Lindsay and Val
Del Mar Nationals 2007
Showmanship: Inside and Out
I have been asked many many times to create a guide about showmanship, and I had some spare time so I decided to go ahead and make one. This article will cover everything from basic techniques to show ring tricks, that have worked for countless people and horses at the local, state and national level. Showmanship is an intricate class, designed to test the handler's ability to show a horse at halter. Please remember that while reading this article, certain tips and advice may not work for you and your horse. Feel free to use any of my ideas or suggestions, and take as much or as little as you need. If needed, change the advice so it suits you and your horse perfectly.
How to teach a horse showmanship
Lindsay LaPlante
Lindsay and Val
Del Mar Nationals 2007
Basics:
When introducing showmanship to a horse I like to keep it short and sweet.
Don't blow their mind the first time by doing complicated things like pull turns
or pivots. Save those until the horse is a little more solid. Instead work on
the basic fundamentals: following your body & hand, and set ups. Depending on
the horse, I may or may not work on backing in the first lesson.
It is up to you whether or not to start your horse with the
chain. Personally I try not to, unless the horse is poorly behaved and
ill-mannered to begin with. That way they stay soft in their face, and will
make transition to the chain much easier in the future.
Following your body: Teach the horse right
away that he needs to stay with you at all times. Ideally you should be even
with his throatlatch, and in order to stay there he should adjust his speed
and body accordingly. At a walk (don't start trotting until you have this
down at a walk) walk at a regular pace, pulling him into position and
releasing as soon as he gets there. Leave slack in the lead while he is
being good, only have contact if you need to teach him something or correct
a mistake. Slow to a very slow walk, and bump him back into place - letting
him know he needs to still be there with you. Then speed up to a fast walk,
cluck for encouragement and bring him with you. Practice changing your speed
- getting him used to following your body.
After this work on circles both directions. When circling to the left bring
your right hand slightly forward (this will be his cue to speed up in order
to stay with you appropriately) and ask him to come with you without making
the lead taught. At first he won't have any idea, so pull him to you and
release. After bringing him to you a couple of times, reverse directions and
work on moving away from your body while circling to the right. When doing
this bring your hand slightly back, telling him to slow down so he can stay
with you. At first he won't move away very well, so hold your right hand out
in a fist shape, and when he doesn't move away his head will bump against
your arm. That will wake him up and let him know he needs to move away.
Bring your hand back into regular position, and continue with the circle.
Work on this only at a walk for right now, progress to the trot eventually.
Set Ups: Choose one back foot to move always,
I do the left hind, because it reinforces the pivot foot staying planted.
But it doesn't matter, as long as you choose one and stick with it the
entire time.
Then you start by getting him used to just moving that one back foot, move
it back and forth a couple times and tell him whoa and stop applying
pressure to the lead. Be sure to take a step back, which will also be his
cue to not move his feet EVER. If he puts weight on the foot properly praise him a
lot! If not, try again and move the foot some more, then ask him to put
weight on the foot. You want him to know that 'whoa' means to stand on all 4
feet however you set them and NEVER MOVE until you cue him to. If he moves,
correct him appropriately and try again. When he understands this it's time
to teach him how to move his foot in correlation to the lead...
Ask him to move his foot far, by moving your hand farther. If he follows his
foot to your hand praise him a lot. Work on short steps, and medium ones.
Get him used to associating the lead pressure to how long of a step to take.
Then when you get his foot where you want it, tell him whoa - and he'll
stand up on it. And now you have a horse who can set up his back feet
easily!
Once he can do that well, its time for the front feet. Set up his back feet,
wait a second or 2, then ask him to move one of his front feet and practice
just moving it. Get him comfortable moving both front feet, either
direction. To ask him to move the right front, lift up and towards you (this
takes weight off of his right shoulder, making it the easy choice to move
that foot). To move his left front lift up and towards him (takes weight off
the left shoulder).
Continue practicing with his front feet, this won't take too long for him to
figure out once he can move both of them well. Do the same thing you did
with the back feet, getting him used to moving his foot according to how
much pressure is on the chain.
Don't forget to practice crossovers, and crossover a LOT so he gets used to
you moving around in front of him, like you would do in an inspection.
And always remember, teaching this takes weeks - and can be frustrating. But
if you ever get in a bad spot, don't even both finishing that set up. Just
start again - it will keep both you and the horse happy.
Stopping: Stopping at a walk is pretty simple.
As you are walking, tell him whoa and stop. If he doesn't stop with his
throatlatch even with you pull him back a few steps (don't make this a
maneuver, and get in backing position, just a quick and immediate pull
backwards. That tells him: "Hey! You need to stop, NOW!" Same thing goes for
the trot, but give him a little time to think about it at first - so he can
respond properly on his own. You more than likely will have to remind him by
backing him up.
Backing Up: Work on back ups when your horse
understands to move with and away from your body. He doesn't have to be
perfect at it, but should at least have the idea.
Start by facing backwards, you should be about even with his nose and facing
straight back, eyes looking over the top of the croup. Cluck to him a
couple times and start walking slowly into him. If he moves away and starts
backing, great! If not pull him (don't jerk on him, that will end up in an
arched and braced neck) so he takes a step or two, and release immediately
and keep walking backwards. If he starts slow and get out of position,
remind him to continue on and keep straight.
For right now, go slow until he can stay straight and move well off your
body.
Please keep in mind that you do not want to push
your horse too fast. I recommend that you stay in the order I have written,
and not move onto the next step until your horse is completely solid in the
current one. If you move too fast, your horse will be confused and
showmanship will turn into a disaster. The only exceptions to this are
numbers 2-4, which are taught all in the same session, they work with one
another and will not blow your horse's mind if you add them all at the same
time.
Trotting: Start at the walk, and on a straight
away kiss to to him (encouragement to go forward). Id he doesn't trot off
with you, take your lead and swing
it behind you and tap him in the shoulder, not hard - just enough to let him
know that he has to move forward. It won't be hard for him since he knows
how to move off of your body already. Once you get into the trot, continue
for a while then break to the walk - just start walking, and if he
understands how to follow your body he'll follow. Practice trot offs from a
walk until he has them pretty solid - won't take more than a day.
From a stop is the same way, as you turn around to face forward give him a
kiss or two, and if he doesn't trot off swing the rope behind you and tap
him as a reminder. Then continue and try again. These take a little while to
perfect for some horses, especially the lazy ones - but as he gets better,
it will become easier and easier.
After a couple days of working at the trot, start teaching him the 'moving
off your body' cues. Basically do the same things that you did at the walk,
especially with your circles. Those will be much harder for him to do at a
trot, but with patience and work he will start to get it.
Pivots: In your finished pivot, the perfect
showmanship horse moves away from you with grace and ease. He keeps his body
perfectly straight, crossing over in front correctly, and planting the right
hind foot. His head and neck are level and relaxed, and he waits for your
cues to speed up, slow down or stop. Getting this is hard, but easily
accomplished with patience.
Start by walking him in a circle, while you are in pivot position (facing
his head, even with his eyeball). The circle should not be big, just
slightly bigger than a regular pivot, the idea of this is to get him to
understand that his front legs crossover in front of one another, not
behind. As you feel him getting comfortable with the crossovers, slow your
body down and lift up with your hand (rocking his weight onto his haunches)
and make the circle smaller - therefore asking him to pivot a step or two.
If he can't figure it, take your lead in your left hand and encourage him by
pushing him in his shoulder with your right hand. Be sure that when he does
take a pivot step, you take your hand off of his shoulder and take one or
two more steps - that way he doesn't learn to rely on your hand. Praise him
when he can do that, and go onto something else for the time being.
Slowly wean him off the the circling, and work on just the pivoting. Watch
how he keeps his legs, if he is getting camped under (front legs too close
to back legs) pull him forward a little so he won't step out. If he is
parked out (front legs too far from back legs) pull him back a little. If
his front legs are in a good spot during the pivot, he will naturally plant
the right hind. As he gains confidence and gets more solid, wean him off of
your help, so he does it on his own, as soon as you face towards him.
Pull Turns: Teaching the pull turn is very
similar to the pivot, just backwards. Make sure you have the pivot mastered,
before you go onto the pull turn. In the show ring you will never be asked
to perform more than a 90 degree pull turn. The handler walks backwards, and
the horse pivots to the left, coming towards the handler. The horse should
cross over correctly in front, pivot on the left hind foot, and keep his
body straight the entire time with a level, relaxed head and neck.
For pull turns you stand in the same position as a pivot, facing the horse's
head, even with his eye. Start by circling, like you did for pivots, walking
backwards can be tricky, but with practice it'll get easier. Using the same
technique as in pivots, slow your body down and make the circle smaller,
asking for one or two pull turn steps. If he doesn't get it, go right into a
regular pivot and try again with the circling and into the pivot steps. This
teaches him to rock back onto his haunches and pivot, instead of walk
towards you.
Watch his legs at first, making sure he doesn't get camped under or parked
out, and correct him if he does. Like in the pivot he will naturally plant
the left hind, if everything else is installed correctly.
Lindsay and Val
Sun & Surf 2007
So now that you have taught your horse the basic maneuvers, it's time to perfect them. Here is how to finish your horse in showmanship:
Speedy Set Ups: In the show ring you want to
set your horse up in under three seconds. This can be tough for green horses
- but is easily taught in a few days of practice.
Ask your horse to set up, if he is slow in moving his feet or takes too many
steps walk forward firmly -letting him know that's not what you wanted- and
try again. Do this until you get a speedy set up (2-3 steps) then praise him
a lot. This will take several days to click, but it will work. It can just
be frustrating, so be careful not to lose your temper.
Quick Back Ups: As you are backing up slowly,
start clucking and walk faster while pulling him back. When he speeds up
release the pressure from your hand and keep clucking. If he slows down,
remind him that he needs to keep moving by pulling him back again. With some
horses, tapping them on the chest with the leadrope works well too. Be sure
to practice different length backups, anywhere from 2 or 3 steps, up to 10
or 15 steps.
Backing Turns: With this you progress as you
go. Start wide and work up to small and tight turns. If you want to turn to
the right (the horse's hind end swings to your right) start by backing
straight for a few steps and ask him to turn while maintaining the backwards
motion. This is sort of a combination of a pull turn and back up, you will
step away from his face, and keep walking forward at the same time. Lift up
as you do this, and pull him up and over, teaching him that he needs to rock
back and turn while still moving. Work with just a slight arc at first, then
progress to smaller ones as he gets better. To turn to the left, the same
principle applies, but in reverse. You start backing and walk into him. Lift
up and over, pushing him away from you while maintaining the backwards
motion. Be sure to back another 4 or 5 straight steps after turning, to
avoid quitting.
As he understands more, let him do it on his own and the only cue for him is
you stepping away and asking to turn with your body. Don't help with your
hand anymore. If he doesn't understand remind him with your hand, but
release immediately.
Pull Turn & Pivot Tricks: Many horses will
curve their bodies the direction they are turning, and drop out their
shoulder during the pivot or pull turn. To correct this in a pivot uncoil
your lead, so the tail is dragging on the ground. As you pivot and he starts
to drop his shoulder, cluck a couple times (this will be his cue to pick his
shoulders up) and if he doesn't straighten out, swing the lead behind you
and hit him in the shoulder. Not too hard, but enough to get him moving.
Continue for a few more steps to see if he stayed straight. If not try
again.
To keep the shoulders up in the pull turn go on the opposite side and push
him into a pull turn (you will be walking towards him, while he is turning
left). It doesn't have to be pretty or perfect, all you want is him to move
away from pressure on his right shoulder. Cluck to him (his cue to puck up
his shoulders) and if he doesn't, press hard against his shoulder, and if he
doesn't pick it up press harder with your thumb until he does. Then release.
Be sure to pet him a lot, some horses get nervous when you go to the offside
so let him know it's okay. Go back to your regular pull turn and if taught
properly they will have improved drastically.
Whenever your horse is stepping off into a pivot you want his first step to
be with his right front, so he doesn't crossover right away. Taking this
small step is quicker and makes for a smoother start up, because often
crossing over on the first step will lead to dropping shoulders. To get this
ask him to pivot, and if he doesn't step with the correct foot, pull him
back to where he was and try again until you get it. There are certain
circumstances when he might have stopped funny and where he has to step off
with the left front and crossover in order to maintain the pivot, so allow
for those. Same thing goes for the pull turns, except you want the first
step to be with the left front. Teach it the same way, by practicing over
and over.
Headset: This can only be taught after the
horse has mastered EVERYTHING about showmanship. Remember to be very soft
with your hands when working on a headset, you want your horse to stay soft
in his face.
Put the chain over his nose. (Even if you worked without a chain before, use
a chain for the headset. You can take it away after he fully understands) At
a walk gently bump on the chain so he drops his neck way down (you
over-exaggerate at first) and release. After a couple seconds lift his head
way up, higher than normal. Release and bump back down. When he is good at
this at a walk, try at a stop. Doing this at a stop can be hard for some
horses, as they tense up and resist the chain at first. If you feel
resistance, IMMEDIATELY walk forward and ask for the headset. Then try at
the stop again. Praise him when he does it correctly. Do not work on
anything else if you are working on the headset, this will only take a
couple days of work, so your horse won't miss out on much.
Progress to where you don't have to bump on the chain, but instead pull
lightly and he lowers his neck immediately. When he can do this well, put
the chain back under his nose, and work on it the same way as you originally
taught. Ask him to set his head by bumping, and release when he gives. At
the stop if he resists, go forward. And progress to where you only pull down
lightly and he sets his head. When you are at this stage, you can work on
other maneuvers, but ask him to set his head by pulling down lightly while
working in one maneuver. Release when he gives, and if he raises his head
back up, remind him by pulling back down.
This will be your end result:
Showing In Showmanship
A typical showmanship pattern consists of a combination of walking, trotting, pivots, pull turns, back-ups, and set-ups. While any of these might seem simple, putting all the pieces together in the show ring is the hard part. The perfect pattern involves three basic fundamentals, what I like to call the three C’s of showmanship: being correct, crisp, and clean. Without one of these, your perfect pattern is no longer perfect. Practice is the key to success. The more you practice, the more both you and your horse will improve.
The first part of a perfect pattern is being correct. The pattern you perform should be identical to the pattern drawn. Know the pattern inside and out, and think about it before you enter the ring. Plan exactly where you should position yourself around the cones, where to stop, when to transition, etc. Use stationary outside objects to help you with far away spacing. Practice the pattern a few times, but don’t overdo it or your horse will anticipate. Just practice enough to learn where to put yourself in order to efficiently complete the pattern. As you are showing, think ahead and don’t become too involved with each maneuver. As you finish one maneuver, think about what the next one is. That will prevent you from going off pattern.
The second part is being crisp throughout your entire pattern. Each maneuver needs to be precise. Don’t get sloppy in between maneuvers; keep yourself pulled together. It’s better to take a little more time and think about what you’re doing rather than rush through the pattern. Remember what outside objects to use when the cones aren’t nearby to help with spacing. Know your horse’s size and stride length so you can calculate how much room you need in order to clear the cones. If you make a mistake, go on and try harder in everything else. You can make up for the mistake by shining through the rest of the pattern.
Last but not least is looking clean. Fifty percent of your score is based upon how you and your horse look when you enter the ring. Your horse needs to be shiny and well groomed. Your horse’s coat has to be short, and slick, which cannot be achieved the morning of your class. It takes months to get a good hair coat. His mane should be well banded, and his face, ears, and legs properly clipped. Your clothes need to fit properly, your hat shaped and cleaned, and your boots polished. There are a lot of other exhibitors performing the same pattern as you. Appear happy throughout your pattern and make yourself stand out. So, smile at the judge, show off your wonderful horse, and have a good time.
A tip I tell many exhibitors is that when they are showing
remind themselves of everything by saying to themselves: "Think. Look. Do."
Think means to plan ahead in your mind what your next maneuver is, and to decide
what is the best route to take as far as spacing, timing and placement.
Look not only means to look ahead, and where you're going - but also to imagine
what you look like at that moment. Are your shoulders slouched? Are your arms in
the right position? Things like that, fix yourself according to what you think
looks wrong.
Do is when you finish the maneuver you are currently in, and go onto the next
one. Where the same process repeats.
Doing this takes your mind off of your nerves, and will relax your body and
mind. Making your pattern much smoother and cleaner.
Top Tips:
Changing speeds while practicing is a
good way to keep your horse in tune
with you. Go from a slow walk to a fast
one, then a fast trot, slow jog, slow
pivot, fast one, etc. Change your speed
in every maneuver; it teaches your
horse to stay with you while going
forward, move off your body while
backing, and keep his shoulders up
while pivoting.
Try to keep the soundtrack to a
minimum. Kiss to trot off, but cluck for
anything else (and only if you
absolutely need to). A single kiss
sounds better than four or five clucks.
Stay in stride with your horse at the trot.
As he is trotting, listen for the sound of
his feet hitting the ground, and run in
step with him.
When turning to the left at a walk or
trot, let your horse know he needs to
stay up with you by moving your right
hand slightly forward without pulling
on the chain.
Keep your hands level so your horse’s
neck stays level. If your hands go up, so
will his head, making for a very ugly
picture.
Do not tense your upper body or your
run will look forced and unnatural. If
there’s a little space between your
elbows and torso, that’s okay.
Keep your left arm bent at a ninety
degree angle. To maintain the correct
position, imagine you have a towel
draped over your arm and can’t let it
fall.