Can a person learn to ride a hotter horse? Can a hotter type learn to accept “mistakes”, or at least to be more accepting of leg and seat?
I think certain people are wired for hotter horses. I like what Carl Hester likes to say. That you need to have leg on (and a quiet, solid leg) hot horses and no leg on quiet horses. I think it’s all about the rider. Some horses can become more desensitized, but I think that you should always match the horse and rider. It goes with why some people love the quieter and thicker skinned horses vs the hotsy-totsy horses that require a LOT more tactful rider. I think you always need to look at the rider first. If the rider is correct and tactful, the hot horse WILL accept the aids.
I think it depends on what “hot” means - it seems to have shifting definitions, ranging from sensitive/forward to bats#@! crazy.
I prefer a sensitive, forward ride and I don’t mind dealing with horses who get wound up/tense, or whose resistance comes in the form of being quick/silly, or those who throw bucks in or get overly enthusiastic over fences or during gallop rides. I will take that type over a “push” ride any day - the kind of horse whose resistance tends to come from not being forward and who is difficult to “inspire.”
To someone who prefers a quieter ride, the sensitive/forward type might be intimidating or just plain annoying to ride. I had a coach whose personal horses were all very much in the “quiet” category - brilliant movement, lovely horses, not “deadheads” at all, but just the type that you had to work to generate the energy and keep it up. She really didn’t enjoy riding my sensitive little weirdos - just found them irritating “like a kid with ADHD!”
The Bats#@! ones are a whole other kettle of fish - horses who are incredibly spooky or over reactive, ones who have major vices under saddle etc. I am taking one of those on in the coming weeks, and while I think we’ll be able to make some good progress, her challenges are not the kind of challenges I expect from just a forward/sensitive beast.
As for learning to ride a hotter horse than one is used to - I don’t see why that would be out anyone’s grasp. If the reason a person doesn’t enjoy that type is because they haven’t learned how to ride them - tactfully, with finesse etc - then sure! If someone just prefers a different ride… sure, still, but can’t make them like it! :lol:
Yes, there is HOT and sensitive and reactive.
And there is crazy.
Don’t like crazy (crazy can be associated with hot OR lazy)
Hot may or may not involve SPOOKY. Don’t like the SPOOKY ones.
You learn to not over react. You learn to THINK what you want. You learn to sit chilly. And enjoy what it offered.
I will just add that it also depends on your facilities. Lots of turnout, trails, terrain (hills, water), etc. will help to manage all that energy.
It depends on the rider, too. I love hot horses because when I go for a ride, I want to GO!
I think that people are wired to prefer one type over the other, but that you can learn (at least to some extent) to ride the other type well. I’ve always preferred hotter horses. My default reaction to situations has always been pretty blasé (“Oh, I’m hydroplaning. Well would you look at at.”) and I find it difficult to incite and maintain the energy within myself needed to work lazy horses. That said, I did learn to ride lazier horses well; most of the schoolmasters I’ve ridden in the past few years were the lazy type. I’ll gladly train lazy horses, but when I look for horses for myself, I only look for horses bit a bit of chutzpah.
The aim is to have equal amounts of ‘whoa’ and ‘go’.
I do NOT like hot and spooky.
I do like more whoa than go if I had to pick.
Yesterday I used my whip too hard accidentally, and he actually STOPPED in protest and jumped in place.
I don’t mind the safety features of my horse (who can get hot, very hot, when ridden for that effect), but I cannot progress very much in certain ways without more go than whoa. Or as FT says above, sweet spot of equal balance.
I can build that in my horse, depending on how I ride him.
Having watched Charlotte ride two horses she didn’t know, she definitely liked hot, but she definitely checked her brakes more than once.
I do believe a person can learn to ride a hot horse, if and only if they are not tense, fearful or insecure riders that go fetal position when the horse is looky or spooks. I don’t know that they are unforgiving of rider position but I do know they make mince meat out of timid riders.
From my experience with hot horses, which I greatly prefer to ride and own, no and no.
A truly “hot” horse to me translates to “tends towards nervous/anxious and sensitive, to the point of sometimes overreacting.”
You aren’t going to change what the horse innately is. You are going to make a horse that doesn’t tolerate fools be forgiving of mistakes. I have never ridden a hot horse that DIDN’T tolerate seat and leg, you just needed to be skilled and tactful about when and how much you used…but I have ridden hot horses that needed to be re-educated as to what seat and leg meant. Once that was cleared up, we had no problems getting “acceptance” of those aids.
To ride a hot horse, you need three things: a “laissez-faire” attitude, a sense of humor, and immense patience. Not everyone brings all three to the table, and though they can be cultivated, not everyone is cut out to ride this type of horse.
However, I will say, when you get a strong relationship with one of these types, they are absolutely killer partners. You don’t “change” them, they are still what they are, but they KNOW that you are there for and with them, and would jump the moon for you.
Anything is better than lazy + reactive! To ride that combo well (and not get frustrated) requires some skills!
[QUOTE=champagnetaste;8627038]
Can a person learn to ride a hotter horse? Can a hotter type learn to accept “mistakes”, or at least to be more accepting of leg and seat?[/QUOTE]
Yes, if the person learns how to ride a hot horse.
I have a very hot horse and I had to learn “leadership” skills on the ground and under saddle for this horse to truly learn to accept my aids and training. This took quite some time, as he has a tendency to be afraid of the world and be very spooky and reactive. He’s good at dealing with “mistakes” now (he used to default to bucking), his biggest issue is to keep his mind in the game when external events are happening. This all came from extensive ground work and careful under-saddle work because he seriously lacked confidence (no real reason, this was his nature). He has a lot more confidence now and doesn’t feel the need to explode anymore…now he just seriously spooks.
Following, he’s so much more accepting of my aids and I have an arsenal of exercises to redirect his brain when he’s afraid. If anything, you can’t be fearful and ride a hot horse. You have to be pragmatic.
I’m glad I am not the only one who feels like hot horses wrongfully get lumped in with bat sh*t crazy horses. The horses that I have met who can’t take jokes generally strike me as being more nutty than hot. Currently I have a very hot OTTB who CAN take a joke most days. He is green, but very eager to please, and when I make a bobble I definitely feel him start to worry, but he seldom reacts. He is a cool dude, and I think that the seriousness with which he approaches his work is what makes the difference. I also find anxious horses to be very accepting of the leg and seat aids. Where they seem struggle is with contact because they carry a lot of tension through their jaw.
I am really not sure if people can learn to ride hot horses if they don’t already have a natural inclination for it. It is complicated, and I think it comes down to comfort zones and how willing people are to move outside of their comfort zone. I have patience for hot, anxious horses, but not for kick rides. I’d much rather be like, “hey friend, let’s take a deep breath, regroup and try that transition again,” than have to say “GIDDY UP!” But I know that I don’t have the patience to do that because it is harder for me. Why push myself when I can just keep riding hot horses that nobody else wants to ride? I am a quiet, go with the flow person and when I ride a horse where I need to create the energy, I don’t like it. I am not as comfortable asking for more. My comfort zone is staying quiet and directing energy, so that is why I like the hot ones.
I prefer horses that are a little bit hot. I’ve ridden several with a range of personality. Some are Always On. These horses need to be ridden every moment you’re up.
The horse I have now, I would classify as hot, but if you are a good and secure rider with a relaxed seat, you can also walk for hours on a long rein at a walk and she is relaxed and fine. She knows the difference between working and not working.
To ride a hot horse, you have to be very quiet with your body and not be goosing the horse unknowingly. Often when a horse is said to be hot, it is the rider that is hot - constantly moving from the horse’s point of view and creating anxiety for the horse. I remember one horse that was for sale that several advanced lesson riders rode… with me he would always add a stride down the line, he was so quiet. With my friend, he’d leave a stride out and run off.
Some horses that are hot are reactive both to the rider and to external stimulus. Others are reactive only to the rider. And some are more constantly anxious regardless of what is happening.
Sometimes these horses just need to learn to trust the rider.
Mistakes in dressage are not like mistakes in jumping where the horse needs to take a joke. The occasional wiggle or whatever won’t be a problem for a confident horse, but for a rider who bounces in the seat or hits the mouth or thumps leg unexpectedly, it may be that the horse will never accept that kind of error gracefully. If you need a horse for a rider like that, that may be different than a good competition horse.
If you are trying to ride a hot horse, working on your core strength and getting a secure seat without stirrups may be a big help to you. Also, there are a lot of tricks to relaxing a horse and/or to get its attention engaged in the direction you want - shoulder fore is a great tactic for a horse that is tense in a test, long and low stretchy circles/loops with a lot of direction changes are very good for warming and settling a horse.
A dressage horse must accept the leg. This is not negotiable. You do not make peace with a hot horse by removing the leg. Instead you apply it and direct the energy into engagement and collection using the lateral work and the changes of direction so the horse cannot stiffen his neck and run from it. Bend the body, apply the leg, ask the hind leg to step up. But the leg is applied with purpose - it’s not bouncing on the side making white noise.
Truly I do not believe you can do collection (3rd level plus) with a horse that is not a little bit hot.
This is great info, thanks! Horse shopping these days, and my last equine partner did not really have the “go” button – and I couldn’t instill it.
On the other hand, I’m not sure I am ready for a hot/sensitive horse, and the perfect in-between could be hard to find!
I think to ride those hot horses one really has to have patience, and a quietness about them. And that is not learned over night. I think there are more variations than just hot horses and horses with whoa. I used to always have those fizzy little jumping ponies and as fun as they are I just didn’t have the patience sometimes I just want to go for a nice relaxed trail ride on a loose rein but with those it’s not possible you need to ride 100% of the time on them.
So I do think it depends. I there is only so much a rider can improve on their natural ability and character. im not saying that a once timid rider will never be able to ride a hot forward horse I’m just saying that it’s going to be a lot of hard work. And as riders and horse owners wouldn’t you prefer to enjoy every minute you have in the saddle. The best way to do that is to try your best to match your natural character that with the horses.
[QUOTE=champagnetaste;8628211]
This is great info, thanks! Horse shopping these days, and my last equine partner did not really have the “go” button – and I couldn’t instill it.
On the other hand, I’m not sure I am ready for a hot/sensitive horse, and the perfect in-between could be hard to find![/QUOTE]
I actually do have the in between horse. He is forward thinking, but mentally a little difficult, so when he is doing the right thing I have to be very conscious of not changing anything for a few strides. He is one that has to know very clearly that he gave the right answer to the last question, before I can ask another question. It took some learning on my part to be that much quicker with taking my aids on and off so he didn’t get jazzed up. His idea of jazzed isn’t scary or really reactive, he just has powerful gaits and will sort of power trot away when he gets worried.
If someone asked me, I wouldn’t even really call him hot. He’s just a little sensitive and anxious to please. He’s absolutely an amateur’s horse as long as they’re a competent rider. He can be very difficult for someone who doesn’t understand what the buttons are or how many you have to press at the same time.
[QUOTE=aaka208;8627325]
My default reaction to situations has always been pretty blasé (“Oh, I’m hydroplaning. Well would you look at at.”).[/QUOTE]
:lol:
This is much better than my typical reaction, “AAAARGHHHH!!! I’m going to DIE!!!”
Seriously, though, even though I tend to panic first and ask questions later, I also prefer a hotter horse. Not crazy. But definitely something with a functioning gas pedal. Push rides require more persistence than I own most days.
OP, yes, you can definitely learn to ride a hotter horse, but it depends on if it’s worth it. They can also learn to be more forgiving, but again, it depends on the horse. A horse with more age/maturity/miles may be more forgiving, but one that’s reactive because of wiring, previous experience, etc… can be more of a challenge.
When I was horse shopping last year, I was looking for the same thing you are. Not spooky or reactive, but definitely with a “go button.” The young QH/Belgian gelding I found has just the right temperament. He has a nice work ethic, but is not reactive at all. He requires very light aids, but should finish out nicely, I think. They are definitely out there! Happy hunting!
I rode a horse a few weeks ago. So different from my former horse, plus too-long stirrups and a saddle that put me in a chair seat (something I battle anyway) – we got mixed signals and before I knew it we were cantering. The video shows me pumping with my seat and the horse cantering not esp upset, but it took a few circles to get back to trot and it freaked me out a bit.
I’m going back to try again. Really like this horse but concerned I’m trying to put a square peg into a round hole. This horse is everything I want.
[QUOTE=champagnetaste;8628211]
This is great info, thanks! Horse shopping these days, and my last equine partner did not really have the “go” button – and I couldn’t instill it.
On the other hand, I’m not sure I am ready for a hot/sensitive horse, and the perfect in-between could be hard to find![/QUOTE]
I think that as long as you aren’t terribly fearful and are working under the guidance of a good trainer, you could learn to ride a sensitive, more forward horse. However, if your last horse was lacking in the engine department, you may perceive most other horses to be “hot” even if they are not. My advice would be if you do find yourself seriously considering a hot horse, consider whether or not he is sensible. If he is sensible, you can absolutely lean to ride him.
