What are common rollback mistakes in reining?

Common rollback mistakes in the show pen and in training cover the full sequence of the maneuver — stop, turn, and departure — and each one reduces the score for the maneuver or, in cases of significant error, creates penalties that affect the overall run. Stopping crooked is the mistake that most consistently produces a cascade of additional problems because a crooked stop compromises every element that follows. A horse that stops with its hindquarters pushed to one side has misaligned the pivot point for the turn and the setup for the departure simultaneously, making both harder to execute correctly regardless of the rider's skill in the remaining elements. Pausing too long between the stop and the turn removes the fluid, continuous quality that distinguishes a genuine rollback from a stop followed by a separate turn — the two should flow together, and a visible pause suggests the horse is not trained to the level the maneuver requires. Stepping forward before turning means the horse has lost its hind end anchor and is advancing into the turn rather than sweeping the front end over a planted pivot, which reduces the quality of the maneuver and often produces wrong-lead departures. Falling through the shoulder during the turn indicates the horse lacks the shoulder control to keep the front end light and mobile, and the shoulder collapses to the inside rather than sweeping freely over the hocks. Leaving on the wrong lead after the rollback is one of the most costly errors because it is a clear, visible incorrect execution of the departure. Jumping out of the rollback indicates anticipation or lack of control in the departure timing. Anticipating the entire maneuver — leaning, turning early, or preparing before the stop is asked — is the underlying training gap that produces most of the other mistakes on this list, because a horse waiting for the rider's instruction is a horse that can be set up correctly for each element.