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 Congress, Arizona horse trainer, Twister Heller, uses a
training device he calls the
"Cowboy Martingale." This martingale is a take off from
the German martingale and can be easily and inexpensively made at home. Twister
says he uses the cowboy martingale in order to get results without using a great
deal of rein pressure. It gives a rider an edge in controlling the horse's head.
The first person Twister saw using this apparatus was Ray Hall, a reining horse
trainer, from Colburn, Colorado.
Many martingales have rings that slide on the reins. The cowboy martingale
attaches through slits in the split reins and runs through the outside rings of
a snaffle bit before attaching to the front cinch. The purpose of this device is
not to inhibit forward motion, but helps control extraneous motion such as head
throwing, pulling the head away from the rider, shying, bolting, running away,
turning back, etc. Obviously, there are specific times and places for its use.
The main advantage that the cowboy martingale has over
other types of martingales, such as a running martingale, according to Twister, is that the cowboy
martingale has more leverage if necessary. The particular pulley effect and the
downward angle of the pull usually makes it easier for a horse to understand to
put its head down for relief from the pressure. It also helps the rider to
develop a soft feel on a horse's mouth because of the way the reins run through
the outside O ring on the snaffle. With a running martingale, a rider is back to
direct pull, which is fine, but then a rider needs to have more experience and
have a more precise feel for the horse. Knowing when to give relief and to feel
the resistance is very important. Use of the cowboy martingale will take some of
the responsibility off the rider and place it on the horse; however, it does not
eliminate the responsibility of the rider to always be aware of what the horse
is doing under him.
A great many of the horses that Twister works with are horses that have been
sent to him for retraining in problem areas or areas that were neglected by
earlier trainers. He uses the cowboy martingale on most of these
horses. He assesses the areas where training is lacking in a horse and backs up
the horse's training to a point where it is easy for the horse to grasp what it
is being asked to do. Again the trick is to let the horse think about what is
being asked of it. If it can't grasp something, go back to something simpler
that it can do. Be aware of what the horse is doing under you. If you are ever
in doubt that you are going too far or too fast in one session, you can always
come back at another session. Know when to quit. Once you know that a
horse understands whatever exercise you are doing, you can become stricter with
its performance.
Twister likes to start riding a new horse with the martingale adjusted short,
to keep the horse under control, for the first 4 or 5 rides and then to loosen
it up so that the horse can travel with a natural head set. If the horse tries
to stick its nose out, then it will bump the martingale. Care needs to be taken
that the horse has enough length to elevate its head enough to be able to turn
correctly. Twister cautions against riding with the martingale adjusted too
short for too long a period. The rein should be slightly shorter than the
martingale so that a horse can learn that if it reacts correctly to the rein, it
will not hit the pressure from the martingale. This is very important. Unless
you understand this you will defeat the purpose of what the cowboy martingale is
designed to do. The martingale is not used to overpower the horse, but to
achieve correct head control with less effort from the rider. You are not
causing the horse to bend at the poll; it wants to cooperate to avoid the bump
of the martingale. After that training has been accomplished and narrowed down
to precision work, a rider could then move to a direct rein or possibly a
running martingale. As with any training technique, start carefully and
recognize what is really happening with the horse under you.
 To make a cowboy martingale, one of the easiest and cheapest
materials to use is braided baling twine. You can also use a number of other
materials, for instance, 3/8" soft poly rope. On your bridle, you should
use 3/4" wide leather split reins attached to a ring snaffle. Make a
2" slit in each rein about 18" from the ring of the snaffle. You will
need a total of about 55" of finished rope for the martingale itself. Make
a knot in the ends of the rope so that the martingale can not pull through the
slit in the reins, but can be removed for use with another bridle or if you wish
to take it off. Attach the rope at its center, with rivets, to a leather strap
32" long. This strap needs a series of adjustment holes up from the free
end. These holes allow it to attach to a buckle on another 17" leather
section with a buckle on one end and a snap on the other. This strap attaches
with the snap to the front cinch ring under the horse's belly, from between the
horse's front legs.
Above, the horse shows his original resistance to carrying his head properly.
After proper adjustment of the martingale and training, the horse
bends at the poll and backs up
correctly.
contact Twister Heller at
http://www.twisterheller.com/
original version of the article that appeared in
the Western Horseman Magazine in August, 1998, used by permission of
Mike Laughlin
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