Krowchuk Dressage
  • Email
  • RSS
  • Home
  • About
  • Lessons
    • Horseback Riding Lessons
    • Dressage Riding Lessons at your farm
  • Training
  • Showing
  • Clinics
  • Articles
    • Training Techniques
    • Warming Up – Part 1, At the Walk.
      • Warming Up at the Walk, Riding 10 meter Circles
      • Warming Up at the Walk, Riding Shallow Loops on the Center Line
      • Warming Up at the Walk, Riding Shallow Loops Down the Long Side
      • Warming Up at the Walk, Riding 4 Loops Down the Center Line
      • Warming Up at the Walk, Riding 2 Loops Down the Long Side
      • Warming Up at the Walk, Leg Yield Right to Half Pass Right
      • Warming Up at the Walk, Leg Yield Left to Half Pass Left
      • Warming Up at the Walk, Leg Yield In, Half Pass Back
    • Warming Up – Part 2, at the Trot.
      • Warming Up at the Trot, Riding 10 meter Circles
      • Warming Up at the Trot, Shallow Loops on the Center Line
      • Warming Up at the Trot, Shallow Loops down the Long Side
      • Warming Up at the Trot, Ride 4 Shallow Loops Up the Center Line
      • Warming Up at the Trot, Ride 2 Shallow Loops down the Long Side
      • Warming Up at the Trot, Leg Yield Right to Half Pass Right
      • Warming Up at the Trot, Leg Yield Left to Half Pass Left
      • Warming Up at the Trot, Leg Yield In, Half Pass Back
    • Warming Up – Part 3, at the Trot.
      • Warming Up – Trot Canter Trot Transitions
      • Warming Up, Riding the 10 meter Canter Circle
    • How to ride a perfect circle
    • Counter pattern, change of rein into the corner.
    • Developing the Canter through Counter Canter.
      • The Simple Counter Canter Loop
      • Counter Canter Loop in a Counter Pattern
      • Developing the 20 meter Counter Canter Demi Circle
      • Developing the 20 meter Counter Canter 3/4 Circle
      • The 20 meter Counter Canter Circle
  • Books
  • Videos
  • News
  • Contact
Search the site...
  • Home
  • Dressage Training Articles
  • Developing the Canter through Counter Canter.
  • Counter Canter Loop in a Counter Pattern

Counter Canter Loop in a Counter Pattern

Modified counter canter loop in a counter pattern.

In order to improve your horse athletically, we must always ask our horse to perform at a higher level, without going past his limits physically, mentally or emotionally. For to do so would only result in pain, fear, loss of trust, and perhaps most importantly, loss of confidence in himself, the rider, and the work. With this in mind, since our ends goal is a 20m circle at the counter canter that is relaxed, rhythmic, balanced and cadenced, somehow we need to go from a simple loop to that 20m circle in stages.

A modified counter canter loop exercise

Assuming that you were able to ride the counter canter simple loop counter pattern, the next step is to add a few more counter canter strides to the pattern. Prepare by riding a counter canter simple loop in counter pattern on the right lead to refresh both horse and rider. Now, when it is good, and it should only take one or maybe two loops to feel “good”. If it takes more than two or three, then you are not ready to move on yet! from the simple loop ride across the short side at C and make a 10m circle in the corner by M. Now ride straight across the quarter school in counter canter from the 1/4 line to the 3/4 line and continue your counter canter to E and then back into the corner by K (as you did the simple loop earlier) as illustrated.

At first it may not feel wonderful but that is okay. Remember how the simple loop felt at first? You can always ride the simple loop after this “modified” loop to refresh your horse, and you, on how easy that is. Soon enough, this will become “easy” as well.

Try it on the other rein.

Once you have this modified counter counter canter loop nicely balanced, as before, it is time to up the difficulty a little.

Read More Pages in this Dressage Training Article.

  • The Simple Counter Canter Loop
  • Developing the 20 meter Counter Canter Demi Circle
  • Developing the 20 meter Counter Canter 3/4 Circle
  • The 20 meter Counter Canter Circle

Random Memories

Random Memories
(c) 2005 - 2017 Krowchuk Dressage and Chris Krowchuk - All rights reserved.