Improvement? And Critique :)

Hey yall!

Just critique this video. The horse is Cajun. He's somewhat green over fences and this was my first time riding him. He's my new lesson horse now! I've been jumping for almost a year now, but very seldomly. Probably about twice a month. The clips from July are from lessons with my old instructor who gave lessons for fun. The clips from Nov. are from lessons with my new trainer who judges EQ shows and rides a lot himself. I like him a lot more, lol!


Just critique!

To be honest I don't see much difference between the two times, but I have a few things to comment on.

You release nicely, but you come back a little too early and that is jabbing Cajun in the mouth abit. Try to keep your hands forward when you come back from the light seat and gradually bring them back.

Otherwise, you look pretty good. You have lovely lower legs, they are very still which is what you want.

And then another thing, when you do flatwork, lengthen your stirrups by two holes. It will allow your legs to stretch down nicely so you can have a better posture for flatwork.

I see a difference.

Your release over fences in the July clip needed some refining, (catching your horse in the mouth after the fence) and in the second clip although you're still a little early coming back, I see an improvement. My suggestion is to roll your knuckles into your horse's crest through the ENTIRE release, and even one or two strides after the jump so that you get rid of the jack-in-the-box hands and get into the habit of keeping them down for a nice crest release.

Your leg was pretty good in the first clip, and in the second it's solidified. Excellent!

Hands got a lot better from the first to second clip on the flat. In the first clip they were too far out in front of you, and in the second one you seem to have found a much more functional place for them. Keeping them still while you post the trot is going to be a challenge, but just work on it and think about when you ride.

In both clips, don't roach your back in between fences. Sit up straight and tall.

Keep up the good work!

I see a difference.

Your release over fences in the July clip needed some refining, (catching your horse in the mouth after the fence) and in the second clip although you're still a little early coming back, I see an improvement. My suggestion is to roll your knuckles into your horse's crest through the ENTIRE release, and even one or two strides after the jump so that you get rid of the jack-in-the-box hands and get into the habit of keeping them down for a nice crest release.

Your leg was pretty good in the first clip, and in the second it's solidified. Excellent!

Hands got a lot better from the first to second clip on the flat. In the first clip they were too far out in front of you, and in the second one you seem to have found a much more functional place for them. Keeping them still while you post the trot is going to be a challenge, but just work on it and think about when you ride.

In both clips, don't roach your back in between fences. Sit up straight and tall.

Keep up the good work!

When I land the jump, what exactly can I do to make my seat softer when landing? I'll work on my hands in the landing.

I normally do lengthen my stirrups a bit for flatwork, but this lesson was mostly jumping and i didn't want to have to switch back and forth from jumping length to flatwork length :) but thanks!

Quote:

I see a difference. Your release over fences in the July clip needed some refining, (catching your horse in the mouth after the fence) and in the second clip although you're still a little early coming back, I see an improvement. My suggestion is to roll your knuckles into your horse's crest through the ENTIRE release, and even one or two strides after the jump so that you get rid of the jack-in-the-box hands and get into the habit of keeping them down for a nice crest release. Your leg was pretty good in the first clip, and in the second it's solidified. Excellent! Hands got a lot better from the first to second clip on the flat. In the first clip they were too far out in front of you, and in the second one you seem to have found a much more functional place for them. Keeping them still while you post the trot is going to be a challenge, but just work on it and think about when you ride. In both clips, don't roach your back in between fences. Sit up straight and tall. Keep up the good work!

I'm glad someone sees improvement! I was hoping y'all would! Just like the first question I asked, how can I soften my seat in the landing? I'll try your tip for my release too!

I never noticed my hands moved at the posting trot, but I worked a little on that this weekend. Gah, there's so many things to concentrate on at once! Thanks for the critique!

I agree with Kerplop on the differences in your riding.

Question: Are you riding him in a curb bit? I saw that in the flat portion at the end you definitely were but I didn't know if you were jumping him in it. If so, that's a really bad plan. Snaffles are best :)

Cajun's not my horse, he's just my lesson horse. I don't have control over the tack i put on him. If it were my choice, he's definitely have a snaffle, but it's not. I'll ask my trainer if there's anyway his bit can be changed though.

I was going to comment on the bit as well...he doesn't 'appear' to really need that much control, but...

Your arms are really bracey...thus you don't have a straight line all the time from elbow to bit; rather your arm is straight from shoulder to hand...not good, as that doesn't allow you much control if the horse does brace against you. Try to relax your arm better; make sure you've got a nearly 90 degree angle in your elbow; this gives you the most range of motion should the horse try to pull or fight against you.

I think you're doing well.

I'll ask Brian if there's any way we could use a different bit.

I'll really try to relax. Sometimes I even forget to breathe, haha! I am still working on perfecting the little things in riding that an experienced rider doesn't really have to think about so I'm always thinking about 10 million things at once and I just tense up! But I'll try to relax and bend my elbows :)

I really like your saddle pad!