How do I get my horse to lope?

Getting a clean lope departure starts with understanding what you're asking the horse to do. A lope is a three-beat gait that requires balance, impulsion, and the right lead — and the horse needs to be prepared before you ever put your leg on. Trying to force a lope out of a horse that's dragging at the trot or strung out and heavy in your hand is going to get you a scrambled departure every time. Start by getting your horse forward and rhythmic at the trot. You want energy in the gait before you ask for the transition. Then apply your outside leg slightly behind the cinch, kiss or cluck, and shift your weight slightly to your inside seat bone. That combination tells the horse which lead you want and gives him the cue to depart. Keep your hands soft — pulling on the reins while asking for the lope is contradictory pressure that confuses most horses. If your horse breaks gait, quietly push him back up without frustration. Consistency is everything in the early stages. Reward a good departure immediately by softening your hand and letting him find his rhythm. Over time, your cues get smaller, the horse gets more responsive, and the lope becomes something he steps into willingly rather than something you have to wrestle out of him. A horse that lopes off easy is a horse that's been built right from the ground up.