Tip/Quote of the Day # 143A rider should focus on the top rail of the jump they are approaching, until the moment that the horse's head blocks their view of the jump (which is dependent on the size of the jump and the height of the horse's head carriage.) At which point the rider should look to their next jump.Question # 154: I have a student who has been working really hard to move up from cross rails to 2 ft. Though she understands the mechanics and reasons behind not jumping ahead, she struggles with waiting at the base…...and tends to push off her toe on the stirrup and gets too straight in her knee/hip angle and too far forwards with her torso. Then she gets "popped" a bit over the jump since her angles are too straight and rigid. This mostly happens when she doesn't have the pony in front of her leg all the way across the jump - she will have a great canter and then two strides out she'll start leaning a bit/getting on her toe a bit and not keep the pony forward, pony still jumps because she is good, but then it gets messy. I've tried videoing her to show her, we've jumped cross rails without stirrups, done lots of two point work cantering over poles, told her to keep her hips back, to just ride the jump like its just another canter stride and stay quite and just follow with her hands etc etc. Nothing seems to really be doing the trick. Wondering if you have any exercises that may help with this? (Vita)
Hi Vita!
My first thought on reading this was that... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer)Tip/Quote of the Day # 142Jumping from the trot is a great exercise in patience for both the horse and the rider. Tip/Quote of the Day # 141From member and Facebook fan Catherine Norman ~ "I must remember that my hands can go forward without the rest of my body following." Tip/Quote of the Day # 140From Facebook fan Lisa Roberts ~ "Good dresssge, like good coffee, is rich, smooth and well worth the wait."Tip/Quote of the Day # 139Many riders have a tendency to take their legs off when the horse gets excited, but this trains the horse that he can make the rider take the pressure off of him by acting up. Keep your legs on, ignore the nonsense, and keep riding forward.Tip/Quote of the Day # 138The horse usually tries to compensate for the lack of strength in his back and his haunches by seeking support in the rider's hands. So if your horse does this, you might want to consider adding some strength training to your horse's regime.The Fringe Eventer Blog post # 9: When Life Hands You Lemons....
When Life Hands You Lemons....
As the old adage goes, you are supposed to make lemonade. I can clearly recall the first time I heard this saying. My first, out of the starting gate response was to change the scenario. That’s just how I roll. I remember thinking that I would trade my lemons for limes, dig around in my kitchen for some tequila, drag out the salt and make margaritas. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 137Horses love a routine… it gives them confidence. With the nervous or green horse, develop a warm up routine that you will use every day. And make sure it stays the same at shows.Tip/Quote of the Day # 136“The most important thing that I want to see today is horses looking where they’re going. I don’t want horses to be waiting, waiting, waiting for instruction. I want them to be looking forward, watching how their expressions change and how their ears lock onto the fences." ~ William Fox PittWhat To Do When a Half Halt Doesn't Work
It's a common scenario... you apply a half halt, and your horse doesn't respond as you would like. Maybe he resists you by fighting the bit, or gets faster and heavy in your hands. Maybe he hollows his back and starts to move with short, choppy strides. Or maybe he ignores you altogether! What do you do??
No pressure or anything... but you better have the right answer if you want your half halt to work better the next time! (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
Well with The Bravery Test, as with most tests and guidelines, there are almost always exceptions. He may turn out to be too timid to be a good Eventer, or he may be just fine as long as you are careful about how you introduce him to things. With this type of horse, I would... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer)Tip/Quote of the Day # 135Always be on the lookout for even the most subtle amount of bulging to the outside on circles and turns, as it is highly unbalancing to the horse. And remember that too much bend in the neck is the number one cause of bulging to the outside. Tip/Quote of the Day # 134Think about keeping your head up and still throughout the jumping motion to help keep your upper body more quietly poised.Video # 55: This is Catherine!(Click on Video Title above (in blue) to read the critique of this video)
Baby Seabiscuit (one of my 5yo OTTB projects) has made me think about another youngster I had some trouble with awhile back. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
At 24, I've aged out of Young Riders quite some time ago. The U-25 program through USEA requires a qualifying CCI** which my horse won't even be old enough for until 2015, when coincidentally I WILL be 25, turning 26. This year Jag is only 5, and ages into Prelim (and a CIC** but not an Intermediate, you figure that one out...). Him and I are in a bit of a strange place with it all... (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)Tip/Quote of the Day # 132Whenever a horse jumps in less than ideal form, it is almost always a result of loss of balance on the approach. So fix the problem by improving the quality of the canter on the approach. Tip/Quote of the Day # 131When you hurry a horse, you just get to the wrong place faster.Tip/Quote of the Day # 130Excessive bend in the neck, whether lateral (to the side) or longitudinal (behind the vertical), disconnects the haunches from the rein aids and allows the horse to remain locked up in other parts of the body, such as the poll and hips.My Take on the Difference Between the US Event Riders and Those 'Down Under' (2013) (Current Freebie!)
It's no secret that the riders from Australia and New Zealand regularly beat the Americans in the sport of Eventing. And since I recently had the wonderful opportunity of teaching lots of riders "down under", I have been thinking about some of the things that I noticed that could account for their extreme success. First of all, take a guess at how old the young Australian rider in the above picture is... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
How would you ride this Training level cross country complex? What line would you take through the combination? And what speed would you have on the approach? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
The low wide oxer exercise teaches the horse many valuable lessons! The biggest of which is how to truly use his body to stretch easily across fences with width. This gives the horse enormous confidence in his ability to handle wide obstacles, including open ditches. Once he understands this technique, he will just stretch easily across even the widest of open ditches, which means that you will be in better balance and have more control immediately upon landing, and will find it easier to get to that skinny jump that is probably just a few strides away!
Since this exercise teaches the horse how to bascule, and really use its topline to make the jump more efficient - the horse that practices it often carries the benefits into all of their jumping... producing a rounder jump that involves using their bodies more fully. Here's how to introduce this exercise: (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 128As your horse brings his body together from back to front into a higher level of balance and collection, if you do not shorten the reins to adapt to the horse's shorter body length, you will tend to lose what you have gained with respect to the "coiled spring" of the hind quarters. Discussion # 77: Which of these bits do you think is more harsh? Which of these two bits is more harsh in the horse's mouth? And why? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 127Land from a jump thinking about what you are going to do next. Don't land thinking about what you just did.Tip/Quote of the Day # 126Quote from Facebook fan Kristin Powers ~ "It takes WAY MORE outside rein than you ever think it does!"Tip/Quote of the Day # 125If you are inexperienced, it is truly invaluable to walk your cross country course with a coach. Due to terrain issues and fence design, there are many details that you are likely to miss if you are walking without a coach, or at least an experienced cross country rider.Tip/Quote of the Day # 124Practice your two point position. A lot.Guest Blog post # 28: "What's Not For Sale" by Beth RasinWhat's Not For Sale
Let’s admit it, most of us have had a horse or two we’ve been glad to see go. And maybe we’ve had a horse we wouldn’t let go. But most horses fall somewhere in the middle. There will come a time for them to leave our barns, but when is it and how do you know? (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)Video # 54: This is Kayla doing a Training level show jumping round!(Click on Video Title above (in blue) to read the critique of this video)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 123"If you go forward and "miss", your horse will forgive you. If you pull back and "miss", your horse will never forgive you." ~ Jimmy WoffordQuestion # 152: I have a question regarding the seasonal planning for horse training. I used to live in Sweden, and there we got 2 quite distinct relaxation periods for our horses. In the summer, all the horses go out to pasture, and most of them get some time off. It's easy to check in on each other's horses, so as a horse owner, you could leave for a few weeks and not worry about your horse rotting in his/her stall.
In the winter, we usually had to give the horses an easier time because of very adverse weather conditions. Sure, we'd both do dressage, jump and go galloping in the snow too, but a lot of the time, it just wasn't possible because of snow and wind. Again, the horses did get out in decently sized pastures where they could run and play together.
I now live in California, and I'm not sure how to plan my horse's exercise. It's never too hot or too cold to get out and ride, so there are no natural resting periods. Also, I live in a metropolitan area, so though my horse gets turned out pretty much every day, her paddock is only about twice the size of her stall, so no exercise at all there.
I have had my 7-year-old mare for about 18 months now, and she has yet to get more than 2-3 days off in a row, ever. I do take a few weeks here and there where we don't jump at all (otherwise 1-2 times/week), and we definitely ease up on the dressage in between shows, but I feel like it would be cruel to not let her move around at all. What is standard practice here - does the horse need a real vacation, and if so, would that mean temporarily sending her off to pasture a few hours away? (Nanna)
Hi Nanna!
You bring up a very important subject here, as it is very important to keep our horses fresh, happy, and healthy! I feel that all horses.... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to reaf full answer)Tip/Quote of the Day # 122You should always be just a nickel behind the horse's motion when jumping at speed.Tip/Quote of the Day # 121Transitions act as a test of your connection. If the quality of your connection is lacking as you begin a transition, it will be particularly evident as you execute it. Stirrup Length for Jumping
Having the correct stirrup length is a large contributing factor to success when jumping. It can literally make or break your performance! Attempting to jump with the wrong length of stirrup can make it very difficult for the rider to remain in balance throughout the jumping effort. Too short, and the rider is perched precariously out of the saddle. But it is actually pretty rare to see riders riding with stirrups that are too short. It is way more common for riders to ride with stirrups that are too long. And that causes lots of problems! Let me describe the typical scenario: (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 120If the horse is incorrect in the first stride of a movement, then don’t do the second stride. Abort, fix any connection issues, and start again. Tip/Quote of the Day # 119Train your horse to be responsible for maintaining the gait or movement you put him in, with no nagging from his rider.Tip/Quote of the Day # 118PREPARE for your transitions, don't just do them.Question # 151: I can't seem to find a bit that my OTTB doesn't want to spit out of his mouth...The minute I put the bridle on, he instantly begins trying to spit out the bit. I've tried a plethora of bits: mullen mouth, happy mouth, Myler Level 1 (the smaller diameter version), Double-jointed snaffles with a smooth oval lozenge, etc. He definitely has a low palate, so I tried a Happy Mouth mullen mouth bit‹he hated it. The issue seems to be his tongue. I suspect perhaps his tongue was tied down on the track? I've also tried hanging the bit higher and lower. I have not tried any of the yummy bit stuff. At any rate, it's affecting our connection because he concentrates so hard on trying to spit out the offending mouthpiece! I do not overtighten his noseband or use a flash. Any suggestions? (Courtney)
Hi Courtney!
Well, it sounds like you have tried a lot of different solutions to this problem! When you say you have tried the Myler Level 1 bit, I am assuming you are talking about the comfort snaffle? You might want to try... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer) Tip/Quote of the Day # 117“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing” ~ Theodore RooseveltVideo # 53: This is Kayla performing the Training level Eventing Test B!(Click on Video Title above (in blue) to read the critique of this video)
Many riders associate Dressage with longer stirrups, and immediately lower them to the point that it negatively affects their position. Stirrups that are too long will make your leg... (Click on Article Title above to read full article)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 115"It hardly needs to be mentioned that, in order to ride good corners in the arena, you have nothing more to do than to apply the same aids as for enlarging the circle. Just as we don’t need to mention that spiraling out on the circle is a preparatory exercise for shoulder-in and spiraling in on the circle is a preparatory exercise for the haunches-in." ~ KimmerleVideo # 52: This is Rachelle!I uploaded a video for you to help me with my jumping position. I have a really hard time folding my body and releasing with my hands but I think I am doing better and better with you help and others. If you could give me any alternate ways of telling me that I need to "release my hands over the jumps" (as an example) I feel like I know in my head what I need to do but have a hard time figuring out how to get my body to respond. Once you told me to push my hips back and that will fold my body and that was a light bulb going off for me:) Thanks!! (Rachelle)(Click on Video Title above (in blue) to read the critique of this video)
