What exactly is Barrel Horse Racing and Common Problems Experienced
Originally a sports activity developed by rodeos for their wives and girlfriends, barrel horse racing has become a sport event where everybody can join.
Barrel horse racing has been in existence for quite a while now. This is basically a game event that aims to showcase speed.
The race is pretty simple to watch. It is played upon an arena with three barrels arranged in an isosceles triangle pattern where the goal of the racer is to gain the quickest speed by circling the three barrels within a cloverleaf pattern. While there may be standards regarding the distance of each barrel, governing bodies normally have various preferences on how far each barrel needs to be set from one another free horse.
The general distance is 90 feet from each barrel. However, some may use 60 feet up to 100 plus feet. The setting is applicable to all competitors.
The action begins as soon as the racer enters the arena towards the first barrel. For this, the rider must enter at a slight angle since its much simpler for that racer if he would not come straight onto it. A whole turn must be accomplished on the first barrel before moving towards the second one.
A second turn, but this time an opposite one, will need to be made around the second barrel. And again, the rider will need to race towards the third barrel. The third barrel then will need to be circled around in the same direction as the second one. After a complete loop, the rider will have to accelerate to the starting line, which is also considered as the finish line.
Like a number of other horse racing events, horse barrel racing does have its common problems too. We will enable you to distinguish many of the most common problems and would try to advise a couple of things to find a solution on it. Please keep reading.
The 1st barrel is generally termed to as being the “money barrel”. This may cause by far the most difficult turn since the horse has to approach it at full speed. Remember that the primary purpose of this game is to take it as quickly as you can. This is also probably the most tricky barrel because if you knock it off, you are sure to be out from the game right away and if you passed over it, you will have the chance to take a little cash with you.
The challenge though comes with the horse that normally passes over this barrel on account of not enough rate. Because the horse is charging at top speed, it has the tendency to become too aggressive. Thus, they will often either knock the 1st barrel off or they may pass over it. This issue is usually resolved through conditioning your horse to do the turn perfectly.
Some horses generally have problems entering the arena. In this case, the horse is referred to as “barrel sour” or “ring sour”. This is recognized to have rooted from running too much in the arena or during practice. Sometimes it is resolved through taking some time off the track and giving your horse a break in the barrel routines. One ideal method of accomplishing this is usually to do trail riding virtual horse.
Some horses are apt to have no breaks at all. In such a case, you mustn’t allow your horse to run unless control is gained upon it. Fix for your problem can start with running at slower gaits until progress is achieved. Run your horse on barrels only when you happen to be confident enough of its speed as well as its capability to halt.