Why is your horse getting excited, in a hurry or a little too opinionated? Training would involve addressing the why, and formulating a way to modify the horse’s reaction to the why. Resorting to a stronger bit does nothing to alter the horse’s behavior or thought process. The horse can always resort to stronger behavior if you are not addressing the “why.”
There is a huge benefit, especially with TBs, to let them go on the buckle when you want them to relax. It’s one of the things we tell people to do when foxhunting – if your horse is always on the bit (especially an OTTB), they are always “on”. Letting go is a really important part of training your horse that it’s okay to relax and settle.
And yes, you are training your horse every ride. The problem is, it is difficult to train relaxation. That comes from hours in the saddle and lots of practice. I’ve restarted several OTTBs and getting them to settle and relax takes time. And yes, as Christa says, you don’t want to be on their mouth all the time!
I don’t always ride with a pelham. I ride with whatever bit works best for THAT horse but I don’t consider a “snaffle ride” to be the ultimate indicator of training. I had one OTTB (who raced 70 times) who had so much baggage that I restarted him in a bitless bridle. My own OTTB hunts first flight in a Kimberwicke. He is delightful in that bit – light, responsive and relaxed. When not hunting, I can ride him in a snaffle and mostly control him using a neck rein. So it’s not the training that’s the issue. Its the Adrenalin.
If your horse is good in the ring (which sounds like the case), you need to find a solution that allows you to continue that training on the trails. Sometimes that means another bit. Maybe not forever, but for the near term. And, as said before, a Pelham is an excellent choice because it does allow you to ride off the snaffle rein.
[QUOTE=Christa P;8528480]
I guess it depends on what you want when trail riding. I want a nice relaxing ride for both of us, I want a horse that goes where I want at the speed I want and will also lead, follow, or go in the middle of a group. I also don’t want to have a longer discussion than necessary if she gets excited, in a hurry, or a little too opinionated.
What I’m not interested in is riding on contact all the time or having to nag to get her to settle or slow down. The Pelham allows for this type of ride.
I also have no idea what you mean by “untraining”. I train for what I want in a given situation, and on a long trail ride I don’t want it to be a serious schooling session for the whole ride[/QUOTE]
