This week we are talking about setting your horse up for success, but really offering them a decision to make and being prepared for the result—be it what we wanted or not. I’m talking about the Controlled Wreck. This is a training tool that works a bit like a pop quiz for your horse, and often times the rider and trainer too. The Controlled Wreck highlights what to do when you get a “wrong answer” from your horse and how to correct them.

Key Takeaways

An example of a Controlled Wreck would be to walk your horse around in a circle over and over again, stopping each time at the same spot. Then, on the next circle, keep walking past that spot and see how the horse reacts. Do they try and stop again out of anticipation, or do they keep moving?

You have to be extra prepared when seated on the horse as well. In case anything goes wrong you need to know how to regain control or take away their ability to buck. And along these lines, we need to know not have to telegraph what we are trying to test our horse. You need to be thinking “go right” without your body following through.

The preparation comes in when something does go wrong. You have to be able to guide the situation from being negative, to positive. Things can escalate quickly. People often lost it when their horse goes from walking to bucking, but they don’t when they go from a walk to a trot—even though that is still showing you’re not in control. Make sure you correct the smallest behaviors before things get out of your control.

Like always, make sure you know what you’re asking of your horse. Giving a pop quiz without knowing the answer is a recipe for disaster. And when your horse passes the Controlled Wreck remember—where we release is what we teach.

Links

GreatOakEquine.com