The Negative Aspects Of Barrel Racing

I have a lot of experience with horses, but my favorite thing is that feeling you get when you whip around a barrel as fast as you can… almost as if you’re flying. You really feel that when you barrel race. Barrel racing has not always been around. Basically, you run as fast as you can on horseback around three barrels in a clover leaf pattern and try to finish with the fastest time. My favorite part of barrel racing is the history of how it grew and became so popular, and just arrangement of the rules and how every little detail is planned out. There are certain women who made barrel racing not only their passion, but their career, too. I think it is extremely interesting how far it came from when it first began. In earlier years, barrel racing was just a game people

Although the rules may be easy, the actual process is very hard. There is an exact time you should turn, your posture and position are extremely important, your reins must be held a certain way, and to be successful, your horse must be soft and supple. Training is hard on both you and your horse with long hours throughout the weeks. A great way to train is making your way up the speed ladder. First, take the pattern at a walk, trot, lope, then give it your all. It is important to save your horse’s energy because come competition time you need every ounce they have. During a competition you have as much time as you need, but taking your time defeats the purpose of the sport. When running out of the shoot, go diagonally to your first barrel and turn when your inside leg passes the barrel. Once you’ve turned the barrel, keep your eyes on the next barrel and do the same for the last two. If you knock a barrel down a five second penalty is added to your total time. Now you understand what I meant when I said it was harder than it seems.