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This
months feature of the Winning Ways is dedicated to bits, I
have listed some of my most winning horses throughout the
years. I am listing the bits or headgear I used and why. I’ve
also added their breeding. I know I have always been
interested in what headgear helps a horse to win and the breeding of winning horses. The combination of turn
and run has always been important to me because it takes both
to win those tough
competitions, along with a dedicated rider.
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Horse
Bloodline |
Bit or Headgear Used & Why |
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Sire: Frank’s Pal (TB)
Cebe Reed
Dam: Bay Canary
(Joe Reed II Breeding)
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Long Shank Snaffle: I started riding Cebe with this bit.
Cebe was a staight turning horse really using his rear
end. The snaffle worked good and kept him collected in the
turns and also gave me the rate I needed. After he started winning he was such an exceptional
athlete I never changed it. I won 52 barrel races in a row
and seven horse trailers with this combination. This bit
is now hanging in my Trophy Room. I went to the NFR on Cebe on 1968 & 1969.
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Sire: Bit O’Both
Sonny Bit O’Both
Dam: My Vornia
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Vaquero Bit, steel noseband with straight mouth piece and
the” Bit O’Both” Bit:
Sonny had lots of natural bend, the Vaquero bit kept him standing up more in his turns,
therefore, making his turns quicker. Ed Sims, the famous bit maker designed the
“Bit O’Both” for Sonny. This was the very first
combination bit that I had ever seen. It had a noseband to get his nose and
worked like a snaffle bit in his mouth. Sonny was an
extremely consistent horse that went on to win the AQHA
and the WPRA in 1980, an accomplishment that has never
been duplicated. It's hard to qualify for both in the
same year and almost impossible to win both. I went to the NFR on Sonny in 1978-79-80
& 81.
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Sire: Lady Bug’s Moon
by Top Moon
by Moon Deck
Royal Moon 2 (SI 108)
Dam: Christie Royal
by Royal Bar
by Three Bars
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Combination Bit:
This horse could turn a barrel and run faster than any
horse that I have ever ridden.
The Combination Bit gave me the bend and rate I needed. He had a speed index of 108
and was an extremely consistent horse. It took him only
three months of rodeos to qualify for the NFR in 1985. He
was hurt in Albuquerque New Mexico and I rode Jetonfer Pay
at the Finals. |
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Sire: Main Street
by Lady's Bug Moon
Swen Sir Bug
Dam: Rezelle Hopeful
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JC ran in the Short Shank Combination but the Hollis
Hackamore is the bit I worked him in:
JC had lots of run but not a lot of rate. The Hollis
Hackamore instilled the rate. I usually ran in competition
in a short shank combination with a rope over the nose and
3 piece mouthpiece. This bit worked really well. I
qualified and ran at the 1987 NFR. I took him to Calgary
in 1988 where we became members of the Gold Medal winning
American Olympic Team.
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Sire: St. Bar
by Three Bars
Mr. Revolution Bars
Dam: Balmette
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Short Shanked Hollis Hackamore and a Medium Shanked Combination
with a Steel Noseband depending on the ground:
This horse loved to run
barrels and would have worked in any bit. Both of these
headgears worked and left him alone to do his job. His expertise
was the big rodeo arenas. He won both go rounds and the
average at Reno, NV and I won the Congress plus made the NFR in 1989-1990.
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Sire: Easily Smashed
by East Jet
Orange Smash (SP 81)
Dam: Orange Julia (TB)
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Start to Finish Bit which consists of a small rope
noseband with a sliding gag:
Orange Smash was
exceptional to watch because of his size and consistency
on the barrel pattern. He was awesome in the big arenas.
He won Ellensburg, WA., Walla Walla, WA. and Puyallup, WA.; three
of the big time rodeos in the same weekend in the North
East. Orange Smash won the NHBA World in 1997. He
qualified for the NFR in 1998 where in spite of the small
size of the arena I got to go to the Gold Coast to pick up
my prestigious buckle for Orange Smash winning the go
round.
Congratulations to former Josey student June Holman on
recently winning Puyallup, WA.
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Sire: Joe Tee
by Top Moon
Joe B Jammin
Dam: Jamicks Nedra
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Sharon Camarillo Short Shanked Gag:
Jack Swaggert along with Sue
Bologna, one of my students in the late 1960’s trained and
still rides this horse. They let me ride him in 2000 where
we ran the fastest time at the Lone Star Finals. We won
the AQHA Reserve World Champions in 2002. Jammer always worked
good in this bit and it helped him to gather and make fast
turns.
He won me the title of Equus America, Equus Extreme
Champion, in Houston, Texas in 2003 and I got to be
featured on the Wheaties box.
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Sire: Dinky’s Red Man
Red Man Bay
Dam: Miss Take A Chance
(Boston Mac Breeding)
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Short Shanked Combination Bit:
Red Man loved to run
barrels and required no schooling, just exercise to keep
him fit. He is an extremely consistent horse that carried
me to multiple wins and placings at many 4D Barrel Races
and rodeos.
The Short Shanked Combination Bit was the perfect bit for
this horse. It helped him to round out his turns and be
quick on the back side of the barrels, while using his
powerful hind quarters leaving the barrel. |
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Bits and bitting can be two of the most
confusing aspects of horsemanship; however, I will explain
what works for my purposes in teaching and riding barrel
horses. Bits work on certain pressure points on the horse’s
mouth and face; the bars of the mouth (areas of lower jaw
devoid of teeth), the tongue, the roof of the mouth and the
chin. Whatever bit you use and the way you adjust it
influences one or more of these areas. However, no influence
is as great as your hands on the reins. They have the
strongest effect on the bit in your horse’s mouth. Many times
when we put on a clinic or a school, one of the quickest ways we can
make a difference in the way a horse is working is by changing
his bit. And, when you’re looking at bits, you need to
consider the horse AND the rider. I usually like to have a
little more bit that requires less pulling on my part instead
of having a lighter bit that makes me have to really pull back
hard. If you are a heavy handed rider, though, you might want
to have a less severe bit, so that you won’t accidentally cue
the horse. For my personal preference, I get along better with
something over the nose and in the mouth, simply because I’ve
won a lot of money with combination-type bits than with any other
headgear. On a barrel horse, I like to be able to gather and
collect a
horse and I like to be able to have the give that comes from
having something over the nose. Also, having something over
the nose on some horses will help get the nose in a turn. I’ll
reinforce bend when I work him in an O’Ring Snaffle, and I
sometimes use a running martingale, German Martingale or draw
reins to help reinforce the low headset. One thing that really
effects headgear and the way it works is the fit.
 Make sure
your bit is properly adjusted in your horse’s mouth. If you’re
not sure of how a bit should fit, ask someone, because
different bits fit differently. For example, a snaffle bit
loses a lot of it’s effectiveness if it’s hanging loose in
horse’s mouth. A hackamore that’s hanging too low on a horse’s
nose can interfere with his breathing. Too high on the nose
and it’s not effective enough. Keep in mind, too, that new
bridles will often stretch the first few times you use them.
Check and recheck the fit any time you have new equipment. On
old or new equipment (because even new equipment can be
faulty) check to see that it is all in good working order.
Curb chains and straps are subject to wear. Check the entire
bridle and reins each time you ride. Check your bit, too. Make
sure there are no cracks or rough places in it that could be
causing discomfort for your horse.
*TIP: If you buy a horse, try to buy his bridle and
bit. If you can’t do that, try to get one just
like it and adjust it exactly the same way. Don’t take a
chance on not having headgear that he works well in.
One group of bits is designed to keep the horse
flexible and supple so he bends properly. These are the O-Ring
snaffles, or a gag bit or other broken bits. Curb bits and
hackamores control the rear end and gather the horse up.
Whatever bit I select to compete in, when I’m training and
exercising my horse, I use a complimentary bit. For example,
if I compete in a stiff bit or hackamore, I’ll exercise and
tune my horse with an O-Ring or gag. This keeps him bending.
However, if I compete in a bit that gets a lot of bend, like
the gag or snaffle, I will exercise and tune my horse in a
stiffer bit that gives me control of the rear end and
reinforces the 'whoa’. In either case, I make sure I work and
practice enough in my competition bit that I know how to use
it properly. I actually own over 100 bits but there are very
few that I use. I buy it, try it and usually don’t like it
because it doesn’t work. Bits are to help to guide a horse, so
you don’t want it to hurt him. Anytime a bit hurts or injures
your horse he will not perform for you. We have come up with
some ‘complimentary’ bits-combinations that work well
together, for practice and competition.
REMEMBER: Sometimes instead of a bit change you might
need to work on your horsemanship.
Slow Work & Practice
Competition
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O-Ring Snaffle for Bending
and Flexing |
Combination Bit for Getting
his Nose
and Collection in the Turns
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O-Ring Snaffle for Bending
and Flexing |
Hackamore or Sidepull for Control and
Stopping
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Long Shank Snaffle for Head
Positioning |
Hackamore for Control and
Stopping
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Gag Bit for Bending and
Flexing |
Combination for Getting his
Nose and Collection in Turns
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O-Ring Snaffle Rigged as a
Draw Bit for Bending |
Gag Bit for Gathering and
Collecting
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Stiff Bit for Control and
Set |
Gag Bit for Bending and
Flexing
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Long Shank Snaffle for Head
Positioning and Bending
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Stiff Bit for Control and
Set |
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Stiff Bit or Hackamore for
Rate |
Lifter or Correction Bit
for Control and Set
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