s a break of the gait.
Walking
Walking is a gait that seems extremely easy, but you need to remember that it is usually the first and last thing that the judge will see your horse doing. This gait is not about speed although fast walking is good and it’s not about faking fast. You need to show a purpose.
An exercise to try with your horse to get him used to this is to have a race walk with friends. The object is to walk your horse as fast as you can without having your horse break its stride. If your horse breaks stride then you lose.. Do this little exercise often because it will be a good habit and it can build up your horse’s stamina.
Trotting
Trotting in a ranch riding class is also not solely about speed. During the trot, your horse will be evaluated for how far the rear legs reach underneath. They will score the length of your horse’s stride. If you have a horse that has a beautiful trot, make sure to show it off.
Your horse’s stride
Your horse’s stride is important. The first thing is that you need to measure his stride early in the morning. Then measure it again at the end of the day and see if the stride has lengthened. The way to do this is to measure the footprints in the dirt. Measure the distance that the back foot’s dirt impression reaches in front of the front foot.
Cues during ranch riding
During the ranch riding class, when you are going from a walk to a trot, you need to hit it within three strides. For your horse to know this you need an immediate and extremely clear cue. Many riders when wanting the horse to speed up immediately, will lift their weight, taking all of the weight out of the saddle then settle their weight back down again when they need their horse to slow down.
Regardless of which cues you want to use with your horse, you need to use that exact cue consistently for your horse to start recognizing it.
Walking/trotting over logs
This is something that needs lots of practice. You have to get the spacing exactly perfect. The more you practice this the better you will be able to read the spacing at the show. This will tell you whether you need to slow down or speed up to make sure your horse’s stride is right.
Ranch Riding – getting out of the arena
Get your horse outside of the arena to practice maneuvers. The best place is a natural area. Ride around and over trees, logs down, brush piles, rocks, and whatever else that you can find. Make a point to practice all of the gaits and doing it over uneven ground to help your horse to build “sure-footedness”. This is extremely critical to ranch riding.
Conclusion
There are other maneuvers other than the ones listed here like side passing and the log pull that you will also need to learn about if you plan on doing ranch riding. Just remember, that in all of these maneuvers, practice, practice, and practice some more.