Counter Canter

1/8/2015

We've been doing a lot of practice with the counter canter lately, especially the counter canter into a volte - I LOVE that exercise.

On the left lead, Speedy is getting more and more balanced in the counter canter and when we make the turn into the volte, he really drops his haunches and sits for the volte (relatively speaking). The right lead is a whole different thing.

I suspect that I am working on movements that come in Second and Third level, but I am too lazy to really go and look it up. I am know I am not pushing him too hard as we do what he can do, and then I move on to something else.

The trouble we're having is making a 20-meter half circle in the counter canter on the right lead. Speedy just can't quite hold it, so he has started to do an absolutely lovely flying change. It's beautifully done, but we need to be able to hold the counter canter.

What I've started to do is go back a few steps to show him that I actually want him to hold the right lead canter. Instead of half circles, I am doing the shallow loop that comes at the end of First Level Test 3. I am also doing quarter circles up and down the one long half so that he gets a break and a quick release by going back to the right. My court is only about 45 meters so I can only get a few quarter circles, but then I simply repeat the turns down the other long half.

I am using the counter canter to improve his canter work, which is actually working. I just need to make sure I don't inadvertently teach him to make automatic changes on the right lead since he needs to be able to hold the counter canter in the serpentine. I am very conscious of keeping my right hip forward, maintaining a little right bend, and riding him right leg to left rein.

Any advice out there?

Austen link

1/7/2015 11:33:07 pm

Wow! I might be wrong, but I think the counter canter to volte is actually more 4th level than 3rd! Really cool that you're able to get him sitting so much for it!

I struggled with having my horse keep the counter canter for a long time. Big tips were to examine and really thoroughly know the weight/seat aids for the canter and make sure you aren't accidentally shifting your weight when you attempt to keep the counter canter. Also, make sure your legs stay back, and you're allowing Speedy to come up in front enough. Finally,(a big one for me!) make sure you don't FREEZE your seat. Keep following the canter movement with your hips. When I stop cantering with my seat, we either break or swap leads.

When we started counter canter I had to be really obviously light on the seatbone to the inside of the lead. Now, I've started to weight that seatbone more, but make sure to keep that hip very forward to encourage the hind leg to track up. Here's more about how we started improving the counter canter (http://guineaforaguinness.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-march-lesson-write-up.html).

Another tip would be to ride renvers, which is a similar aid to the counter canter, but on the wall so easier for the horse to hold. That's a great way to figure out how your seat/weight are effecting Speedy's balance.

Nicole Sharpe link

1/8/2015 05:32:48 am

Seconded on the weight of your seat and hips. I was inadvertently asking for Murray to change when trying to do right counter-canter by trying to "pull" him over to the left. Instead, if I sit and think of sweeping my hips from right to left as I do the shallow loop (that's all we're up to right now) then I have much more success.

I just got started on counter canter in a lesson back in mid-November and since then we've had shitty dressage ride after shitty dressage ride followed by break and I'm super devastated because I REALLY want to work on it and I know it will improve M's canter and now I have to work on getting him all back into shape and through again before I can do my desired counter canter.

Good luck!!

Bakersfield Dressage link

1/8/2015 10:09:55 am

Thanks, ladies. :0)

I think my aids are pretty good: inside leg is forward, outside hip and leg are back ... I worked on it again tonight and found one thing that did help. The more I can collect him, the better the counter canter is.

At my lesson on Monday, we worked on really getting him to rock back on his hind end so that the canter comes from his inside hind and not from his front end.

When I got a super connected right lead canter that was VERY light, I asked for some counter canter in a variety of ways and was really pleased that he could hold it the entire distance (the single loop from First 3 and the half circle.).

On the left lead, he can hold the counter canter for a 20 meter circle and then do a 10 - 12 meter volte. To the right, not yet! :0)

1/8/2015 11:35:05 pm

I think you might be on to your problem there! The counter canter will really accentuate any issues you might be having at the canter. If he's too on the forehand, he won't be able to lift his shoulders out of the way and might change in order to feel more in balance.

The issue to the right might just be a strength issue (I'm shooting in the dark without being able to see what exactly you're talking about). You know horses are never even from side to side. Maybe his left side is much stronger than the right, and he needs to develop more sitting strength over there?

Teresa link

1/9/2015 09:06:43 pm

I agree that it's likely a strength issue. Irish had the same going to the right.

I found that slowly building up to the 1/2 circle really helped. So I would do a few strides of CC on the right circle and then ask for trot before he got all discombobulated. I slowly expanded it more and more until we were doing it. For Irish, if he got all off balance he would get all stressed and emotional about it so it made everything go wrong. I had to 'sneak' into it and give lots of praise. :)

Val

1/10/2015 12:46:15 am

Pretty cool that Speedy is offering a flying change! That is also Harley's favorite direction to change from, however, that is very clearly his more balanced and stronger lead (the right).

I agree with the above advice, and have one thing to add. Continue looking in the direction of the canter lead that you want. So if you want the right lead, keep looking at his right ear even when you turn to the left. This was the last ingredient that helped Harley understand what I wanted.

Amanda link

1/10/2015 04:12:31 am

I am a big fan of the teardrop exercise as a way to diagnose problems. So instead of a true volte, you're only doing half of it, then returning to the rail in an angle. That would give you the easier counter canter on the straight line, introduce it on the smaller circle, and then put you back on the correct lead when you're back on the rail. You can also string several of them together to go left-right-left-right and so on.

I often find that when I toss a few of them in my problems almost immediately show themselves: not enough impulsion, too much weight on one shoulder, unevenness in my own seat. It's astonishing how transparent they become, when you'd think the exercise is much simpler than that!

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