Control in the Box

Tips from top trainer Sandy Collier will help you perfect this vital part of a fence-work performance.

Article and Photographs
by Ann Asher

In reined cow horse competition, the awesome action of big-time fence turns brings spectators to the edges of their seats. The rider sets the stage for those incredible moves much earlier in the run by taking control of the cow in the boxing stage. Here, Sandy Collier, one of the National Reined Cow Horse Association's most respected trainers and the only woman to win the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity, shares her thoughts on how to take charge of the run.

"How well you can read the cow and the situation, and the better you are at getting your horse to the right place at the right time, determines whether you're in control of your run." she states. "You must interpret the action as it unfolds and responds to it immediately."

Those elements come together in the boxing stage, when you demonstrate to the judge your horse's ability to hold a cow at one end of the arena. But there's much more going on. It's also the time when you assess the cow, teach it to respect the horse and work it enough to ensure just the right speed down the fence.

Before You Enter
the Pen
To take control at the beginning, you must study the cattle's behavior in previous runs and make general assessments.

"Look for any trend in the group," Collier says. "If the cattle are fairly uniform, they likely have the same feel, because they've had the same treatment and life experience. The speed of your cow and whether the cow honors your horse generally follow suit, too.

"For example, feedlot cattle often become accustomed to riders and are dull about responding to horses," she speculates. "Cattle that haven't been handled at all might be pretty wild. Watch to see what kind of physical shape they're in to determine if they'll tire quickly. For instance, if the cattle are fat, they might not run as hard and might tire quickly. In general, these trends can be identified early on in the class."

The other part of the formula for a successful boxing stage rests with the horse.

"Make sure your horse responds to you in a way that enhances his performance," she says. "He should be soft in the bridle, move off your legs, be adequately loped and in a mind frame to walk into the pen and go to work."

Calling for the Cow
Once you enter the arena and call for the cow, the importance of paying attention and noting details increases.

"Even before the gate opens, you can often see into the holding box, so you have a clue about your cow," Collier explains. "If it's bouncing off the walls before it ever comes into the arena, you can expect that it's going to be a little wild."

When the gate swings open and the cow enters the pen, you must make instant assessments.

"If the cow comes into the arena with its tail up over its back, pull down your stampede string, because you're probably going fast," Collier laughs. "It'll be hard to get that cow to honor your horse. Plan to move quickly and aggressively to block it, while being somewhat defensive and staying inside the cow and ready to give ground. It might be helpful to make some noise to get its attention."

A cow might come out with a low head, as though it's looking for a way out, nosing the fence as it goes along.

"This type of cow will likely try to run under your horse's neck--it's crafty," Collier says. "Working that one could be a body-blocking affair.

"Or, you might draw a numb cow that's unaware of you," she continues. "To work it successfully, you might have to get right in its face (head the cow) and make some noise. This type of cow requires a more offensive plan, and it's not easily intimidated."

Others run high-headed into the arena, a la "El Toro."

"This cow might jump the fence or turn into your lap," Collier says. "Back off--change your position to get more distance from the cow so you have working advantage. This type of cow usually changes direction very quickly, so work it like defense on a basketball court."

The ideal draw is the cow that comes out, sees the horse and stops, acknowledges it, and then moves away. "When you make a move on this type of cow, you get a response," Collier advises. "It's the kind you want."

Getting "Whistled Off"
In NRCHA competition, two kinds of cows cause a judge to call for a replacement ("whistle off" a rider). First judges gives the gate to a cow that won't move in response to the horse. Second, an exhibitor gets a new cow if the original one won't honor the horse.

"Whatever the cow, don't quit until the judges whistle it out," Collier advises. "Even if your cow is wild and crazy, attempt to be in position."

Boxing the Cow
Boxing sets the stage for the rest of the run. Here Collier runs down a list of what should take place.

"Train the cow to honor the horse (in the boxing state)," she says. "Get its attention if it's numb, or work it down if it has its head up and is blowing and snorting. In general, your goal is to teach the cow to stop when you get into position."

Correctly gauging the length of time you spend boxing affects the cow's speed down the fence. Move the cow back and forth across the end of the pen enough times to take out some of its air, but don't wear it out too much.

It's a judgment call to know when you've worked a cow enough," Collier states. "You have to take out enough air so you don't get outrun, but not so much that you decrease the degree of difficulty to the point that you won't score well (because the cow's too tired)."

Most of the time, according to collier, the cow tells you when it's ready to go down the fence.

"It'll be more accepting of your control, pay attention to the horse and not move quite as fast," Collier says.

Those signs are favorable if you can get them, but sometimes you must accept that the situation won't get any better.

"You might draw a cow that just runs across the pen end-to-end and doesn't seem to notice or honor the horse," she explains. "If you go back and forth too many times, the cow keeps bumping into the fence and gets tired. If you think the cow is as good as it'll get, it's best just to go down the fence, because you're not going to accomplish anything more. Your only option is to just go and hope it all works out."

Experience, strategy and a tough of reality help with this decision.

"Are you trying to win the Snaffle Bit Futurity or is it a weekend show?" Collier asks. "At the Snaffle Bit Futurity, you make a couple of turns and get the cow's attention, and then go down the fence, hoping for a high degree of difficulty and a big score. That's the difference from a weekend show and where you might want to take more air out of the cow because you don't want to over-work you horse."

Extra time spent boxing slows down the coming action, a positive thing for less experienced riders.

"I always prefer that my non-pros take extra turns when boxing rather than too few," Collier says.

Bottom line: "Be sure your horse is dialed into the cow--moving the way you want him to move and feeling the way you want him to feel--before you go down the fence at 90 miles an hour," she instructs. "If you horse leans or drops a shoulder, or isn't locked on to your cow, your only opportunity to fix it is before you add speed (and go down the fence)."

Transitioning to the Fence

One of the most critical times in the run is the transition form boxing to going down the fence.

"Your ability to position yourself and your horse to drive to the cow from the box and line it out down the fence so you never lose working advantage is the key to setting up the rest of the run," collier asserts. "Your horse might box great and turn on the fence like a scorpion, but if he won't go to a cow and drive it through the corner (from the box to the fence), then it's harder to get scored because the run isn't seamlessly put together.

"It's one of those points when bad things can happen!" she continues. "If you leave the short end late, you can't catch the cow in time to get it turned, or you'll have to run so fast to catch it that you end up going past it."Conversely, leaving the box and getting ahead too soon can set up a situation where you turn the cow too soon, resulting in penalty marks.

"That first burst of speed down the arena fence can be intoxicating to a horse," collier says. "He might cut across the corner in anticipation or charge down the fence as though it's been shot out of a cannon."

Knowing that, Collier guards against this anticipation by teaching her horses to get into position to control the cow and to stay there without argument.

"We call it rating," she says. "It's similar to the position from which you'd rope a cow. Work on tracking cattle and stopping straight. If the horse takes hold (of the bit) and tries to speed up, stop straight, and then lope after the cow again and hold the position until it's a nonevent. Remember, the event is called reined cow horse not raced cow horse!"

And when show time comes, if the horse is prepared, you've studied and correctly worked the cow on the end and the cow cooperates, the stage is set for a spectacular trip down the fence.