If you can't do that 4 stride line WELL in both 4 and 5 strides, you have not been doing enough homework. A rideable and adjustable horse is the key to success when jumping.
If you don't give after your horse responds to your aids, you will find that you have to ask harder the next time. And that cycle will continue, until you end up with an unresponsive horse.
The use of "half steps" in your training can be very beneficial, as it can help the horse to understand the idea of engagement without increasing speed.
When you are able to give a little on the inside rein as your horse is picking up the canter, you give your horse the best chance to make a soft, smooth canter transition.
You will find that you become most productive when you have a specific goal for each training session. Be flexible, of course. But know exactly what you plan to work on for every ride. Aimless riding is simply exercise.
For those of you who know you ride in stirrups that are too long over fences (which is quite common), spend some time practicing with your stirrups 3 or 4 holes shorter. Then when you put them down a few holes (leaving them a few holes shorter than your initial length), you will be more comfortable with the change.
The horse's loin area (behind the saddle) is loosened and suppled with each good lateral step behind. Just one reason of many why lateral steps are a very important part of training horses.
Make sure your inside leg is quietly on the horse before you begin a turn. Even though your outside aids actually turn your horse, your inside leg is the post that he needs to bend around. Many riders are caught out with their inside leg completely off, and only put it on when they find their horse is falling in through the turn. By that time, it is much harder to correct.
The rider that helps the horse to carry himself in the best balance in the canter is poised and still in the upper body, while remaining supple and following in their hips and elbows.
If you attempt to teach your horse to jump, to go through water, or to jump over a ditch when the horse is not first trained to go instantly forward from the leg, you are not setting yourself up for success.
Don't forget that the way the distance rides between two jumps changes as the fence height changes. The horse will land further into a line or combination when the jumps are larger, which makes the distance effectively shorter.
Imagine an open ditch as a triple bar, so that you come close to the edge on the takeoff, and ride forward across the back edge. Doing so will make the jumping effort easier for the horse, and give him confidence.
"Lightness, whose characteristic lies in the elastic and springy flexibility of all joints and muscles, can only be acquired after all resistances have completely disappeared, that is, with the disappearance of all inopportune contractions." ~ Alexis François L’Hotte
From Facebook fan Gabby Ballin: "Some rides are going to be perfect. Some rides are going to have you wondering why you don't quit riding. When that happens, take a deep breath and go back to something you know you and your horse can do easily."
Don't copy successful riders' bad habits. Instead, look at what they do WELL. Just because they can pull off success with quirky form doesn't mean you can.
Take yourtimewhen riding transitions. Many riders seem to rush through them just to get them done. Be conscious of preparing for each one, and feeling all of the details while you are making the transition - being ready toabort the transitionif things start to go wrong.
When riders stiffen their shoulders it can cause them to also have tense, tight arms and hands. To relax your shoulders, take a deep breath in, and exhale fully... looking for the feeling that your shoulders and elbows drop and become supple.
Those riding a strong horse on cross country should generally ride with their stirrups on the short side. The increased angles give the rider more strength to deal with apuller.
The horse's back is like a bridge that connects its front and hind legs. It is the rider's job to keep that bridge stable and consistently level, or even better slightly lifted into an "UP" position like an arched bridge. When the horse's back is regularly allowed to remain in a hollow position with a rider's weight on board, the horse's back will be damaged... eventually.
Always use both reins together to steer, especially when jumping. Using one rein only turns the horse's nose - leaving the rest of his body to derail. While using both reins together turn the horse at the shoulders, meaning his body will more accurately follow your chosen line.
An exercise to check if you are sitting straight and putting your weight equally down into both stirrups is to stand straight up for a few strides, and notice which stirrup you have to consciously put more weight into to keep yourself balanced.
"Adopt a classical position, resist all fads and gadgets, and ride the horse quietly and softly between the two straight lines of the stirrup leather and the elbow to the horse's mouth. It's simple. It's just not easy." ~ Jimmy Wofford
While it is important to have a plan when riding, you should be ready to adapt that plan as necessary. Ultimately, you ride the horse and not the plan!
If there is a jump on your cross country course that you are worried about, you certainly don't want to have to face it twice! So ride it like you are mad at it, and "get 'er done"!
From Facebook fan Mary Apfel-Vandeyacht ~ "Riding is a lot like driving a manual transmission... You may be able to make it go (when learning how to ride), but you're going to break it and look like a schmuck unless you learn to do it right."
"In the half halt that creates carrying power, we are asking the horse to slow down and carry more weight when his hind leg joints are closed and his hind foot is on the ground. The levade, in which the horse sits on his hindquarters, is the ultimate example of this kind of closing of the joints while carrying the weight." ~ George Williams
The use of "half steps" in your training can be very beneficial, as it can help the horse to understand the idea of engagement without increasing speed.
From Facebook fan Stacey Ellen, "At dressage shows I like to watch the [good] pros; their hands are in serving tray position and they always seem to be offering something to their horse not containing them."
Be extra careful when conditioning both young horses and older horses. Young horses have tendon/ligaments/bones that have not yet been strengthened. And the older horse’s ligaments and tendons tend to become less elastic and resilient over time.
"I'm a big fan of ground lines. I think it teaches the horse to have better technique in front. Everything that we do is connected — the way we start on the cross rail to this, it all connects. We're building through our training." ~ McLain Ward
Keep breathing. It is much easier to remember a Dressage test or a course of jumps with the benefit of a little oxygen. If you have difficulty with this, try talking out loud while on course, or in your head during a Dressage test. This will help you to relax and breathe naturally.
When you ride powerfully "forward to the base" of your jumps you allow your horse to jump in such a way that is actually the easiest and most natural for him. Powerful, but not necessarily fast. This is about impulsion, not speed.
Building the horse's power right to the base of the jump means that he stresses his hocks less on the takeoff. The horse that is underpowered has to push that much harder to get over that jump. And being balanced with his hind legs well under him means less stress on his front legs on the landing side.
