Lesson 7 Game # 6 – The Sideways Game
Game #6 – The Sideways Game
Purpose:
Sideways is a movement not readily used by a horse. It is natural to him but not as important in survival as forward. Teaching your horse to become more athletic in moving sideways increases his range of manoeuvres: prepares for leads and lead changes, especially flying lead changes because these are a lateral movement; and sideways also prepares for moves such as turns, spins, pirouettes, half passes and cow-working and cutting. Sideways adds suspension to your horse’s movement.
The better your horse goes backwards and sideways… the better he’ll do everything else.
Sideways is important to get good at. Pat has a saying which goes, “the better your horse goes backwards and sideways… the better he’ll do everything else”. You might understand it even more fundamentally if you think of it this way too… the worse your horse goes backwards and sideways, the worse he does everything else!
The worse your horse goes backwards and sideways, the worse he does everything else!
In this lesson we are going to teach the horse to move sideways. Because his natural tendency will be to go forward, do this next to a fence to block that option. Your driving game with zone 1 and zone 4 need to be well understood so let’s start with this as a revision.
In Level 1. use a fence to help your horse not go forwards when first learning sideways. The Driving Game in zone 1 and zone 4 are important.
The short range Sideways Game
Hold you lead rope loosely about three feet from the snap. Using you Carrot Stick drive your horse zone 1 in a complete circle, then his zone 4 in a couple circle by tapping the ground.
Now ask zone by zone: drive zone 1 a couple of steps, then zone 4 a couple of steps, 1 then 4, 1 then 4, and so on. This is how you build sideways by moving each end of the horse.
Another method is to give your horse about 4 feet of rope and start walking slowly and deliberately toward zone 3 tapping the stick on the ground like a blind man. As the horse moves away sideways allow the rope to slide out full 12 feet while you keep moving forward at the same pace. To stop, relax, slow to a halt and allow the horse to find the same relaxation. Do not pull the horse to you to stop.
The Long range Sideways Game
Once your horse understands both of these quite well, you can try this next one:
- keep close to the fence, so you could touch it with your elbow
- hold the lead rope half way with the hand that is closest to the fence ( the lead rope therefore come across the front of you body at first.
- hold you carrot stick and string in the hand furthest aways from the fence
- start flapping the Carrot stick and string behind you with rhythm. This will send the horse out and around you until he comes to the fence. At this point allow the rope to slide to it full length and keep the rhythm going with the carrot stick. After several feet, slow down to a stop and smile, then rub your horse with the carrot stick.
If you have prepared well, this will come pretty naturally, but of course there may be a few spots to troubleshoot!
Troubleshooting
Your horse runs backwards (at the short range game)
This is fear and confusion. Play plenty of friendly game, get the driving game much better until the horse no longer feels threatened. Do a lot of it, repeat until the horse’s eye gets more relaxed, softens and he will blow a sigh and lick his lips when you quit.
If your horse tries to back up, just drift with him. Don’t allow him to put you out of position. Remember that horses are great at moving you out of the zone you want to be in so stay conscious of staying there smoothly.
The worst thing you could do is stop and pull on the lead rope. Move your feet, change your position to stay in position. Then be passively persistent in the proper position until your horse makes one move in the right diredtion. Quit and play the friendly game, then start again.
If the horse runs backwards away from you, check your Friendly Game with the Carrot Stick and String.
Your horse runs backwards (at the long range game)
Again its a fear and confusion thing. Rather than move away from the fence with the horse, in the long range game you need to stay by the fence and trying to move your feet forward. In other words, don’t allow you horse to change your focus.
Keep those feet moving even if they can’t go forward, keep the court stick rhythm, be passively persistent until the horse makes it.
If he absolutely will not come forward and around you. Check the Yo-Yo Game and the Circling Game for glitches. He’s using these against you. Going back to the short range game is also a help to get your horse more left brained, coordinated and understanding he concept of sideways.
In the long range game, hold your position by the fence, do not allow the horse to bring you away from the fence!
Revise Game #4 and Game #5 if you have problems with Game #6. This is the logic of the 7 Games System.
Your horse is going sideways but drags his hindquarters so he’s moving more forward.
At first, don’t worry too much. In fact if the horse really has trouble with sideways it helps him to go a little more forward than completely sideways it helps him to go a little more forward than completely sideways. Accept it at first and them move on from there.
To get zone 4 moving more, keep your lead rope hand outstretched (do not pull his nose back to you, this is not the problem!), give him plenty of rope and flap your carrot stick and string rhythmically directly at zone 4. If zone 4 is not moving the string will touch him right there (you dont need to whip at all).
Get very particular about this zone, have you eyes zeroed in on it. Pretty soon thats all it will take… a Schwiegermetter look at zone 4 and its gone!
Practice until you can teach your horse to travel equally sideways with shoulders and hindquarters.
Your horse tries to kick at you when you stimulate zone 4
This can happen sometimes. Its called opposition reflex and he’s trying to stop you from moving that zone. He’s trying to dominate you back or its a self defensive reaction.
Keep calm, dont get tense and especially dont get aggressive or this will be interpreted as predatory behaviour by your horse. Be passively persistent in the proper position! Stay at the full 12 ft. length of the rope, dont get in close. Keep your rhythm going with the carrot stick and string even while he’s bucking or kicking. The instant he moves, smile and stop the stimulation. It won’t take long, you just have to out-persisit the behaviour.
If you are working without the carrot stick and replacing its action with a swinging end, rather than walk in closer, let the rope slip to the end and throw and “wave” down the rope that will slap his zone 4 with the middle of the rope. Whatever you do, dont step in close and swing at this quarters you’ll be right in the wrong sport for your safety! Doing it with the “wave” keeps you well out of range.
If he turns towards you with zone1, keep walking, travel down the rope and gather it as you go you can regroup and swing toward his zone 1 to send him off sideways again.
When a horse tries to kick you he is either defending himself because he feels threatened, or he is playing dominance games back! Don’t punish him. Stay in a good place, out of range! Be passively persistent in the proper position and out-persist the behaviour. The carrot Stick is a important tool as an extension of your arm.
Success Tips:
- In the long range form of the Sideways Game, hold the end of the Lead rope so you are 12′ away from your horse. If you are too close the horse can feel crowded and have problems moving sideways. He could be more inclined to go backwards. Holding the end lets him feel like there is room for him to go somewhere.
- Offer the lead rope forward with a straight elbow and keep it straight. You’ll probably find yourself pulling back on the rope if he starts to travel more forward instead of sideways. Don’t do this! Leave his head alone and keep your elbow straight.
- All the while, keep walking forward at a steady pace. No matter what your horse does, you keep going and let him find his way back into place. It is a common mistake to stop if your horse stops. Let him run into the pressure you as on-coming traffic! In this way he’ll get to understand that it is his job to move away.
- Learn to turn your ‘chi” (energy) on and off. Straighten up and push energy out form your belly button as you walk toward the horse. Then switch it off, relax your posture, smile and your horse should feel the change and shut down. See if you can start and stop him and keep him in the sideways position.
Hold the end of the rope in the long range game. it gives the horse the feeling that there’s room to move.
Keep a straight elbow as you offer the rope. Hold, don’t pull.
Keep walking at a steady pace, dont go faster if the horse goes faster, be more dependable than that.
Learn to use “chi” (energy from within)
Check the quality of your Sideways Game
Can you move your horse easily sideways? Does he go by your walking rhythmically and “pushing” your energy toward him, or do you have to continually chase his chase his “ends” to get a result? Look for how straight he travels sideways. If his quarters are lagging or his head is bent toward you he is not really yielding sideways. Are both sides equal? The right is often more difficult. Use a fence or rail to prevent forwards motion in Level 1. In Level 2 you will learn how to move your horse sideways without a fence.
Learn to be particular without being critical and you’ll earn more respect from your horse as well as get a better result in everything you do.
Keep improving the quality of your Sideways Game and make sure both directions are equally good.
Pitfalls:
- Holding the rope too short and close to the horse so you restrict his movement.
- Drifting away from the fence. Learn to keep yourself on a focused line so the horse finds his position in relation to you, you aren’t working in relation to him.
- Pulling back on his head when you really might need to chase the horse’s zone 4
- Not setting an even pace as you walk.
Unconscious restriction of the horse’s movement (not allowing enough drift). losing your position and not setting an even pace are the things that make sideways difficult for the horse!
