Freeing up the front end

I was riding with Sarah on Thursday and we were kicking around some ideas when she remembered that she woke up the other night thinking about Humbles stopping problem- which is he isnt very mobil up front. She had remembered a technique Wes Chappell used for freeing up the front end when stopping a jammy horse. Basically you turn them a half or three quarters or full turn then send them off and pull them in the ground and do the same thing the other way. You send them some where.

Craig Johnsons version of this was basically to spin them off the direct rein after the stop to free up the front end. Once I ran a filly down and pulled her into a stop and she stopped - soft in the face but both front feet hit the ground at the same time and she didnt slid too far. Craig hopped on her, ran her down, stopped, popped her with the direct rein and spun her about three times. Then he sent her down the track faster and said whoa and she drug her butt and ran with her front end. He said he just turned her the opposite way from the direction wanted to lean - I hadnt even noticed that she leaned.

Also in Al Dunnings first reining book he shares the technique of doubling his horses if they jam the front end in the ground- This is a very solid way getting your horse to go somewhere after the stop if they jam- you pull the head around and make the body follow- I like to double them in the fence when I'm getting them broke to teach them to follow their nose. Anyway if they jam in the front if you double them ie pull them around and then send them somewhere and double them again this helps to free up the front end.

Anyway I mentioned to Sarah that I had done a bit of this- mostly it was Craigs version, on the horse that wasnt to mobile but it hadnt been too successful.

The horse was getting better at staying more mobile up front but still was kind of sluggish with it. Sarah watched him and said he was lazy with it. A good description. He wasnt just jamming it anymore necessarily and he stopped hard but just did a couple lope steps when he stopped.

So today when running and stopping him I realized that going to the fence he even reverted to jamming his front feet. Thats when I remembered Sarah's comment about Wes's trick and I decided to use it. It was more like Craigs version again. So basically I bumped the direct rein and put him in a spin every time both front feet hit the ground at the same time. He wants to stop with his right hind sliding furthest and then he ends up to the left of his slide tracks. So I bumped the right rein to spin him back over his tracks - then I started doing it both ways - I'd stop him at a trot and then bump that direct rein and get the front end going- if it didnt go with dispatch I'd roll my spur up the outside rib. Pretty soon he was really spinning nice off the inside rein, both ways- he started spinning as good or better than he ever has.

He ended up stopping as hard and deep as ever but he was running up front with his shoulders up and his knees high and trotting. I had Linda watch and she said he was as deep and committed as could be- more so than Whiz, my biggest stopper last week.

So it really helps to have someone watch your horse- they just have to have an idea of what looks good and correct- they dont have to be an NRHA judge.

From now on I'm gonna start really concentrating on that direct rein and outside leg to t the horse following his nose, ie really getting them broke to that inside rein so they go immediately with a little bump or pull- it really helps to free up the front in the stop and clean up the turn around.