How to Use Body Language to “Go and Whoa”
I once came across a definition of impulsion recently that described it as the equal balance of “go and whoa.”
So if we have more “go,” or more “whoa,” we not only lose impulsion, but chances are we won’t win the barrel race either!
In a world where tiny fractions of a second can be life changing, maintaining this balance becomes a very delicate matter. Our horses must be able to deliver every ounce of speed they can muster between barrels, and then rate down for the turns like a jet engine in reverse.
Make going by barrels a thing of the past.
It’s not uncommon for horses to get too much run on their mind and lose their “whoa,” OR start anticipating the turn so much that they can no longer be driven up into the turn. When we’ve reached to either of these extremes, it’s well past time to take action to correct the problem.
But a barrel racer must specifically understand HOW, which is what this week’s Q&A video is all about.
If a rider’s hands don’t educate a horse appropriately, in time a horse will become more and more dull to their pulling. If a rider uses their body to constantly urge a lazy horse to keep moving, soon their urges lose their meaning as well.
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