Teaching my horse to jump-critique?

A year ago I bought a 23 yr. Old horse (now 24) and when we got him he couldn't jump anything. The owner told me he would never jump anything in his life, I may even forget trotting over poles. Of course, that did not stop me. XD

So I (first time horse owner) bought this really mean horse. He was terrible. He would makes holes in the ground from pawing so much and he wouldn't stop for anything. At a 1 to 10 scale of badness, he was a 9. Now, he is a 6 or 7ish. But anyway...

When I first teached him to jump, he would refuse 9/10 of them... literally. Now he accomplishes 7/10 jumps. We are jumping around 26 inches, I think.

As for me, I have been to lessons but never learned to jump higher than 6 inches. That was actually the reasons I quit lessons, the only ones close to here were Western and very boring. So I have been learning, a bit, too.

My problem is confidence issue. I have this "I'm just an AWFUL rider..." and I think all I need is some people to tell me what they think. The first pic is to critique my baby and the second is for me. I know in my critique pic, I need to look up more and need to have my calf farther up. The first pic was a TERRIBLE one of me, so please don't think I usually do that. Or look so big/awkward. =(



*Face bleeped for safety reasons*



Hard to see....=( I hate this pic... to be honest. But for now it's all I have.



Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dont jump the jump. That's is nwhat the horse is doing...all you have to do is stay seated (as you are bareback) and lean forward/bend at the hip also release alot more and keep your legs under you

Like this


I think bareback you hosuld stay seated and move with the horse

Anybody else? Please?

Your seat is amazing!!! Your horse is really pretty too.

90%-99% of refusals is rider error.

Right now, you really need to focus on flat work. Really work on strengthening your lower leg as to where it needs to be, and build on your horses muscle capacity, balance, etc, etc.

You aren't an aweful rider, you just need help :)

How long have you been jumping? If you haven't been jumping long I would recommend using a saddle before you go bareback. Like CharliBum said, you have to have a really good seat to do bareback jumping. I think it would help your horse too, if you had a saddle. Then you could learn to let HIM jump the jump instead of jumping ahead.

Just my two cents :)

Ps- he looks pretty good for 24

I have been jumping for four years, I think...

I have never fallen off from a jump. My balance is excellent, so I am not asking if I should be jumping bareback. My horse refused most of the jumps due to the fact he did not want to and wasn't ready. He didn't like it much, either. I have to admit, though, that I needed to be more patient with him. I will get some pictures today of me in the saddle. He doesn't do as well with a saddle. I have tried just not jumping the jump with him... I am training HIM to jump, it's not the other way around, so I need to guide instead of just holding on. If I don't help him match his stride up he fails.

I know you all are really trying to help... I appreciate it. I am also going to try to do as charlibum suggested. I will be getting pics and you can see how I'm doing. Would video be good? Also, I AM taking lessons this summer. I have never had real lessons, I have been to horse camp a few times but you gain only so much knowledge in those. I took one lesson and the instructor (trust me... she is the type to tell you you're terrible if you are) said I do great, BUT, I need to keep my calf in place. But even pros, I've noticed, legs slip terribly. Of course, they are going over 6 foot jumps at an alarming rate, but still....

But what I want to know the most is if i've done a good job training him. Not my looks, as such.

Sorry for the sass. It's too hot here and I have been in a bad mood...


Thanks! Keep the tips coming!

Your horse actually looks like he's interested in jumping. He's got a curious and actually kind expression on his face, his ears are forward, his knees are fairly even and high and he's being careful. Maybe he's not mean so much as smart and really bored. A lot of horses need different "games" such as jumping to keep their minds engaged. I've never jumped bareback before. All I can say is wait for the horse to jump and just close your hip angle.

Is this better? I guess I should have sat even more but he doesn't jump nearly as well that way.