| The History Of Single Footing Horses |
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 Single-Footing is a historical term used to describe the fall of a horse's hooves and is also known as racking or "the rack". A true Single-Footing horse performs an even timed, 4 beat gait from a relaxed trail gait to the much faster single-foot in which the horse is moving with one foot on the ground at a time.What is unique to the Single-Footing horse is their broad range of speed and their natural ability to remain smooth and consistent from a slow gait all the way up to the racing gait. Some of these horses are capable of reaching and exceeding speeds of 20 mph.
Ranch owners and avid trail riders often request the same qualities in a horse:
The old style single-footing gait comes closest to the needs of these riders. This is an easy gait for the horse to travel and the medium length of stride at most speeds lends itself to athletic ability, particularly regarding stock horse type moves.
While most Single-Footing horses are bred primarily for trail riding, many owners enjoy showing their horses. The true Single-Footing horse will be found dominating in flat shod Trail Racking, Country Racking and Speed Racking classes at shows around the country. The Single-Footing horse comes in all shapes, colors and sizes. What is most important is how those 4 feet hit the ground!
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Trail riders also often find they need a horse with some lift in front to clear uneven ground without stumbling. Front lift comes naturally to single-footing gait since the horse must get the front end out of the way of the driving rear end at speed. The rear end should at least cap and will often over-stride as speed increases. The length of stride increasing with speed keeps the horse smooth at various speeds. This means the horse has to have a powerful driving rear end. Since the gait is both even in timing and medium in stride, the horse will not show a head nod or bob. These horses generally travel with head up. Many may stretch out, lowering their heads at the racing single-foot.