>> One of the funniest "spins" I've ever heard for why the "speed rack" isn't a REAL flying pace: a rider goes into "flying pace" from canter/gallop, whereas a rider will go into "speed rack" from a rack.
>>>> So half of the time my former horse Fáfnir didn't actually pace when he paced because I went into pace from tölt :D Yeah, sure...that's it...now you got it! :) Isn't that silly? >>>> But there was a very distinct difference between fast tölt and flying pace, the horse didn't just gradually "slide" into pace he really changed his gait from tölt to pace. In my current horse I miss the feeling of the horse being able to really stretch her steps and stay in clean tölt when going fast. Janice certainly hangs out with the die-hard "racking horse" fans more than I do, so maybe she'll comment. But, I've always heard people refer to "rack" as a gait, but "speed rack" seems to be another matter altogether. I've never ridden a "speed racker" but I've seen some. I believe that "rack" is simply the English word for "tolt" as Judy said yesterday, but that "speed rack" is the same as what Icelandic horse fans have traditionally called "flying pace", since it always looks more pacey than rack/tolt. Karen Thomas, NC
