Loving The Paso Fino Horse Gait
Animals July 6th, 2009Riding a horse on the trail is one of the most pleasurable activities you can do to enjoy the great outdoors, but horses are not all the same. I found out that the Paso Fino is trail riding horse. The smoothness of its ride is enjoyable to a level that could be compared to eating ice cream on a hot summer day as a young child. There is a feeling of pure joy when I rode this horse, and it is due to the fact that it has such a steady gait.
A horse’s gait is the way that it moves. When you determine a horses gait, you look at a number of factors including speed, foot pattern, and foot sequencing during the movement. This can vary from the walk to the full gallop, but what we are interested in when determining a good horse for trail riding is one that goes at a speed that is somewhere in between. The Paso’s unique pattern of foot movements makes the ride very smooth and there is not a lot of up and down motion for the rider.
The cadence of the Paso’s 1-2-3-4 gait is distinctive as the horse effortlessly glides to its destination. It is almost like military precision when it takes its strides. I liken it to the riderless horse of presidential funerals. To be riding a horse that moves like this is akin to feeling like royalty.
Called an “ambling” gait, the Paso’s gait is a intermediate gait that is quicker than a walk but slower than a canter. The foot movement in the Paso Fino is lateral. Lateral movement is when the front and hind feet on the same side of the horse moves in sequence.
In the Paso Fino gait, there are names for the 3 speeds to its gait. From slowest to fastest, there is the paso fino, paso corto, and paso largo. There is also another Paso gait referred to as the Paso Llano and is unique to the Peruvian Paso.
There are many Paso Fino completitions that show the wonderful gait honed in performance Paso Fino horse training. In competition, performance Paso Finos are much more animated in their leg motions and much faster while keeping their 4-beat gait. It is really a sight to see. To many, the gait looks like a well orchestrated hat dance by the horse… and I guess you could say that is true. All I can say is simply amazing.
Even if you’re not trying to get started with a performance Paso Fino and just need a good riding horse, the Paso Fino makes an excellent horse to own. If you like to go on trial rides, you can’t beat the beautifully smooth and steady horse gait of this horse breed. Have fun and go ride a Paso!
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