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Flying Lead Changes

© Caryn A. Tate

A lead is simply whatever foot with which a horse is leading his lope or run. For example, a horse is in his right lead when both his right front and right rear legs are "leading" his left, basically coming first, before both of his left legs.

Changing leads is important for a horse to know for a large variety of sports, exercises, and situations. It's essential for barrel racing and other equine sports, but also for improving the horse's athletic ability, speed, and agility. Another plus is that teaching him to change leads strengthens the bond between you and your horse, like anything positive that you teach him.

Begin at your training area. If you don't have access to an arena with good footing, find a good flat area with no holes, obstructions, or other dangerous objects.

I like to start by riding my horse at a walk and/or trot around the area to get him used to the place and the footing. After a couple of minutes of that, begin walking your horse in a large circle in either direction. You want him to understand where you're going to be going, how you're going to be moving. After about two or three complete circles, start trotting him. I like to be travelling at a fast trot by this time, giving him a chance to realize what you're doing at a fast pace, but still not loping.

After a few times around at a fast trot, start loping. If your horse is ringy or likes to run, don't worry about slowing him down to a slow lope--which is what you want. The circle configuration will teach your horse more patience and gradually slow him down on its own, which makes loping circles a fantastic training exercise in itself.

Usually after a few complete circles, the horse begins to calm down and understand that you're simply loping slowly in a circle. The key thing to notice at this point is which lead your horse is in. Make sure that if you're loping in a circle to the right, your horse is in his right lead, and vice versa. If you're not sure how to tell while you're on his back, there are a few ways.

We'll use the right lead again for an example. If you're loping in a circle to the right, look down at your right foot. If your horse is in the correct lead, his right, your own right foot should be further forward than your own left foot. Another way to tell which lead he's in is to look down at his inside--in this case, his right--foot. You should be able to see it reaching out first, and further ahead, of his opposite foot.