Down The Fence with Richard Winters
Article VIII

In a reining pattern, the sliding stops and spins are certainly spectacular and cause everyone to sit up and take notice. Yet there is another important maneuver which sometimes doesn’t receive as much attention, the seemingly simple circle. How correctly your horse lopes fast and slow circles will be contingent on how much care and attention you give to this phase of the pattern on a daily basis. There are two elements you need to constantly consider when loping circles. Number one: The symmetry or roundness of your circle. Number Two: The proper balance and frame of your horse while loping the circle.

Our two-year old futurity prospect, Rocky, had no comprehension of what a symmetrical circle was when his training started. That’s why it’s so important that I know what a perfect circle is. Circles often turn into eggs, oblongs, or other weird shapes because the rider doesn’t have a clear picture of what the circle should look like. Having a frame of reference can be very helpful at this stage. When riding in an arena, the fence can be a good visual reference point. If I’m loping large circles twenty feet off the rail, I should be the same distance on the opposing side. Be careful that when loping at the end of an arena you resist the temptation to just follow the fence line instead of keeping a perfect arc all the way around. Whether in an arena or out in an open area you can help train you and your horse by using a center point. Place a cone, bucket or any other object in the spot you want to be the middle of your circle. Now attempt to judge an equal distance all the way around the object as you lope your circles. I really enjoy stepping into an arena that has just been watered and groomed. The tracks I leave on the ground will be undisputed evidence of how round and symmetrical my circles are. As I lope repetitive circles I want to come right back on my tracks on every revolution. In a reining competition there will be a middle marker on the fence that you need to be “dead on” in alignment with for each circle. In your arena at home you can also designate a “middle marker” along your fence line that will help you ride consistent and correct circles.

It’s been said that “practice makes perfect.” That’s not true. It’s only “perfect practice that makes perfect!” If you don’t practice perfect circles at home, it won’t happen in the show pen.

Our horses proper body position in the circles is something we have to feel and continually work on. I spoke last month about body control and having the ability to manipulate my horses individual body parts independent of each other. This is where it becomes really important. When I am loping to the right, I want my colt slightly arced in that direction. In a right hand circle I shouldn’t be able to see the corner of my horses left eye. If I can, then my horse is counter bent and leading with his shoulder instead of his nose. I need my colt to be looking in the direction he is going. If I can’t see that inside eye I’m going to gently bump the inside rein and perhaps use a little inside leg to keep my horse looking in the proper direction.

Another common problem when loping circles is a horse dropping its shoulder into the direction they are going. If Rocky starts to drop his shoulder in a circle I will lift with my inside rein along his neck and use some inside leg close to the front cinch. (This would be part two of my “4-Part Harmony” exercises. See last months article for more information.) Loping squares can also be helpful in reminding my colt to keep his shoulders straight while circling. Here are the hard facts: If you can’t control the shoulders, you’re not going to have a reined cow horse. Just like we encourage our kids to have good posture, without reminders our kids and colts can get lazy. With consistency your horse can develop mind and muscle memory to travel correctly when loping circles.

I’m also asking Rocky to speed up his circles and then slow down again. I want to introduce and encourage speed control and show him that speed is nothing to be afraid of. I also want him to understand that the reward of speeding up will be the opportunity to slow down again. In most reining patterns the circles consist of large fast and small slow circles. However, at home I will often speed up and slow down in the same size circle. I don’t want my horse to slow down and automatically begin to turn into a smaller circle. That’s when he’ll start dropping his shoulder in anticipation. Keeping the same circumference will help him keep his shoulders straight when going from fast to slow.

When you begin to step up your program for higher levels of performance, you have to raise your standards and become more precise. The question is no longer “Can you lope circles?” Rather now it’s, “How do you lope circles?” That’s where Rocky and I are right now. Paying attention to details and forming good habits will hopefully serve us well as we continue his reined cow horse training.