stopping an x racehorse

No_Angel

No_Angel

Well-Known Member
Apr 20, 2003
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Ireland
what aids do people give to slow their x racers after a canter out on a hack?
my girl is fine in the school with my convention stopping aids, but out on a hack after a canter or a trot, she leans into the bridle and can sometimes speed up. ive also tried droping the contact like you see the jockeys doing on tv, but she speeds up.
how does everyone do it?
 
Half halts. Lots and lots of half halts.
The problem with racehorses is that you can't pull back on them, because that's how they've been taught to run.

So I'd spend the next while getting him accustomed to half halts, at the walk and trot so that he understands it at the canter.

If you're realyl out of control, you can always circle. They tend to speed up if they are going down a longside, so until you have control, try to stay in a smaller area where he can't speed up.

Good luck!
 
shes absoultly fine in the school, i can use 'normal' aids in the school, its just when were out.
with half halts in trot she puts her head up and shakes, and i have to turn to pulling. in canter she just leans and goes quicker :rolleyes:
ive been given a great way to try, so ill have a go with that when i can.
 
i have the same prob with my friends horse, nothing works with him, half halts nothing! as soon as u hit that excitement barrier thats it!!!

I use hedges, he either has to stop, go through or jump, and this hos doesnt jump and isnt stupid enough to go through so does an emergency stop!!!
Last ferlong of the field is the worst!!!!

Scares me to blummin death!!!
 
the thing that gets me is i canter up a field, theres a long lane that goes up to the road, she canters up the field, we have a big of an argument stopping and scramble round a bend and over a ditch, then bob all the way back to the road:rolleyes:

(btw sd, i rode yesterday:D )
 
the worst thing you can do is pull on the reins. i was taught when i loaned my ex-racer that when horses race you are asking them the take hold of the bit and pull you forward. sit deep and use (quite strong, because aids with no will behind them will do nothin for a racer in open spaces)half-halts, and be positive that you ARE going to stop, whether they want you to or not, but don't use a continual pressure.
 
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Mine took off with me a few weeks ago and I was petrified! The lane was too small to turn in and we were going so fast I could see him slipping and both of us going over. I started by dropping the contact and trying to slow him with my seat and weight. I tried half-halting. I tried bending his head to the right. In the end, we were going downhill at top speed and I just sat back and kept playing with the reins praying we would stop. Eventually the fence around the school was looming towards us with no where to go but over it, so I closed my eyes and heaved like my life depended on it. I'll never ever do that again! I didn't think he could go any faster - it turned out we were just having a steady canter! He really started racing, neck stretched out, mane flying, and I wound up leaning right forward, arms wrapped around his neck, tears whipping from my eyes with the speed, feet jammed into stirrups, too freaked out to even swear under my breath. This fence was speeding towards us now, and I could see a couple of horses in there schooling. I was having visions of Salsa jumping the fence and landing on one of them, or leaping the fence, shooting across the school, leaping out again and continuing all the way to his stable! Or worse, out onto the main road.

Fortunately, he decided he didn't want to jump and slammed on the breaks last minute. I went sailing over his head, my hat fell off :eek: and I bashed into the fence and the ground. Sal stood there while I was fighting the urge to either throw up or pass out, and looked at me as if to say "what on earth are you doing down there??" Cheeky little beggar!

My RI has taught me a new technique to try if he does it again, but I don't think we'll be cantering for a while! That totally knocked my confidence. What you do is dig your left rein into your horses shoulder and cross your other hand over the top, so that the reins cross behind the withers. Your horse ends up pulling against himself and will eventually stop. I don't know how painful this must be for the horse, but I suppose far more damage could be done to both horse and rider if you end up totally out of control.
 
well, it hasnt healed at all, but dr said i can start to drive again when it stops hurting so i thought id have a go at riding:D
i think ive squashed it tho, my one shoulder looks a bit shorter, which isnt good, oops :D
hope your eye is ok, i hate going to the hospital, i spent 20 mins going round the car park looking for a space :rolleyes:
 
that must have been really scary sez:eek: i think the technique you ri showed you is bridging. i think it helps horses who pull, but im not sure it would stop a horse whos already going.

here is what cvb put

The person I saw demo on Saturday was using it to slow and stop the horse without using the reins. One of the guinea pigs had a very fast horse (a jumper) - he told her to stand in the stirrups and pull up on the neck rein as if she was lifting a food bag.

Point 1: her balance to stand was not great as she had her lower legs ahead of her centre of gravity. So this exercise got her in a better exercise

Point 2: caused lots of giggles cos she clearly didn't lift feed bags

The trainer uses a "position statement" to tell the horse what is expected, and standing in the stirrups gets you off their back and is part of the cue to slow/stop.

It worked - took some belief from the rider, and a few goes at it. But initially she took a whole circuit (of Gleneagles BIG school) to stop from canter (to a trot) and by the end she was stopping canter to halt within about 5-10 strides !
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this makes alot of sence to me, so when i can use my arm properly again im going to try this.
 
racehorses are taught to jump off into a canter/gallop by shortening the reins, so taking a contact with their mouths is a sign to them to go faster.

it's always much more difficult to untrain a habit than not have it there in the first place! they are much less likely to tank off with you in the school as it is a confined space, and generally they find cornering at speed and in a small space difficult, as they tend to be very stiff through the neck and back and have never learnt how to flex at all.

for safety, i would not canter much outdoors till you get a bit more control.
maybe do lots of walk trot transitions outdoors till she gets the idea of changing speed, maybe just a few steps of walk, trot then back again.

if you are really stuck then contact some of the racehorse rehab centres as they must be encountering this issue all the time and they would be able to advise you more on techniques.

sadly, I have a horrible feeling that there are some racehorses who are just so fizzed up by their experience that they never lose it.

I used to ride a tiny 15'1 sprinter called Mercat. He was a delight in walk trot and he would canter sweetly and pull up nicely. But then I was at that time used to riding racehorses and was also riding him with fairly short stirrups. With him, you just shortened your reins, he would bounce off and canter in a straight line, then to stop you sat down and dropped your hands and he would come back to you. they are used to being cantered with your bum off the saddle and with the reins bridged over their neck, so they are leaning on your hands which are very very low i.e at your knees, so you are asking them to work in a totally different outline.

it takes a lot of time to reschool them, and it really depends on how fizzy they are mentally. some of them come out of racing total basket cases.
 
Just a thought....have you tried the one rein stop? If your horse will flex his/her neck quite easily it would be worth trying this method, because a horse will only pull if it's got something to pull against.

TB only wears a natural hackamore out on hacks but I can stop him quite easily by using this method.

Although, I must admit I haven't taken him on any fun rides lately (after the last very eventful one) :eek: so I don't know how well it would work it that type of situation. :D
 
mine is also bitless, just switched her into a sidepull from a dr cook. im thinking about teaching her a one rein stop, but think it might cause problems when were out with my mom and her horse. im thinking the balance rein will be a real great idea. she has never tanked or bolted with me, just been difficult to slow somtimes when out, especially from a full out trot.
i can oly walk for a few weeks anyway now:(
 
I have an ex racing TB and I have found that once he is really galloping and a tb really galloping is fast i.e. you can hardly hear due wind whistling and hardly see due tears because of wind in the face, there is not much you can do unless they decide to slow down, due to not being too fit and getting winded. You need to stick to just canter, i.e. never let the neck go down and out , do not let the whole horse flatten out, it is completely different from a fast canter. A fast canter you can pull up but not a real gallop with a horse that has raced and has set off and taken over. My horse is not so fit now being 15 years old and not trained for racing for a njumber of years but he can still do a good 3 kilometers, starts off very fast, eases up for a while (when could be stopped if necessary) and then goes back to very fast. I only let him do this though on a training track that is reserved for horses.

regards
 
I shared an ex-racer for a short time and learned that holding him back after a short gallop just got him MORE excited.... I admit it's so difficult to give them a loose rein tho when they want to belt off down a road!!! I actually found that if I gave him 3 or 4 good gallops, backwards and forwards over the same piece of ground if necessary, it would calm him right down - it was as if he said "Yep, I've done my bit now!" - took me a few rides to learn that he wanted more and would reach a natural point of enough.

I was never scared on him tho as I knew he wouldn't run away with me or buck as he had been trained not to.

Sadly I didnt share him for long enough to get into a good routine with him though.

Good luck :)
 
This sounds so much like Abby, she is an ex racer, too. As soon as you shorten the reins, she thinks it's time to go fast. That took me a while to figure out.
I use half halts with her and circle in the arena, still trying to get her to flex and also ride her on a long reign if she gets too excited.
You are brave to canter on a hack, I haven't even done that. I only walk and trott her outside the arena. Right now, she can't go on the roads due to transitioning to being barefoot.
 
Wahhhhhhhhh

My ex-racer has been brill so far he will canter next to another horse all day no trouble. BUT.... one day we droped the riens and let him have a stretch, well, after two laps of a 45 acre feild flat out i thought the hedge might be an option to stop him. it wasn't, i only just managed to turn him. a lap later i came out of the paralisis of fear and started useing my voice, 200 meters later he pulled up lovely giving it 'ohhhhh that stop!, well you should have said!'

Consiquently we NEVER now let him take the bridle totaly in gallop we allways keep a bit in reserve and he is fine , but as for sitting up and getting you'r bum down in to the saddle , no chance, his movement in gallop is sooooo big and powerfull a li'll scrap like me gets trown about allover!

Also i do not recomend ever knoting or bridgeing your reins as if the horse stumbles or jerks its head you could snap you'r riens . not a nice experience.

On my other TBx who has never raced i did try to stop him once by aiming for a five bar gate , 3 strides out he steadyed up , then poped it lovely, we now quiet enjoy jumping gates and he has stopped boming off. i was inwardly screaming for mercey the first time tho!
 
My ex-racer has his moments too.

When he really goes for it and doesn't want to stop I find just trying to relax and enjoying it is the only option. Otherwise the more stressed and worried I get the faster he seems to go. Pulling the reins is hopeless, a sharp turn sometimes works and shouting "STOP YOU B***ER" makes me feel better and occasionally makes him respond. Voice is good.

If we have another horse with us and he joins the race then I know I am not in control. Going with it and enjoying it is the only option:rolleyes: That is the joy of an ex-racer - I think!
 
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