Trade Secrets

PRIMO MORALES

One of the most-often seen older bridle horses Paul shows is LenaLilToTheWright (Lenas Wright On x Shining Survivor x Shining Spark). Keeping him mentally sharp while competing regularly is a challenge.

PRIMO MORALES

In 2021, Paul captured the Stallion Stakes Intermediate Open Bridle Spectacular.

the D and then break down to a walk once I hit the end of the line [instead of turning to circle],” he explained.

In fact, Paul says he rarely ever rides a perfect circle at home.

“When I lope my small slows at home, I almost always lope a square,” he said. “It gives me four opportunities to steer and drop my hand. Every time I drop my hand, that horse should stay at the same speed and wait for me to tell it what to do next. It starts to remove the tendency wanting to make decisions on its own.”

He says doing this exercise improves other maneuvers as well, such as turning for the rundown and speed control when rating.

“Essentially, I’m making sure they’re sacked out about the center of the arena,” he said. “I want to be able to move around and ‘make mistakes,’ without changing leads or direction.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF PAID WARMUPS

Any chance he has, Paul says he rides his experienced horses in paid warmups. This sets the scene for what a “real” class feels and looks like without high pressure or expectations.

“When you show, it’s like making a withdrawal at the bank. If you don’t make deposits, pretty soon you’re not going to have anything to withdrawal. Those smart horses who are really busy and think a lot, you may have to school them three or four runs and get one good run out of them.

“The NRCHA shows are having more paid warmups, which is awesome,” he continued. “The show might have an American Quarter Horse Association Senior class, and I’ll enter that class because it’s a little cheaper and I know I’m just going to use it as a schooling run.”

Paul points out some courteous gestures a rider can do during a paid warmup or if a rider must throw a class to school a horse.

“I want to be respectful of the judge watching, and rather than taking up a lot of time, especially if there are 50 riders who are going to school their horses, I’ll shorten my pattern,” Paul said. “For example, sticking with lead change anticipation, if the pattern calls for two big fast circles, I’ll just do one, to shorten it down. I don’t need to waste time doing two. I’ll slow down on a straight line, then walk up to the fence and start my next circle.”

He admits some seasoned horses may need several schooling opportunities to break developed habits.

“If the horse is good enough, and you can get a good win out of it, it’s worth it to school as much as you can.”

ESTABLISH WARMUPAND COOLDOWN ROUTINES

Come show day, Paul lopes D-shaped circles to warm up his seasoned horses. He rarely—if ever—asks his experienced horses for a lead change the day of competition. He uses the moments before he enters the pen to get the horses in a good headspace.

“I do a lot of real first-grade stuff, like walk around and neck rein, to chill the horse out,” he said. “I’ll also use that direct rein until he’s walking nice around my foot. If I’m squeezing with my inside foot a hair and steer, I want that horse to curl its neck around like it’s walking around a bush or a barrel. I’ll do that every day when I’m home warming up and trotting circles.”

After the class, Paul does not head back to the stalls to unsaddle.

Adding events like roping allows a horse another job and also comes in handy in special events such as the World’s Greatest Horseman, as shown here.

“I like to come out and lope quietly, or I’ll go walk for half an hour and visit with my friends instead of taking them back to the barn,” he explained. “I think it helps separate the show pen from pressure.”

RIDE ON THE OFFENSE

Paul points out that non-pros who practice these exercises not only help their horses, but also help themselves.

“Doing this stuff gives the rider confidence in the ring because he or she can trust the horse and not worry about the little things like an early lead change,” he said. “Instead of riding defensively where you’re trying to keep the horse from doing something, you can go ride a little more on the offense and try to win. I’ve done both, and it’s a lot more fun to kick than it is to pull.”