Great Advice. I don’t pretend to be the authority on hunting as last season was my first season but I did hunt three different Ottb’s all in their first season of hunting. Trail ride…trail rides and more trail rides is so helpful. You can play leap frog practicing being in the front and back and going different speeds. Test out your brakes and teach them that open fields don’t mean run by using transitions, lateral work and more.
I work all of my ottb’s out in open fields and on the trails when they arrive so it just becomes an everyday thing for them. You would be suprised some have an issue being in back while other’s do not. My hottest horses that are most competitive about being in front are mixed breeds and have not raced!
Keep the bitting simple (which you are doing) so you don’t piss them off. Use transitions and buddy up. I was told find a horse that is really reliable and use that horse to ride beside and behind. Know which horses to stay away from (also important;)). Talk to other members to let them know your horse is green they will help you out and more than likely understand if your horse is having a green moment and give you some room.
I started all of mine in second field a time or two until I knew how they would be have. All of my horses event already so they can jump and have been ridden in the open but second field gave me an opportunity to see how they would react to a really big group and we never went beyond a controlled canter. 1st field is much more high energy and can be stressful for the most experienced hunt horse so my recommendation would be to not attempt it until you know you have brakes, steering, braveness to fences and the horse will not get stressed. Like Bogie said you want the horse to enjoy the hunt and come back the next time more educated but not spazzed out. The stop/go of 1st flight can be very stressful to some horses in their first few seasons. I had three that seemed to take it all in stride but I think that is because they had so much mileage eventing, trail riding and doing other things that they didn’t get worked up.
As a rider it is really important to remember to breathe! Also, teach the horse to balance itself so you aren’t holding it up. Half halts and then soften and let them carry themselves. If they are nervous then walk them and get them to circle to relax. I asked a lot of questions about what was acceptable because mine found the checks to be stressful. They were fine when we were moving but the 1st hour it was tough to get them to stand still. Nobody seemed to care that I would walk them in circles. Fighting them to stand still often makes it much worse.
Pick the places where you go. Riding in big open fields is really hard! You should see some of the antics even from the most seasoned horses on a cold morning while going across these open fields. On some horses it might be better to hilltop or go second flight at first so they can just go slow. Then again riding single file can be tough to depending on how nervous the horse is. If they feel trapped in it can make it worse. That is something you just figure out with time. One of mine thought that leaving out a whole stride at the coops was quite funny and it is hard to deal with that when following behind a group and knowing you have others on your tail.
Another thing that I do at home before/during hunt season is go out in the open fields and practice transitions, half halts and really galloping. Test out my brakes and see what I need to work on. I may really open up into a fast gallop and then see if I can transition down easily. This is the best prep you can do to get a horse used to it so the first time is not in the hunt field! I even practice full gallop to a halt and those sharp transitions as they happen often in our hunting territory and the horse needs to learn to be that sharp to the aids of the rider. I find being prepared takes away a lot of the anxiety because you already have the tools you need when you get out into the hunt field
On the bitting note, practice at home. If you can’t pull your horse up while galloping across a field at home in a snaffle than you are dangerous in the hunt field. That is just my opinion but underbitting makes riding scary so don’t be “stuck” that you have to go in a snaffle. I have horses that did hunt in a happy mouth while others hunted in a pelham or three ring or whatever else. I can often ride much softer in a bit bigger bit than when a horse is pulling my arms off in a snaffle. Not saying I advocate big bits just know your horse and be realistic.
and I’m willing to experiment, but her attitude is telling me this is an excitement thing I can help her relax about, rather than a bitting issue.
