try the transition and lead work.
A good rider/trainer can adjust to the horse and rides to the horse's level, while still riding to improve the horse mentally and physically with each ride. I try to live by this motto.
"Ending on a good note"
Billy is a pretty good horseman and always rides finished horses and knows how to buy a well trained horse.
As a result he cuts a fine picture as he enters any arena and his friend is quite impressed with Billy skill as a horseman.
The friend thinks that he has made a good choice in asking Billy to help him with his 31/2 year old gelding at the first show of the season.
Even though this is his first horse he makes sure to ask lots of questions and surround himself with quality help.

The gelding had a good 30 day start last year by a top named trainer that is highly thought of in his new circle of horse friends.
Billy is anxious to show his friend that he is up to the job of getting the horse ready for the first rides of the season.
Billy knows that he has to finish what he starts and has to end on a good note and all will be well.
The mid morning sun sparkles off the spurs and they give a little jingle as Billy mounts up and he has been careful to finish off the tack with his favorite curb bit that works so well on his horse and has solved so many problems.
The young horse moves out briskly into a forward trot on the rail of the working pen and a small crowd gathers to witness the skill of the horseman and his green colt.
Billy is anxious to do a good job and get the gelding through the high head set problems and to get him lopping with more of a sweat then his friend has been able to do.
Billy woke up in the hospital room surround by family and his close friend and there to lend comfort in a time of need.
His friend was sure to tell billy that he had set the record for altitude gained at that arena off a bucking horse.
He was sure to include that everyone helped to end everything on a good note after they gathered up all the tack by walking the horse out around the show grounds after the life flight helicopter left.
You got to know what you don't know!
"You have to end on a gooid note Becky"
Becky is very involved with horses and considers them " her life ".
Her friends have horses and she grew up around horses.
She loves barn chores and all the sounds and smells that go along with the life.
Her bedroom as well as all other thing in her life is decorated with the primary theme of her life and there is no doubt that she is horse crazy.
Her mother still rides but is not as active as she use to be.
Becky is part of a group of young ladies that all ride at the same barn,with the same discipline,and all grew up going to horse camp together.
The girls spend hours talking about each other horses a as they groom them to perfection,adding creative braids and colorful tack and ribbons.
The entire group has been under constant supervision by professional riding instructor since a very young age.
They have all sworn a secret allegiance to each other and to horses and promise not to get married and move away from each other.
"Becky wants to distinguish herself among her friends as she agrees to take on the "Rescue" horse that has been long neglected at the barn where she rides.
She does not really care that her(now very occasional) instructor and mother both think that it is not a good idea at all.
Her mother has promised to talk about it more when she get back from her business trip to New York.
After all,she has been riding for almost 9 years and this is the best barn in the area and she will be going to collage soon and she is becoming a woman.
Becky enters the 60 foot round pen with the 17 and a half hand OTTB that has long been abandon by his wealthy owner and has spent the last 2 years in a 12x24 stall with occasional turn out.
Becky has a plan and will start with lots of ground work and progress to saddling and than soon show the other ladies that the Royal Thunder can really jump like she knows he can......But that will be later as this is the first lesson.
She is armed with the knowledge that she MUST finish what she starts and also it is very important to end on a good note.
What Becky is not aware of is that the new barn help that was hired last fall to clean and bed their beautiful 40 stall barn that everyone calls home,is in fact afraid of Royal Thunder and has done everything in his limited power to protect himself as he cleans the horses stall each day.
Roberto needs his new job and his English skills and education are a bit lacking and his family needs his contribution to the household income to get by in a new country.
Roberto does not want to make waves and not get a job done so he has handled the situation the only way he knew how.
Royal Thunder was moved by any tool that Roberto had in his hand at the time and sometimes he even took off his belt to move the horse out of his way.
The barn owner was always pleased with the way the stalls were bedded.
The barn owner and head trainer met in the hospital lobby and waited for the phone call from Becky's mother.
They stood by the coffee machine and wondered out loud how the girls were able to get Royal Thunder the 80 yards to the round pen where the tragedy occurred.
The full effect of the event had not set in yet and it would be some time before it did.
Assessment is the first step in training!
These scenarios happen all too frequently and the only thing that keeps more of them from ending in the hospital is luck.
Yeah, 2nd and 3rd scenarios are very unfortunate.
I called couple trainers "dealing with problem horses". "You have to be safe, horse has to be safe, and it should finish on positive note" one of them told me like 5 times. By the end of 2 hours horse was in sweat, reared like crazy and was all around ****ed off (while she was somewhat OK in the beginning). If THAT called the "positive note", then I don't know what the negative is. :shock: Second trainer as long as she started to misbehave was obviously afraid of the horse and quit after 30 mins or so. Needless to say I never called either of them back (wonder why, huh).
With scenario #3 I've met a wonderful huge qh gelding. Nice looking, great bloodlines. BUT he was hit in head twice in stall by say Robertos, who should clean it but were afraid of the horse. This incident left permanent bumps on his head and permanent mental injury so even after over year I spent with him working and making him trust people he'd rear and flip over in complete panic any time someone would wave a hand 10 feet away. After he sent a rider to the ER I decided it's just not worse it safe-wise (he was not mine anyway). This is a scenario I REALLY feel sorry about, because some POS can do life-long damage to the horse (and as well innocent owners/handlers) "just because".
Sad thing is you usually don't realize you don't know it until you come to a point where you need to know it.
"But we have to end on a good note"
John is kind of a guy's guy and has a deep male laugh that matches the rest of his rough demeanor.
He likes to do very masculine type sports so it is no wonder that he was drawn to team penning and cattle work.
He like the clothes,the outdoor setting,and the good conversation.
He like the guys and their no nonsense attitude and practical approach to their lives.
When they are not talking about their trucks or trailers they can always change the subject to guns or cattle.
Most of the guys "Just get the job done" and are not all about clinics and touchie feelie training methods that are just miking some guy rich somewhere.
John has a couple of dollars stashed away and is comfortable in life and feels that he can make up for the late start he had with horses by purchasing good,quality tack and horse flesh.
His new friends seem knowledgeable in the area that he is interested in, successful in the arena,and are eager to help their new member out.
John had a great day on his new colt and he got lots of compliments about the good choice he made in buying one of the other members young Quarter horses.
The horse was flashy,with a lot of chrome and would grow to fit him well in the future.
The day had gone well and it was time to load up and head for the barn as John had finished what he started and was looking forward to a cool one at home so he could end things on a good note.
Bud the 4yo gelding that he was about to load was "a little sticky" on loading so John was ready with a couple new tricks to make it go smoothly.
So were 3 of the other fellow that wanted John to finish his day right.
As the tired gelding took his third tentative step into the new aluminum trailer John was sure to show the horse that he(John)was still very much in control of what was happening.
One fellow yelled "Load up",another cracked a whip with a plastic bag tied to it,and a third threw an empty beer can just for good measure.
Johns trailer still has the dent in the roof of his trailer where the horses skull was crushed and neck was broken.
The