Staying Flat in the Rope Box

by Teresa Fackrell

One of the keys to roping is getting the right start out of the box.  In a previous post, we talked about going to the pin.  This puts your horse in the right position with the cattle.

Another way to get the right start is to make sure your horse is flat in the box.  You want your horse to be able to push off with all four feet not lunge or rear out of the box on two.  When they come out flat, they come to speed faster and you have the opportunity to rope quicker.

One thing that people do to cause their horses to squat in the box or be too far back on their hind quarters is they only focus on getting their horse in the corner and keeping them there.  So they put all of the pressure on them to get as far back in corner as possible.  They put a lot of pressure on their bit and reins.  Their horse has to squat or lean back in order to try to relieve some of the pressure. 

There is a simple process that you can use when you are practicing to help keep your horses flat in the box.

1)      Back your horse into the corner.

2)      Then have your horse take a couple of steps towards the pin.

3)      Then back your horse in the corner.

4)      Then walk your horse all the way to the pin and stop.

5)      Let you horse relax while standing in the right position next to the chute.

6)      Then back them in the corner again.  You will notice that they are now flat and not squatting.  You also have more control of their motion in the box.

This simple process will relieve a lot of pressure on your horse. 

  A couple of things to note:

   1)  You should not perform this exercise every time before you rope.  Your horse may start to stall because they think they are only walking to the pin and not running to the cattle.  We usually do this just a couple of times out of 15 to 20 head of cattle.

   2)  When they are flat in the box, reward them by releasing some of the pressure on your rein.  Remember, they do not need to be back on their haunches and shoved in the corner.

   3)  Also, allow them to stand at the in but if they want to move out of position you need to get after them and put them back in position. 

Perfect Practice Equals Perfect Performance

by Teresa Fackrell

Here’s a great way to become perfect at just about anything: When you practice, don’t ever do it wrong. If you practice perfectly, you will become perfect. This applies to all rodeo events and anything else you would like to do exceptionally well.

The Jazz Master’s Secret

Legendary jazz guitarist Howard Roberts says the secret of his virtuosity: “Never practice a mistake.”

According to Roberts, most musicians, in their eagerness to play complex pieces, move too fast. What he had always done and the secret to his success was to practice only what he could do perfectly.

His theory was that any learning is the biological process of creating neural networks in the brain. Every perfect repetition beats a good path one that you can travel on later. Every incorrect repetition beats a parallel but incorrect path one that you can easily slide onto if you aren’t careful.

The more you practice the right moves, the deeper the memory path. The trick is to make the correct paths as deep as possible and the incorrect paths shallow or nonexistent.

The faster you eventually perform a task, the more likely it is that you will make a mistake, unless, that is, you have cut only one path for it a perfect one. Likewise, when you are performing a task under stress or in association with other tasks, it is easy to bungle it unless you have no neurological way to screw it up.

The trouble with most guitar students, Roberts said, is that they rush themselves. They are fixated on completing a movement rather than on performing it well. They figure the sooner they can simulate the completed movement, the better they are doing. But the truth is quite different.

How To Practice Everything Perfectly

Each rodeo event has several parts and is complex. That’s why we learn them in pieces. Whether it’s guitar playing, barrel racing, or roping, the ultimate performance is a complex combination of many simpler tasks.

Thus, to make the performance perfect you need to perfect each of the simpler tasks. To do a task perfectly even a simple task usually means slowing down. You should slow down as much as you need to in order to make the movement perfect.

Make sure to take time to practice at a slow pace. This may mean walking or trotting through a barrel pattern several times or sitting on the horse and roping the dummy. The important thing is that when you go slow, you should be moving, sitting, swinging, and riding the exact same way as when you go fast.

Don’t worry about your progress. Doing a repetition at half speed does not make the learning process twice as long. It makes it faster, because you are creating just one neural pathway and none to cause you to stray from your course.

The fundamental rule is this: Do it right every time you try and you will learn faster and perform better. The secret to perfect performance is not some predetermined natural gift, but a determination to practice it correctly. Consistent perfect practice results in consistent perfect performance.

Bull Riding Tips for Beginners

by Wendy Winn

Bull riding is a great sport. It is exciting, breathtaking, and extremely risky to the rider. Injury is very prevalent in this sport! Here are some tips that I would share with you as a mother if your boy would like to start.

1. First and foremost go to a school or clinic with a professional
2. Borrow some equipment until you really are committed
3. Make sure the equipment is safe and working
4. Find a place to practice on some good animals
5. Have a good time
6. As a mother you will be less nervous if you help prepare your children

My husband rode professionally for 8 years, and now both sons have taken an interest in bull riding. As a mother the most asked question is “are you scared”? The answer is no, I feel like my kids are prepared. They know how to get out if they are in trouble and they know how to land. Both Dixon and Shad can set their ropes if their dad is not there.

Bull riding is about hustle. You can’t over ride or you get bucked off. Bull Riding is jump for jump every time out of the chute. Other riders will tell you what to expect, but we feel like its better to just get on and make a ride.

Dixon is 16, and has been riding since he was 4. He is tall for a bull rider at 6’ 2”. He has to really hustle his legs and feet, because there is so much more gravitational pull for him. Naturally your chin should stay in the center of your face and perched down. Dixon uses his free arm for balance and to help him pull out of the well, if he gets there. The movement would project a reach with your arms and a pop or reach with your hips.

Shad is our 10 year old; he has been riding since he was 4 also. Shad is much smaller than Dixon and really can stay balanced. His free arm is always at our above eye level. Shad rides them naturally if he hustles his feet and is determined.

You have to be dedicated to be a bull rider and most of all there cannot be any fear! If you are scared stay in the rope pen! I can not stress that enough!

Good luck! Remember to come prepared and hustle!

Funnel Barrel Patterns 2

by Kendra Sagers

As I promised, here are some more of the funnel barrel patterns. Again, use these patterns to work your horses to train, fix problems, or just to exercise. Be careful not to work any pattern excessively. There are a lot of possibilities with these patterns so be sure to shake it up a bit.

As a refresher from the last article, you can use cones, tires, or barrels as markers for these patterns. To work the patterns at a trot or canter I suggest 80' between the widest markers, 60' between the middle markers, and 40' between the shortest markers. Each pattern is discussed below.

This is the funnel pattern I call Outside Left or Right. This means you can work it in either direction. This pattern can be worked at a walk, trot, or slow canter, as with all other patterns start slow and speed up gradually as your horse is able. You can also remember that it is often a good idea to turn the barrel at a gait slower than you entered the barrel. For example, if you are at a canter entering the barrel drop to a trot to turn the barrel and then pick the canter back up as you leave. This helps the horse rate naturally. Only work this pattern at speeds where YOU are completely in control and able to maintain your horse’s body shape. Also remember to keep your circles around the barrels smooth and even.

I call this pattern Now and Then. This pattern helps you to work your horse on his circles, both large and small. The benefit to this type of pattern is that the barrels are not turned in sequence. You decide when to turn and keep your horse guessing and waiting for your cue. When working this pattern I suggest you do so on either a trot or a canter or a combination of both. You will begin by working a large circle around the funnel pattern. While working this large circle you can either follow the number sequence that I have provided or you can turn the pattern at random. Remember to maintain control, shape, and distance in this and all patterns. This pattern can also be worked from either direction and either end.

I call this funnel pattern Round About. It works your horse in both directions. This pattern will help keep your horse listening to you while working on your turns. Follow the sequence of numbers for the pattern zig zagging and turning every other marker. You should enter on the large end of the pattern and work barrels 1, 2, and 3. Then you exit the markers at the speed you worked between markers and follow the outside edge of markers, 6, 2, and 4. Enter the pattern again by working markers 4, 5, and 6. You can work this as a continuous pattern several times. I recommend using this pattern at the walk or the trot. Once you and your horse are fluid on it you can work at a canter.

I call this pattern Big and Small. This pattern can help you to keep control of your horse and to keep him guessing and waiting for your cue. Begin working this pattern in a large circle on the outside of the pattern. As you work around the circle to marker #1 turn it, then as you leave complete a full circle to marker #2 and then turn it. Follow this sequence through the rest of the markers. Feel free to circle the marker more than once if you would like. Also, you can break to a slower gait to turn the marker. When working it be sure to maintain control, shape, and distance from the markers. Because of the distances of the circles I prefer to work this pattern at a tort or canter, but will often break to a walk around the marker. Make sure you are in control and allow your horse plenty of room.

These are a few more of the funnel patterns that I use to help train, condition, and fix problems in my barrel horses. Again, I like these patterns because I can set the pattern up once and use it for several different exercises. It helps keep my horses fresh and listening to me. Be careful, though, not to work any one pattern too much. If worked excessively these patterns can also sour a horse. If you like these funnel patterns I will show you more in a later blog.

Relaxing A Horse In The Rope Box

After roping, it is good to give your horse a reward and teach them that the rope box is a safe place to be. You can start by backing your horse into the box. Once he is where you want him to stand when you are ready to rope, drop your reins. This may take some time the first few times that you do it because most rope horses move forward in the box as soon as you drop your reins.

When you horse is standing still and being calm, start to take all of your roping gear off. Then step off your horse and loosen all of the cinches. This is the reward they are looking for.

Then take off the rest of your boots, tie downs, neck ropes or anything you could not take off while on the horse.

Here is an example of our routine.



Another thing we like to do in the rope box to make sure the horse is free in the box is to pick up all of their feet while they are in the corner. This stops horses from squatting in the box or freezing up.

Hopefully, some of these steps help you have a calmer horse in the box.

Funnel Pattern for Your Barrel Horse

Funnel Patterns to Keep Your Barrel Horse Loose and Supple

by Kendra Sagers

Training and riding barrel horses can sometimes be a challenge. Especially when we really don’t want to over work the barrel pattern, but may still feel like there is work to do with or around barrels. I have a number of exercises that I do to help me work my barrel horse, keep him supple, work on my turns and speed control, and still not over work the barrel pattern.

You can use cones, tires, or barrels as markers for these patterns. To work the patterns at a trot or canter I suggest 80' between the widest markers, 60' between the middle markers, and 40' between the shortest markers. Each pattern is discussed below.

This is the funnel pattern I call Left or Right Turn. Meaning that you can work it in either direction. This pattern can also be worked at a walk, trot, or slow canter. Just remember that you should always start slow and gradually speed up. Only work this pattern at speeds where YOU are completely in control and able to maintain your horse’s body shape. Also remember to keep your circles around the barrels smooth and even.

I call this pattern Figure Eights. This pattern helps you simulate working between two barrels. Remember to maintain control, shape, and distance in this and all patterns. I recommend working this pattern at a walk and a trot. If you and your horse are advanced you can work it at a canter, but remember to maintain shape, control, and speed. This pattern can also be worked from either direction and either end.

I call this funnel pattern Left then Right. It works your horse in both directions. This pattern will help keep your horse listening to you while working on your turns. I recommend using this pattern at the walk or the trot.

I call this pattern Zig Zag. This pattern can help you to keep control of your horse and to keep him guessing and waiting for your cue. When working it be sure to maintain control, shape, and distance from the markers. This pattern can be worked at a walk, tort, or canter. Make sure you are in control and allow your horse plenty of room.

Fixing Problems At The Gate

by Kendra Sagers

No matter what barrel race we attend there are always a hand full of horses that refuse to go in the gate. Some whirl circles, others rear, and still others run backwards faster than a lot of horse can run forward. We all dread these horses, many of us have had a problem gate horse, and all of us know that this behavior is neither fun nor safe. So, what do you do if you have a horse with a gate problem?

There is no simple solution, but first and most important I that you know your horse. When trying to find the cause and then the cure for a gate problem, there are several areas I like to cover and in order to come up with the right answers I have to know my horse. In my opinion, the reasons for gate problems can usually be lumped in to one or more of three categories.

• Training or Respect Problems
• Pain or Injury
• Conditioning

The first thing we need to ask is “Why am I having a gate problem?” In general, horses do not disobey just to be “bad”. There is almost always an underlying issue. Has your horse always had a gate problem? Or is this a new issue? The following is a short version of the process I go through to help identify the source of a problem.

Training and Respect Problems
Your horse must respect you. If you don’t have the respect of your horse, you can’t begin to fix any problems. When you are not entering a gate, do you always have control of you horse? If the answer is no, this is probably the best place to start. Horses get excited and nervous, this is normal, but if your horse is not listening to you when he is at home and you are working then you are asking for gate problems.

There are a few exercises I do to check for control.

Brake Check
No matter where I am or what speed I am going, when I want to stop my horse I need to be sure I can. To do a brake check, start at the walk and periodically ask your horse to stop. If from the time you say whoa and ask him to stop until the time he actually does is more than two or three steps, you need to work on your whoa. Gradually speed up this exercise until you are at a good paced lope. Even with speed, I expect a horse to stop within a few steps.

Give Me Now
Second, check to see how responsive your horse is to the bit. When you ask for his head either to the side or to give straight back, does he give willingly? If you ask and he quickly gives at the pole and follows the bit, then you are probably ok. If you have to use a great deal of force to get a little reaction, your horse is not listening and you need to spend some time softening your horse.

Move There Now
When you ask your horse (no matter what speed) to move whether it is forward, backward, or to the side; does he do so quickly? If the answer is yes, you are probably ok on this exercise. If he takes time to move then you have some work to do. This is a good indicator of both respect and training level. If you can not get your horse to move off of your legs and other cues at home, it makes perfect sense that he would not want to do so under stress conditions.

I suggest you check these skills as one of the first steps in identifying a gate problem.

Pain or Injury
Pain and or injury can also be a major reason a horse does not want to go in to a gate. Think about it, if you knew you were going to do something that was going to really hurt you would you be really eager to go and do it? Likely not, and your horse is no different.

Make the Gate A Happy Place
Also, it is so important to make the gate a happy place. I suggest you haul your horses to a lot of practices before actually running especially if you get nervous or the horse is new to the sport. Spend a lot of time going in and out of the gate with no pressure at all.

When you are done practicing or competing walk the horse back to the gate. Dismount at the gate. Loosen their cinch and take off their boots. This will make them look forward to going to the gate.