Whether you’re a trail rider or a competitor, training outdoors is a benefit to both you and your horse.  Getting outside in the fresh air and putting some miles on your horse is not simply a way of getting in shape, but also a way of keeping you both healthy.

Staying healthy is more than just taking care of your physical health, it is also for your mental health.  This goes double for your horse.

Notice that this article is about training outside, not just going for a ride outside.  During my two day Thinking Horsemanship clinics, I see all types of riders.  Some ride the trail, some do endurance riding, and some compete in dressage or show jumping.  Almost to the person when they ride outside, they “go for a ride.”  But they actually do very little training while riding the trails.  Of course, we know that horses are always learning, and any good ride will help the horse learn a little bit more, but I’m talking about training them as you ride outside.

Anything you can do in an arena you can duplicate outside (except sliding stops as there are few places smooth enough for doing this safely).  Virtually anything else can be done.  However, most people seem to think of only training a horse in the round pen, the arena, or the pasture near home.  Why not train on the trail?  This is especially beneficial to riders who do a lot of arena (indoor or outdoor arena) competition.  Think what it might do for your horse mentally and physically if you took him out of the arena and down the trail. 

Riders often tell me that their horse is too high strung for the trail.  And that’s part of my point.  By training outside and doing some training on the trail, your horse will be even better in the arena.  Just think how well your horse has to listen to you when there are so many distractions.  If your horse doesn’t listen well outdoors and seems as if he might want to do a mad gallop, then again I say that it’s even more important to take him outside.  That just proves that he is struggling mentally to listen to you indoors, and is begging for a chance to go out and have a good romp.

Since we don’t want you riding off in a mad gallop, here are some tips to getting your horse outside for the first ride.

Ø      Take the first ride in an enclosed round pen or small paddock.

Ø      Practice your stop

Ø      Practice your stop

Ø      Practice your stop!!!!  The first thing you will need outside is a good stop, so practice it over and over from every gait.  Do not think that just because your stop is good in an arena that it will work well outside.  Many horses will try some interesting things once they realize there are no walls to contain them.  This is the most overlooked training opportunity I see in the riders who come to my clinics.  More than one rider has indicated they wouldn’t want to try to stop their horse from a hard gallop.  This includes many good riders, too.  Why? Because few people ever have the chance to really gallop a horse and stop them.  The first time the horse gallops all out he turns into a runaway.

Ø      Next, use that round pen or small paddock to practice everything that you and your horse typically do in the arena.  Do this for several days (no, I’m not kidding).  You’re working to establish a pattern here before you expand the space and external stimulus of riding outside.

Ø      Once you’ve accomplished that, then it’s time to find a place near the barn with no fences and do it all again.  A large pasture will also work as long as it is big (at least 200ft by 500 ft).  In this big pasture, start small and try all of the things you and your horse know in a small area of the pasture.  Don’t try to test your horse to see if he’ll stop from a gallop.  Work up to it and make sure that the stop is there first at the walk -- before you try the trot.  Make sure the stop is really good at the trot before you try the canter.  And make triple sure you have it down at the canter before you gallop anywhere.

Ø      After practicing here for several days or possibly a few weeks, then you’re ready to try the trail.

Ø      As soon as you’re on the trail, make sure that your horse will stop.  Then start training on the trail right away.  Get your horse used to the idea that no matter where you take him he has to listen to you and at anytime you may ask him to perform something that he knows.  Go for a short ride this first time.

Ø      Go trail riding again as soon as you can.  Do the same thing as above but make the ride a little longer.  During this longer ride, let your horse relax and walk on a long rein if he’s comfortable with it.  If not, then do what’s comfortable for him and start exercising and training.

Ø      The training will be a comfort for your horse and he will seek it if he gets scared, because it’s something he knows well.  Because by this time you’ve established a pattern and given him consistency and lots of practice in different situations.

Ø      Once he seems comfortable with the trail, then you can train anywhere along the ride.  If you’re a dressage rider, then you can Piaffe, extend your trot, or canter collected anywhere that it’s safe to do it on your journey. Your horse will appreciate the change of scenery, and more importantly will be even better in the arena as he’s had a mental break from the usual rigors of training.  If you ride endurance, then all of the training will only help you to rate your horse when you need it.  If you’re a trail rider, then your horse already handles the trail well but more than likely could use the training on his gaits and stops.  I meet a lot of trail riders who wish their horses would stop better, “jig” less, not be so herd bound, and be under better control at the faster gaits.  When I talk with them, I discover that they do a lot more “riding along” than training on their trail rides.

Ø      Practice the following on the trail: stop, walk, extended walk, trot, extended trot, turn on the forehand, turn on the hindquarters, roll back, leg yields, half passes, piaffe, passage, counter canter, back-up, back-up with changes in direction, canter depart, flying change of lead.  All of it.  Everything you might do with your horse in the arena or show ring.

There are lots of obstacles out on the trail that can frighten a horse.  But no amount of training for the obstacles replaces the basics of good horsemanship.  A horse doesn’t have to be scared to turn into a runaway.  If a horse does get scared and tries to run away, you have a much better chance of controlling him if you’ve been practicing your stops and gaits both indoors and outdoors.  If your horse won’t listen to you in the arena and the round pen, then there isn’t much chance of him listening out on the trail.   Chances are, however, if he’ll train well out on the trail, he’ll do well in the arena, too.    Besides, it’s healthy for both of you to train outside away from the dust of the arena.

Safe Rides.