The Walk

The walk is the easiest pace because it is calm and steady ( not to mention REALLY slow ). You have time to think about the right way to ride. The walk is the first pace you will learn to ride, it is also the fastest pace to learn. When riding your horse in the walk relax just enough to feel the rhythm of your pony's stride. As you pony walks his head will bob up and down ( slightly ). Hold the reins very lightly so that your hands can follow his rhythm. Sit well down in the saddle and try not to lean forward to much.

The walk has four hoof beats ( a four beat gate ) Each hoof strikes the ground separately in turn like this - near fore, off hind, off fore, near hind. 

Example - The Walk

Example - The Trot

The trot is the horse second pace, the most bouncy and uncomfortable to ride.  When riding a horse in the trot you can either sit down to trot or rise up and down in the saddle, in time with the horses movements ( known as a "Rising Trot " or " Posting " ). Rising to the trot is easy once you figure out how to do it , and it's much more comfortable to ride this way. let the bounce of your pony's stride push you up and forward ( not a lot though ) a little from your knees. The sit back gentle into the saddle in a regular rhythm, Try to keep your lower legs quite still ( you don't want them flopping around ). It can sometimes help at first to think to yourself " Up - down - up - down " as you ride your horse. Now once you have learned to ride correctly at the trot you will need to think about " Diagonals ".

The trot is a 2 hoof beat gate. Witch means your horses legs move in pairs. The near for leg and off hind leg together , then the off fore leg and near hind leg together . These are called diagonals ( hence the reasons you post on the correct diagonal ). If your still confused on how the trot works please feel free to e-mail me.

The canter is probably ( in my opinion ) the smoothest and most comfortable gate. It's flowing and easy to ride. When you start off canter I suggest that you either hold onto the front of the saddle or on a little peace of mane to get yourself ready for the change of pace. To ask your horse to canter apply your outside leg to your horses side ( so it will be on the correct lead ). Once your horse is cantering relax into your seat and sit up tall, try to get use to the rhythm and pace.

A horse can canter on either fore legs depending on the direction it is going, it working towards the write ( circling right ) than it leads with the right fore leg and if circling to the left it leads with the left fore leg. So basically the inside leg should always be leading. The canter is a three hoof beat pace. When the off fore leg leads ( right lead ), the hoof beats are near hind, then off hind and near hind, then off hind and near fore together, and then off fore.

Example - The Canter