gaits (especially horses)
Gait (as in what gait is that?) means the movement of the horse's legs and body.
Gaited (as in my horse is gaited) means a specific kind of movement in certain breeds of horse, very smooth and easy to sit.
Walk: four beats; left rear... left fore...right rear...right fore
Trot: two beats; left rear and right fore together... right rear and left fore together
Pace: two beats; both left legs together...both right legs together (fast but can be really rough to ride!)
Canter: three beats; left rear... right rear and left fore... right fore (right lead, when turning to the right)
or; right rear... left rear and right fore... left fore (left lead, when turning to the left)
Gallop: four beats (an extended canter)
left rear... right rear, left fore (not quite together)... right fore (right lead)
right rear... left rear, right fore (not quite together)...left fore (left lead)
Gaited horses such as Tennesee Walkers, Rocky Mountain Horses, Kentucky Mountain Horses, Saddlebreds, Paso Finos, Peruvian Pasos, Icelandic Ponies, and others do a 4-beat gait which is somewhere between a walk and a trot/pace... that's a whole'nother book. (Youtube! Look up those breeds, or just "gaited horses"). Some can "fly" at this gait as fast as a horse cantering.
Gaited (as in my horse is gaited) means a specific kind of movement in certain breeds of horse, very smooth and easy to sit.
Walk: four beats; left rear... left fore...right rear...right fore
Trot: two beats; left rear and right fore together... right rear and left fore together
Pace: two beats; both left legs together...both right legs together (fast but can be really rough to ride!)
Canter: three beats; left rear... right rear and left fore... right fore (right lead, when turning to the right)
or; right rear... left rear and right fore... left fore (left lead, when turning to the left)
Gallop: four beats (an extended canter)
left rear... right rear, left fore (not quite together)... right fore (right lead)
right rear... left rear, right fore (not quite together)...left fore (left lead)
Gaited horses such as Tennesee Walkers, Rocky Mountain Horses, Kentucky Mountain Horses, Saddlebreds, Paso Finos, Peruvian Pasos, Icelandic Ponies, and others do a 4-beat gait which is somewhere between a walk and a trot/pace... that's a whole'nother book. (Youtube! Look up those breeds, or just "gaited horses"). Some can "fly" at this gait as fast as a horse cantering.
trot
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Above: horse trotting. Note how diagonal pairs of legs move together. Moment of suspension (left) as left fore and right rear come forward, another moment of suspension occurs later as the other pair comes forward.
below: horse pacing; both legs on one side move forward together
seen in harness racing horses like Standarbreds, really rough to ride... modified versions result in the gaited horses' smooth ride!
seen in harness racing horses like Standarbreds, really rough to ride... modified versions result in the gaited horses' smooth ride!
pace
Below: Svaha (Arabian/Mustang mare) demonstrates a trot. it is a symmetrical gait and looks the same no matter what direction the horse is going, or which side you are looking at. A rider posting (rising trot) will rise with the outside foreleg moving forward, and sit when it hits the ground.
Outside = the outside of a turn or circle.
Read this in sequence from bottom right to top left.1
Outside = the outside of a turn or circle.
Read this in sequence from bottom right to top left.1
canter, lope, gallop
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Horse cantering on right lead:
1. left rear on the ground...
2. diagonal pair on the ground...
3. right fore on the ground...
4. note the moment of suspension as all four legs come off the ground.
Lope is the word used in American western style riding (think cowboy). The canter is a slow and easy version of the horse's natural gallop. Most horses must be trained to canter in a slow, comfortable and collected manner.
Below: Svaha demonstrates a canter on the right lead. One stride.
This is a right lead, she is circling to the right. The leading leg is the last foreleg to hit the ground. The stride begins with a rear leg (in this case left rear or LR)... followed by the diagonal pair of RR/LF... and last, the RF. You can see how far she's going in this one stride: the tree in front of her "passes her", ending up just behind the saddle.
Reverse or mirror image this for the left lead (RR... LR/RF... LF)
In the gallop, the diagonal pair breaks up into two beats so the whole stride looks like: RR... LR... RF... LF.
Read this in sequence from top left to bottom right.
1. left rear on the ground...
2. diagonal pair on the ground...
3. right fore on the ground...
4. note the moment of suspension as all four legs come off the ground.
Lope is the word used in American western style riding (think cowboy). The canter is a slow and easy version of the horse's natural gallop. Most horses must be trained to canter in a slow, comfortable and collected manner.
Below: Svaha demonstrates a canter on the right lead. One stride.
This is a right lead, she is circling to the right. The leading leg is the last foreleg to hit the ground. The stride begins with a rear leg (in this case left rear or LR)... followed by the diagonal pair of RR/LF... and last, the RF. You can see how far she's going in this one stride: the tree in front of her "passes her", ending up just behind the saddle.
Reverse or mirror image this for the left lead (RR... LR/RF... LF)
In the gallop, the diagonal pair breaks up into two beats so the whole stride looks like: RR... LR... RF... LF.
Read this in sequence from top left to bottom right.
