Ridden

ALEX: Without doing your specific competition, if you weren’t going to be jumping fences or roping, to take them into an arena and ride them for a good 30 minutes. I think, with your horse, RJ, Mary, or some of the other roping horses, you would just go to the arena and ride for 30 minutes, do a trot, a lope, or a canter, just to keep that activity level up.

Is that what you usually do?

STEVE: Yeah. What we normally do is we saddle up and we’ll go out and long trot after we’ve walked for maybe 15 or 20 minutes. Then we’ll go to long trot for another 10. Lope both directions, and then maybe even take them for a trail ride. You got to let them relax and cool down. Just to keep their minds mentally stimulated but not too beared down so they don’t get a little sour on the rope; it just keeps them fresh, keeps them happy. Then we’ll kick them out sometimes on the fields during the day, before we ride. Just something, varied routine, but also to keep them fit, as well.

ALEX: I think that’s the other part of it is with any kind of horse, there’s a fitness level you have to achieve, but there is also that mental level that you have to keep. You want to keep your horse fresh and happy, but you also don’t want to work them too hard where they get sour and they don’t want to do their job.