Barrel Racing Drill: All in a Row

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The goal of this drill is to practice consistent & correct body position of your horse in turns and on a straight away. 

I hate when a horse dives their shoulder into a barrel, swings their hind end out, or stiffens up when approaching the pocket. This drill is a great way to work out those kinks.  

This drill really stretches your horse to think quickly and transition between a turn, a straight away, then back to a turn in just a few strides. This is not ideal for a very young or high strung horse because they will get frustrated quickly and unravel. I recommend spacing out the barrels a lot more than is depicted in this video when starting out then working your way up to a tighter pattern.  

A horse will definitely get winded doing this drill so I further suggest only doing it in short intervals to avoid burn out. Also, keeping your hand steady throughout the drill and not bouncing or having dramatic shifts between direction and tension is critical for helping your horse relax into this drill and build their confidence. 

I try to retrace my tracks on the straight-aways for this drill, following a straight line with intermediate turns in between. If you were to take an areal shot of the dirt after performing this patter correctly, it would look as if you traced one long oval around the length of this pattern. 

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