In this video, we introduce the key players who made these videos possible, as well as our qualifications and intent for this video series.
In this video, we introduce the basic, online ground skills you'll want to have in place before venturing onto the Mountain Trail Course. If your equine doesn't have these basic skills and you don't know how to teach them, then we recommend taking a clinic with one of our clinicians and learning how.
Can you enter the area, get off your horse, hobble, or ground tie, and have it stay there? On the trail, I always carry hobbles. Hobbled equines, happily grazing on lunch or grazing breaks is a wonderful thing. There's something in it for them that's way better than standing tied to a tree, but frees you from having to hold onto your horse the entire time.
**DO NOT use this area to hobble train your equine**
Myself, I tend to use a round pen, keep them online and stay with them to support them through the initial confusion. They get the hang of it pretty quickly. It tends to be harder on an owner experiencing it for the first time, than it is on the horse.
How confident & capable is your horse navigating deadfall and boulder fields? Will they follow you through? Can they be directed through? Are they confident and sure-footed, or spooky and clumsy? Find out how they'll respond here, where it doesn't matter, so you can be confident and capable when you encounter a trail situation where it does matter.
Let's increase the size of the trail debris. How handy and confident is your equine when it comes to navigating fallen logs? Can they follow you through? Can you direct them from a distance, if necessary? Do they lift their feet, or are they clumsy stumblers? If ol' Dobbin can't handle fallen logs, then that's really going to limit your trail riding adventures.
So far, we've covered debris on the ground: deadfall, boulders and logs, but how about when it gets thick and we've got to bushwhack? Sure, we all appreciate lovely, clear trails, but this is about preparing our horses for wild mountain trails, not some domesticated rail trail excursion. There are going to be places where our trusty steed will have to be brave and push through branches, willows or scrub spruce? The cowboy curtain simulates this.
It doesn't seem like a big deal to us, but to a naturally claustrophobic horse, it is. In the wild, narrow, tight, confining spaces are potential traps. Anyone ever had a tough time loading their horse into a trailer? You know what I'm talking about. The ditch is a great place to discover how claustrophobic your equine is and help build their confidence, bravery and trust.
If your equine has trouble backing into the regular ditch, the Back-In Ditch is the place to fix it up. Still gradual, but a little wider, so less claustrophobic; it helps build their confidence in tight places. If they're not able to back all the way in, no biggie, just back them in a bit and build from there. Small increments will help build confidence, whereas insisting on immediate mastery will create problems.
This is one of my favourite obstacles on the entire Course. Sure, the small dropoff is great for getting your equine comfortable jumping up on stuff, or dropping down, but the whole area around it is fantastic for creative lunging. Circling your horse/mule, online, and incorporating the terrain changes is WAY better than lunging mindless circles in an arena, or round pen. It really gets them thinking about where they place their feet, developing surefootedness and physical conditioning. Can they handle the terrain changes at varying gaits and changes of direction, all while staying confident and connected?
I've gotta admit this is one obstacle I'd kind of neglected, especially online. Then one day I tried it with one of my equines and discovered it's not so easy. Since then I've been more diligent. Sometimes, we might get ourselves into a situation on the trail where we can't go forward any more and we've got to back out. If all we've done is practice going forward, we could find ourselves in a bit of a pickle. Practice backing and getting control of the feet here, where it doesn't matter, so you can be confident and capable when you encounter a trail situation where it does.
Backing into their blind spot, like we did on the Ground Back-Through, is one thing; add in the confinement of raised rails on the sides and it's quite another. Horses are naturally claustrophobic and somewhat skeptical, some more than others, so this can be quite challenging. I'm sure we've all heard of a horse that was difficult to trailer load. Yeah, well now try doing it backwards! Then try making that little turn in the middle and you can see how this one might be especially problematic.
Sometimes, we might get ourselves into a situation on the trail where we can't go forward any more and we've got to back out. If all we've done is practice going forward, we could find ourselves in a bit of a pickle.
If you're gonna ride trails, you're probably going to have to cross a bridge at some point. For me, it all starts here on the small arc bridge. I've trained several horses and mules on the Mountain Trail Course and this is one of the first obstacles I use. It can take a long time before they understand the concept and work up the confidence to cross it, but if you take the time on this one, many others are super-easy. I consider this simple little bridge to be a gateway obstacle.
If you're gonna ride trails, you're probably going to have to cross a bridge at some point. After your equine gets the hang of things on the Small Arc Bridge, it's time to move to the Wobble Bridge for a slightly different, less stable, "feel" under foot. It's typically not a big deal, but you never know.
If you're gonna ride trails, you're probably going to have to cross a bridge at some point. After your equine gets the hang of things on the Small Arc Bridge and Wobble Bridge, it's time to up your game with a move to the Teeter-Totter. How will Ol' Dobbin react when the whole thing suddenly shifts under his feet?! Well, you'd be surprised, it's typically not as big a deal as many think.
Many variations to play with on this obstacle: start at the low end, start at the high end, stand in the middle and balance both ends - all great ways to engage with your equine.
With the three basic bridge obstacles under our belt: small arc, wobble and teeter-totter, it's time to check out the real thing. By now, if you've prepared your equine properly, neither the wide, or narrow, bridge will pose any trouble.
How good is your equine's nose for the trail? Can they focus and stay on a narrow singletrack? The boxes & beams obstacle will give you the answer very quickly. Start on the box section and see if they can stay on the "trail" through to the end of the beam portion. Seems easy enough, but this is one of the most challenging obstacles on the MTC. There are more than a few, well-trained arena ponies that have a really tough time with this obstacle. Fortunately, Miss Cookie is here to show you how it's done.
How good is your equine's nose for the trail? Can they focus and stay on a narrow singletrack? Once you've got things going reasonably well on the Boxes and Beams obstacle it's time to take off the training wheels and tackle the Narrow Beam. Do you have sufficient communication and control of the feet to have them follow you across, or be directed on their own? Find out how they'll respond here where it doesn't matter, so you can be confident and capable when you encounter a trail situation where it does.
We all know Life has it's ups & downs; well, so does the trail. The Large Step-Over obstacle is perfect for teaching your equine how to handle the ascents and descents of the trail without rushing on the way up, or the way down. Find out how they'll respond here where it doesn't matter, so you can be confident and capable when you encounter a trail situation where it does.
Once your developing SuperPony has the hang of going up and down the Large Step-Over, it's time to increase the challenge by moving to the Step-Up Tires. This obstacle is perfect for teaching your equine to really pay attention to where it's placing it's feet and focus on the trail. Some horses can really have a tough time with the narrow spots where the tires meet. The rounded corners also makes turning them around on the highest tier a little trickier.
When it comes to working gates, some equines are concerned about standing calmly beside the gate, some get concerned with the movement of the gate, others are claustrophobic going through and many have a challenging time getting back into position when it's time to close the gate. If you've got all the foundational online pieces in place, there is no reason not to practice all the gate work bits & pieces from the ground. Then, when you actually do try it from the saddle, they understand the components and the movement flow, making it much less of a transitional leap.
Start with the rope gate and once you've got the flow mastered on it, then move to the wooden gate. After that, go give the big gate at the SW corner of the Grounds a try.
Time to move on to the central piece of the Mountain Trail Couse. The Large Pond is the perfect obstacle to introduce your equine to water crossings and like it or not, at some point in his trail riding career, Ol' Dobbin is probably gonna have to cross water of some sort.
The Large Pond has several entry points with a variety of approaches, from gradual to small drop offs. Remember, it's not about the obstacle, you're not going for the whole thing all at once. Start small, reward the curiosity and Try, if he's unsure. Build on the confidence, bravery and incremental progress. Sometimes having a confident water-crossing buddy horse can be a useful game-changer. This is a fantastic obstacle with all sorts of variations. Spend some time here, it'll be worth it!
Once things are going smoothly with the Large Pond, it's time to check out the small one. Yes, I know, it's counter-intuitive; you'd think the small one would be easier than than the big one, but that hasn't been my experience, whether it be the Mountain Trail Course or on an actual trail. For some reason, smaller crossings, like puddles, can be bigger challenges than larger water.
At the Small Pond, it's easier for them to avoid going through the water, so you're refining your communication and being more specific about where you want them to go. This is important preparation for the next obstacle, the dreaded Squish Box!
Time for the scariest obstacle on the entire course - the dreaded Squish Box. Just a shallow pond with a sheet of plywood with holes cut in it, floating in the water. When the horse/mule steps on the sheet of plywood, it moves, sinks and water shoots up through the holes. Scary stuff!
Super important to not make it about the obstacle; focus on the relationship, confidence and progress. Build slowly, reward the curiosity and "Try". If you've ever had a horse with a trailer-loading issue, the Squish Box can be just as challenging. Once they get it and realize they're not gonna die, they seem to enjoy it. A real confidence booster.
I tend to lump several of the obstacles on the north side of the Mountain Trail Course together and treat it as one mini trail ride playground. These include: small & large Jacob's Ladder, Trail Traverse and Mountain Trails sections. It's a great place to practice going uphill, downhill, traversing and navigating basic, off-piste, rugged sections.
Prepare them here, where it doesn't matter, so you can be confident and capable when you encounter a trail situation where it does.
Sometimes, you encounter spots on the trail where you've got to jump up onto something, or drop down off of something. The Large Jump Up/Down is the perfect obstacle to practice that skill on. Surrounding terrain doesn't lend itself to doing much else, like it does with the Small Jump Up/Down, but I think that's a good thing. Focus is entirely on jumping up, or dropping down. I've never encountered an equine that had difficulty on this obstacle online. It's still a good one to practice, and have them comfortable with, before attempting under saddle.
Real bog is a soupy, sloppy, muddy, nasty, unpleasant, potentially dangerous mess ranging from knee deep to seemingly bottomless. The MTC Bog Pit is only 6" deep and needs water added to get as soupy a consistency as possible, otherwise it's only a barely noticeable change in footing. Still, it's a good place to get a taste of how your equine will respond to such terrain.
Strategies for mastering this obstacle are identical to the Small Arc Bridge, Small Pond and Squish Box. It's not about the obstacle. Reward the Try, establishing confidence and bravery, slowly building on that to achieve Bog Pit mastery.
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