I’m a hunter but in the winter ride at the barn up the road that lets me use their indoor. They are a western barn so don’t have jumps so I do lots of flatwork in the winter. Yesterday my horse was being really flexible and working well so I decided to play around with extension and collection in the trot. I was asking for extended trot on the diagonal then collecting through the turn. But I couldn’t really get him to extend his trot. He just kept trying to canter. I know he can do an incredible floating extended trot but how to I get that out of him? What am I doing wrong? He wasn’t just getting fast or getting frustrated he just didn’t understand what I was asking. Thanks!
There isn’t a magical button you can push that says “Extended Trot!” (I sure wish there was…) Without seeing the horse or having any more information, I’m guessing that you weren’t keeping him in an uphill balance where he could really lift his shoulders and extend. If he lost his balance, got strung out, lost his hind end, etc., it became easier to break into the canter instead of a trot.
Don’t just think "okay, now let’s do an extended trot’, but work on transitions between smaller steps and bigger steps in the trot as you go around the ring. There are lots of variations between “go for broke extended trot” and “very collected trot”, and it’s time to start playing with them all. When he starts to lose balance, get rushed, etc., help balance him back. Make it gradual and build towards a bigger trot, and as you are better at maintaining his balance you’ll be able to make the transition between collected trot and extended trot happen more quickly.
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How were you asking him for it? Without knowing how you were cuing it is difficult to give suggestions. I would assume you just aren’t asking him in a way he understands what you are wanting from him.
Well in my warm up I was doing lots of trot to canter/canter to trot transitions so I think I confused him when I tried to do extended trot. He wasn’t rushing or getting strung out he just thought I was asking for canter. I asked for extended trot by adding leg and adding a little more contact. I did find when I asked him lower his head and lift his back more he wouldn’t break into the canter as much.
When you ask for a lengthening of stride across the diagonal, the corner before is where you set it up. Get the corner right and you are half-way to getting a good lengthening.
Go into the corner and balance your horse back on his hind legs; really think about riding the hind legs and using a half-halt to bring them further under the horse and by raising your ribcage. As a hunter rider, you probably also need to be sure to keep your hands up - much higher than you think. As a former h/j rider, this is STILL something I work on, so I know how important it is.
As you get through the turn, straighten and ONLY when you are straight and balanced do you ask for more. Be sure you maintain contact while allowing the horse to open his stride. Instead of “going for it” try to get a really correct lengthening with the horse pushing with his back legs and through his back, even if the stride is a bit shorter than your max.
You might also want to consider using a “short diagonal” - only lengthen to the mid-point of the long side, for example. It can be hard to maintain that push and balance over a longer distance and so the lengthenings at the lower levels are not done across the full diagonal. This also gives you a bit more time to get your working trot back before the next turn.
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Thanks! I actually did have my hands quite high as before my ride I read that George Morris gave a dressage lesson blog posted on one of the other dressage threads and it reminded me to raise my hands when he raises his head. I’ll remember to focus on his hind end.
You cannot increase contact. The neck must be able to lengthen and the nose come out a bit.
Do an active 10 m circle in the corner, straighten on the diagonal, closing the lower legs strongly, and rising long and slow., and strong. If you rise quickly it will shorten his stride.
Before you really try coming from the corner try lengthening and shortening on a 20 m circle from your seat , without your hands. That will get him listening to your body. avoid canter trot, so he doesn’t get so confused.
So chances are, your trot - canter/canter trot work did indeed confuse your pony. A better exercise before working on lengthening/extensions is to work within the gait (collected, working, lengthened) on a 20 m circle. Just a few steps of collected and lenthened, enough to help your horse understand that you can ask for “more” and “less” and it doesn’t necessarily mean a gait change.
Once you have that, the other trick I learned is to really think “collect” through that corner before the extension. Last stride or two before you lengthen, you should be aiming to get as much weight on his hind legs as you can. Then, as you come out of the corner, think STRAIGHT! If it takes you clear to the quarter line to get truly straight, then wait till the quarter line or turn and set up again. If you add leg before you’re straight, he’ll end up on his front end running 9 times out of 10. Once you’re straight, push your hands slightly forward (keep contact, you just want to encourage forward) and add leg. If he speeds up, come back to your working gate and try again. You don’t want him to think rushing forward (and on his forehand) is what you’re asking for. I find it helps to count the rhythm out loud as I come through the corner and then keep counting that rhythm as you lengthen to keep your posting rhythm accurate. Definitely post until your pony knows what you’re asking for … it helps reinforce “do something in the trot” not “okay, canter!”
This is great advice thanks! I agree the trot to canter definitely confused him. He isn’t usually so good so I was kind of like now what. I would usually work on lateral work but have been doing a lot of that lately so wanted to change things up. I will try these suggestions on thursday!
Holds up hand “Please I have a question”
As I’m reading I think I’m seeing lengthening and extension used interchangeably here…maybe I’m reading wrong…Just starting to really work on First Level, (WD) and that calls for a lengthen of the trot (jog) So far I have managed faster, not longer…what is the first step to lengthening?
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I used lengthening instead of extending because it’s the first step towards doing a real extension. It’s lengthening the stride while keeping the same rhythm (beats per minute). I know the OP asked about getting an extension but really, a good lengthening should be the goal. An extension builds on that.
Basically, a lengthening is “longer stride” applied to a working trot. An extension is a “longer stride” applied to a collected trot. The difference is how much weight the horse can really take onto it’s hind legs to free up it’s shoulders.
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@KBC I think they are using extended trot but really meaning lengthened trot. Extended trot doesn’t show up in dressage tests until 3rd level, when collection is 100% required. Likely the desire in this case is to go from a working trot to a lengthened trot.
From the USEF dressage rule book
a. Working trot. This is a pace between the collected and the medium trot, in which a horse’s training is not yet developed enough and ready for collected movements. The horse shows proper balance and, remaining “on the bit”, goes forward with even, elastic steps and good hock action. The expression “good hock action” underlines the importance of an impulsion originating from the activity of the hindquarters.
b. Lengthening of stride. In some tests, “lengthening of stride” is required. This is a variation between the working and medium trot in which a horse’s training is not developed enough for medium trot.
d. Medium trot. This is a pace of moderate lengthening compared to the extended trot, but “rounder” than the latter. Without hurrying, the horse goes forward with clearly lengthened steps and with impulsion from the hindquarters. The rider allows the horse to carry the head a little more in front of the vertical than at the collected and the working trot, and to lower the head and neck slightly. The steps should be even, and the whole movement balanced and unconstrained.
e. Extended trot. The horse covers as much ground as possible. Without hurrying, the steps are lengthened to the utmost as a result of great impulsion from the hindquarters. The rider allows the horse to lengthen the frame and to gain ground whilst controlling the poll, The fore feet should touch the ground on the spot towards which they are pointing. The movement of the fore and hind legs should reach equally forward in the moment of extension. The whole movement should be well-balanced and the transition to collected trot should be smoothly executed by taking more weight on the hindquarters
In Western Dressage, the rule book says:
Lengthening of Strides. This is a variation of the Working jog; the horse covers more ground through lengthening its frame while maintaining the same tempo as in the Working jog. Excessive speed will be penalized. Lengthening of stride may be ridden either posting or sitting.
Lengthen trot is a longer stride, medium trot is a longer stride + more suspension, and extended trot is the longest stride with the hind legs still under and poll up. The medium/extended paces are a reflection on the degree and quality of collection your horse can achieve. The hardest tests are those where you have to show both medium and extended - demonstrating a difference on an average moving horse is difficult without downgrading the medium in order to get a better score on the extended.
To lengthen the trot, you need to lengthen the frame slightly and ask for a longer but not quicker stride. The horse will mostly likely speed up as the stride lengthens until they are strong enough to maintain balance. Ask for active, quick steps in the corner before or a 15m circle, straighten on the diagonal (short or long), push the hands slightly forward and post a bit bigger as you ask for more trot with your leg.
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Yes I do mean lengthening. In the hunter world people refer to it as an extended trot but really it is just a lengthening. Sorry for the confusion! Although I have once before seen him do a true extended trot. It was incredible! Would love to be able to pull even half of that out of him at some point.
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The techniques remain the same for WD to achieve lengthening rather than a quickening of pace. It depend on the rider’s use of their body. One can jog, jog, jog at the horse’s own comfortable pace, or one can make one’s body move decidedly slower while keeping the forward energy, or one can make the follow of the jog longer and slower by controlling the follow of your hips, again while keeping the forward energy.
As said before extended trot doesn’t show up until the horse is totally capable of collecting, and engaging.
Is your horse doing any lateral work? Leg Yield, Shoulder In? If so, start by limbering up his hips and setting him a bit more on his hind end with these exercises. Then, I like to do a few strides of SI in the corner, and make it a forward SI, then come out of that to a short diagonal and ask the horse to GO with bigger posting (assuming you are posting and not sitting the lengthening). Don’t get your hands too high - high hands are not for a lower level horse, unless you are just bumping up his poll for a moment!
I find the SI helps set the horse on its hindquarters a bit more, then “letting them out” of that collected movement encourages them to reach with longer strides. A short diagonal is all that I would do until you are both really confirmed and balanced.
I also like doing a few strides bigger and smaller on a 20 meter circle - this is a great warm up exercise in both trot and canter!
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I’ve been doing (or at least trying) more shoulder in but I struggle with how to ask properly and then knowing if we’re actually doing it correctly…any tips?
The horse must truly be “through” to be able to truly extend in the trot.
If you ride a 10 meter circle, your inside leg is at the girth, creating the bend, yes? And outside leg just slightly back keeping the haunches and body moving around the circle? If you are comfortable with that concept, then continue that circle for ONE MORE STEP beyond the full circle - make sure your inside shoulder is back, your outside shoulder is forward (a slight bend in your body) - the horse’s shoulders should match your shoulders, then ask the horse to continue down the track in that slight bend created by ONE MORE STEP of the 10 meter circle. Make sure you keep that inside leg on and at the girth (not back) to create the bend. Just ask for a few steps, do not over bend the neck, then continue straight.
I would recommend you get some experienced “eyes on the ground” to help with this. Shoulder in is a very basic and very important dressage exercise. The goal is that the shoulders are slightly displaced to the inside of the track, while the hind legs continue on a straight line - so there must be some bend in the horse’s body. The shoulder in introduces the horse to the concept of collection by lowering its inside hindquarters, and it also helps create suppleness because it is a bending exercise.
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Good suggestions on SI from MysticOak. I’d recommend introducing it in walk to make sure you and your horse understand the aids before you move on to trotting. Make sure you are not just pushing the haunches to the outside, as in a leg-yield. You should feel the horse stepping more under itself towards your outside aids, but not through them–that suggests you may be pushing the haunches out instead. I would highly suggest getting help with this too, at least until you figure out how to ask and what you’re looking for.
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