There may be no greater bliss than a trail ride—especially on the back of a Tennessee Walking Horse. The breed’s unique gaits have made them increasingly popular as trail mounts.Photo by Bob Langrish
The breed performs three distinct gaits. The flat walk is a brisk, long-reaching walk that ranges from 4 to 8 mph. A nodding head motion, along with overstride, are unique features of the gait. The running walk is an extra-smooth gait like the flat walk except faster, at 10 to 20 mph, giving the rider a feeling of gliding through the air as if propelled by a powerful machine. The canter is performed in much the same way as other breeds, but with lots of spring and rhythm, giving an easy front end rise and fall referred to as a “rocking chair” canter.
The Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders’ & Exhibitors’ Association (TWHBEA) currently has 234,418 registered Walkers, and many of them hit the trails annually through TWHBEA’s trail programs. In 2023, riders logged 13,438 total hours in the distance program.
Hours in the Saddle
Via’s Sugarfoot, owned and ridden by Glory Redmond of Lowell, Ind., was the TWHBEA Trail Horse of the Year for 2023, logging 387.5 hours.Glory Redmond and Via’s Sugarfoot in Missouri on a cross-country trail ride. Photo courtesy Glory Redmond
Sunday Morning Rain and owner Susan St. Amand have logged more than 3,000 hours on trails, more than any other Tennessee Walking Horse in TWHBEA’s program.Sunday Morning Rain and owner Susan St. Amand have logged more than 3,000 hours on trails, more than any other Tennessee Walking Horse in TWHBEA’s program. Photo by Janet Cyr
“We ride on the hundreds of miles of ATV public trails in the Northern Maine woods, and witness plenty of wildlife,” says St. Amand.
“The Tennessee Walking Horse has long been recognized as a superior trail mount because they are smart, strong, surefooted and smooth,” says Paige Liggett of TWHBEA. “The Tennessee Walking Horse was originally bred to be a utility horse capable of carrying a rider over the rolling hills of Middle Tennessee in comfort and style. This inherent ability translates perfectly to most any terrain or situation.”
From Trails to Mounted Archery
Lila Corey of Youngsville, N.C., owns three Tennessee Walking Horses that she uses for trail riding and mounted archery. Her 9-year-old mare, Patience; 9-year-old gelding, Lakota; and 18-year-old gelding, Aston, are all skilled on the trail as well as the archery track. They carry both her students and her granddaughter with ease and care.Lila Corey’s three Tennessee Walking Horses (Aston pictured) are all used for trail riding and mounted archery. They also carry her students and granddaughter with ease and care. Photo courtesy Lila Corey
“I trail ride for fun and relaxation,” says Corey. “Tennessee Walking Horses are very smooth, and that makes them easier to shoot off of when cantering. The hunt course, being like a trail ride with targets at a canter, is so much fun on a gaited horse.”
Kristin Munson from Sandia Park, N.M., grew up riding Tennessee Walking Horses.
“I can’t post worth a darn,” she laughs. “That’s a pretty necessary skill for most long-distance riders, unless they are lucky enough to ride gaited!”
Now, Munson rides Cruise Until Midnyte, aka “Cruze”, a 5-year-old gelding, on endurance rides. (The pair are featured on this month’s cover.)
“Tennessee Walking Horses are known for being level-headed, considerate of their riders, gentle, and comfortable for long periods of time,” she says. “Because they were bred for riding on extensive plantations in the south, especially Heritage Walkers [these have no or limited high-stepping breeding lines] are famous for traveling long miles without complaint and being a joy to ride.”
Since Cruze is young, Munson is competing in the American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC) limited-distance races, ranging from 25 to 35 miles. As he grows up, her goal is to complete the 100-mile Western States Trail Ride (also known as the Tevis Cup). She says that Arabians and Mustangs tend to win endurance rides, but she and Cruze enjoy the time together.
“I believe the AERC motto that ‘To Finish is to Win,’ and I wouldn’t want to spend 35, 50, or even 100 miles on any other breed!”
Mounted Orienteering
Pushers Phoenix Sun, affectionately called “Nacho,” is a 12-year-old Walking Horse gelding owned by Laurie Heffington of Winlock, Wash. She purchased Nacho sight unseen from British Columbia because she had been searching for years for a gaited horse.Lauri Heffington and Nacho at a local competitive mounted orienteering (CMO) event. Photo by Ashlynn Winter
A friend of hers got her into competitive mounted orienteering (CMO) a few years ago. In mounted orienteering, a team or individual uses a compass to find hidden objects—usually a paper plate with a letter on it—on a trail. The event is timed. Heffington has found Nacho to be the perfect partner.
“From what Nacho has shown, they have wonderful personality and grit,” says Heffington. “He can go and go. My husband calls him ‘The Bulldozer,’ because he will plow through anything I point him at, regardless if there’s a path. That is great when we’re searching around in the brush for a plate!”
Heffington and Nacho placed first in the Washington Chapter of CMO for the short course and second in the nation in 2022 and 2023.
Although Tennessee Walking Horses are known for their fast running walk, Heffington says that Nacho has no problem slowing down, and will even keep pace with her son’s 12-hand pony on the trail.
This article about the Tennessee Walking Horse breed appeared in the August 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!