Level Out

Does your barrel horse ‘rise up’ with too much animation? Try our expert’s solution.

Many horses move with their head up and back hollow, causing an upand-down motion that makes them look like they’re “climbing” instead of travelling forward. This undesirable trait can be caused by poor conformation or the horse not knowing how to use his body.

Through exercises that create willing, freely forward motion that raises the back, lowers the neck, and softens the horse’s chin, you can improve a horse’s forward motion and “level him out.” This is especially helpful with barrel horses, as demonstrated here, because with proper movement, your horse can turn a barrel smoother, which impacts your overall time.

IDENTIFY THE ISSUE

Watching a horse in the warm-up pen or when he’s on pattern, it’s fairly easy for me to identify a horse that could move better and make a faster run. You might be so used to how your horse feels, you might not understand your horse isn’t moving effectively and is using too much energy the wrong way.

A “climber” that needs to level out carries his head too high and moves up with his front end instead of forward. When he goes to turn a barrel, his head is up, his back hollows out, and he has a short-strided turn instead of using his hind leg to drive underneath and get around the barrel. There are two factors

TOP: To correctly level out your horse, first engage his face and hind end, which results in him raising his back. As he gets comfortable, his neck will lower but his shoulders and back will stay raised, creating smoother strides.

BOTTOM PHOTO: With a pushy horse, or one that refuses to move forward in a straight line with his face engaged, try the exercise with a bend. Still gather your horse’s face, but do not over-bridle, and work on moving forward.