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Jumping Critique please? Me and my 14.2hh pony

2K views 12 replies 7 participants last post by  updownrider 
#1 ·
Hope this link works...

Video of me riding my 14.2hh pony Colby over a course of jumps.
The jumps are 80cm -1m. Thoughts on Colby's ability to jump courses 1.15m?

Please critique my position as well as Colby's scope etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5zfggzhPbg
 
#5 ·
I agree that he isn't balanced. Not ready for jumping, especially that big. However, being the fact that he can just and clear them, he definitely has the potential to do at least that, if not better, BALANCED.

Go back to the basics, trot over ground poles, canter of ground poles, X jumps, and a LOT of flat work. Preparing your horse to jump isn't all jumping.. believe it or not, it's mostly flat work. Teaching your horse balance is key.

Hope I helped, and good luck! :)
 
#7 ·
OP, you seem to be very tall. Do you have a larger horse to work with? I would dare to say that you may have out grown ponies, or be close to it. :/ I agree with the others, he does seem off balance, and doesn't seem to want/know how to keep a steady pace. -- Almost as if he is very confused/frazzled. Do you any other videos? Maybe with him a little more calm?
 
#8 ·
Thanks for all your help!!
Yes, I have recently teamed up with a great trainer who is really helping me get my flat work up to scratch.
I am 16yrs old and come early next year when I turn 17 I am no longer allowed to compete my pony so I will be selling him to a good home and buying myself a horse. I do have a 15.2hh horse at home but she has arthritis and is not suitable for jumping higher than 50-60cm so I can't compete her.
When I got Colby, he had only been ridden at a walk and trot as his owner was a beginner rider. I have owned him for a year and in that year he has come a long way, he still has quite a way to go but when I got him he would zig zag infront of the jumps, approach at a mad canter and bolt after the jump etc.
Currently at home we are working on a slow, controlled trot to the jumps when warming up and a balanced, even canter around the whole course (not just after the jumps).
He's doing really well and improves so much each day.
Thanks everyone for your comments and keep them coming!!
 
#9 ·
I disagree, OP doesn't look too tall for this pony at all. They actually look like they could be a pretty good team AFTER going back to basics and getting some balance / preparation in there. You won't be able to jump a course any bigger than this until you have a good forward canter, balance, rhythm and an eye for distance. Your horse is kind of all over the place and could definitely use some work moving off your leg in addition to all that balance work you need to do. IMO you need to go back to gymnastics and little courses, get all of that perfected and then start moving up. You're just barely making it around he course.
 
#10 ·
I'm also curious as to why you have no consistent contact (see toward the end of the video where you hold your hands way up in the air, what's your reasoning for that? Does the horse dislike contact, do you think it's easier on his mouth? A gentle, following hand with a lighter rein would be FAR more beneficial, with floppy reins come a banging bit and as soon as you lift the reins way up like that you create an irritating connection). All throughout the video your hands are either floating up in the air or out to the sides.
 
#11 ·
When I got him he used to zig and zag before jumping the jumps and I found that when I hold my hands out like that he stays straighter.
He is now mostly over his zigzagging so I should probably stop doing it. :)
Also he is inclined to go really fast as he gets excited around jumps and if I hold onto him he gets annoyed and chucks his head around so I try to sit really still and use my seat to slow him down not the reins.
 
#12 ·
Well then it definitely sounds like you need to go back to 'jumping 101' with this horse. IE: cross rails, lots of cross rails, get him in the middle, get him straight. You don't need hand gimmicks, you need even pressure in your legs, you need him to listen to you and go where he's directed. Grid work will help the rushing, little grids (ie: cross rails) with lots and lots of bounces, exercises to work on his 'woah' and backing him off from the jump.
IMO with those types of issues and jumping at this height are a recipe for disaster.
 
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