Originally a sports activity developed by rodeos for their wives and girlfriends, barrel horse racing has turned into a sport event where everybody can join.
Barrel horse racing has been in existence for many years now. This is basically a game event that aims to showcase speed.
The race is pretty straightforward to watch. It is played upon an arena with three barrels arranged in an isosceles triangle pattern on which the goal of the racer is to gain the fastest speed by circling the three barrels in a cloverleaf pattern. While there may be standards regarding the distance of each barrel, governing bodies normally have various preferences regarding how far each barrel needs to be set from one another.
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 game begins as soon as the racer enters the arena towards the first barrel. For this, the rider must enter with a slight angle since its much simpler for the racer if he would not come straight on to it. A complete turn has to be accomplished around the first barrel before moving towards the second one.
A second turn, but this time an opposite one, will need to be made on the second barrel. And again, the rider will have to race towards the third barrel. The third barrel then will need to be circled around in the same direction as the second one. Following a complete loop, the rider will need to accelerate back to the starting line, which is also regarded as the finish line.
Like a number of other horse racing events, horse barrel racing has its common problems too. We shall help you distinguish some of the most common problems and would try to advise a few things to discover a solution about it. Please read on.
The 1st barrel is generally termed to as being the “money barrel”. This may cause by far the most difficult turn because the horse has to approach it at full speed. Keep in mind that the primary aim of the game is to take it as fast as you can. This is also the most tricky barrel because if you knock it off, you’re certain to be out of the game in no time and if you passed over it, you will get the opportunity to take a little cash with you.
The challenge though comes with the horse that normally passes over this barrel on account of lack of rate. Because the horse is charging at top speed, it’s got the tendency for being too aggressive. Thus, they may either knock the first barrel off or they may pass over it. This problem is usually resolved through conditioning your horse to do the turn perfectly.
Some horses often have problems entering the arena. In this case, the horse is referred to as “barrel sour” or “ring sour”. This is known to have rooted from running too much in the arena or during practice. This can be resolved through taking some time off the track and giving your horse a break in the barrel routines. One ideal way of doing this is to do trail riding.
Some horses tend to have no breaks at all. In such a case, you mustn’t let your horse to run unless control is gained on it. Solution to this problem can start with running at slower gaits until progress is achieved. Run your horse on barrels only once you happen to be confident enough of its speed and its capability to halt.
