[savvylover112]

Here are some pictures of Phoebe just wondering how far you guys think she would be able to go in showjumping. We have jumped 1m courses competitively which is 3 foot 3 inches and we have jumped about 1.20m at home which is nearly 4 foot. The first couple of pictures are conformation shots which are a bit small so sorry for that and the last one is of us jumping 1.10m at home. So just tell me what you think.

 

[Lobelia Overhill]

How old is she, and how long has she been jumping?

She needs to snap her forelegs up a bit more to make sure she clears higher jumps, I suppose really you'll just have to try and see!

 

[eventerdrew]

Meh. hard to tell from the pics and I would need to see her over bigger fences but like the previous poster said, she needs to snap her legs up. She hangs her knees and her forelegs are "scissored".

that being said, looks like she really tries. Need to see her over bigger

 

[savvylover112]

Thanks so much for the quick replies

Oh yeah forgot she is 16 and she is 15.1hh. The highest we have jumped is only ten centimetres up from the height in the picture but eventerdrew you are right that she really tries. I will be going down to the arena down the road in the next couple of days. I don't particularly like just trying to jump a big jump on its own do either of you or any one else have any grid work ideas that could build up to having a bigger jump at the end?

 

[savvylover112]

Bumping this up

 

[gypsygirl]

i would set up a one stride to a two stride & have the last jump and oxer & higher =]

 

[maura]

I have to say that her jumping form in the photo you posted .... scares me. Sorry. Horses that have trouble getting their forearm horizontal or above are prone to bad falls if they misjudge a fence and catch a knee or forearm. The fact that she is both hanging and uneven makes it even more unsafe. I would *not* jump her over anything solid.

The good news is that she is really trying, she's making a big effort with her body over this fence because she doesn't know how to use her legs efficiently.
So has the correct instinct, she wants to be safe and live to see dinner. And there are things you can do to improve her form.

I think lots of low gymastics would really help her -- trot poles to a series of bounces to a one stride with a square oxer on the out, building up to this gradually, one element at a time. I would not go for more height until her form has improved. Also, she needs to have a true ground rail on *everything* for a while, may even rolled out six inchs to a foot from the base of the fence to help her correctly judge take off.

 

[savvylover112]

I have to say that her jumping form in the photo you posted .... scares me. Sorry. Horses that have trouble getting their forearm horizontal or above are prone to bad falls if they misjudge a fence and catch a knee or forearm. The fact that she is both hanging and uneven makes it even more unsafe. I would *not* jump her over anything solid.

The good news is that she is really trying, she's making a big effort with her body over this fence because she doesn't know how to use her legs efficiently.
So has the correct instinct, she wants to be safe and live to see dinner. And there are things you can do to improve her form.

I think lots of low gymastics would really help her -- trot poles to a series of bounces to a one stride with a square oxer on the out, building up to this gradually, one element at a time. I would not go for more height until her form has improved. Also, she needs to have a true ground rail on *everything* for a while, may even rolled out six inchs to a foot from the base of the fence to help her correctly judge take off.

Thank you very much for your opinion but may I ask why would you not jump her over anything solid?
She is actually much better out cross country and out hunting.

 

[savvylover112]

Okay here are some better pictures I think they are better anyway maybe it was just that one jump she was jumping weird

I do own these Photos but do not own a scanner so needed to take them off the website

 

[savvylover112]

Ok that didn't work em heres the links just then

Ravensdale Lodge 5th December 2008
Ravensdale Lodge Equestrian 12th October 2008
Ravensdale Lodge Equestrian 12th October 2008
Ravensdale Lodge Equestrian 12th October 2008
Ravensdale Lodge Equestrian 12th October 2008
Ravensdale Lodge Equestrian 12th October 2008
Ravensdale Lodge Equestrian 12th October 2008

 

[ridingismylife2]

I think your horse looks nice but IMO you need to really work on your form.
Not trying to be mean or anything. No one's perfect.
It looks like you're standing in the stirrups instead of sinking your weight into your heels which also leads to your legs swinging and you pinching with your knees and it looks like you're jumping ahead, you need to be more in the center of the saddle. This is just going to make it harder for your horse to jump.
*I'm really bad at explaining xD sorry.

 

[SarahHershey]

I believe, she said that because, if she cannot pick up her feet or her body correctly, she has a really high chance of misjudging a jump and collapsing on it, or on you.

 

[savvylover112]

Oh ok thanks

and to ridingismylife2 I know you are not trying to be mean. I know I need a lot of work on my form over all and I know that it is part of the problem but this thread is about my horse and I will be posting in the next couple of weeks in the critique section about my form because I know I need work on it and thank you for trying to explain Everyone is so helpful

 

[eventerdrew]

alright. Looked at the new pics. I still see the same thing that maura is seeing. Her bascule is good, which means she could learn to pick up her feet. However, her knees are not even and instead of picking her knees up, all she is doing is folding her forelimbs. If she could learn to pick up her knees I think she would be fine. But espeically in the last pic you can tell that she is kind of struggling over that height even.

I think that gridwork would be really good for Phoebe. Looks like she would benefit from a bounce exercise. Put up like 5 or 6 x rails in a bounce, then put up the jumps farthest away first. Then just work from there until you get up to like 3 foot or so.

 

[savvylover112]

Okay thank you all for the advice and help I will hopefully be going up to an arena on Wednesday and I will be able to work on the gridwork.
Is there any other way to teach her to lift her legs properly as well as gridwork?

 

[ridingismylife2]

I just mentioned it because it can affect how the horse jumps
haha...

 

[Alwaysbehind]

I agree with the others that mention the form of her front end. She sure looks like she is trying her heart out for you but with how she does not fold and lift her front end she is almost dangerous. I agree with the advice to please not jump her over anything that is large and solid.

 

[maura]

Ridingismylife,

Rude, uncalled for and not particularly helpful. Head on jumping shots are never useful for judging rider form; when I looked at the over fences photos linked to in the thread, I did not see anywhere near enough jumping ahead/leaning on the front end to explain the mare's form. What I did see was 1.) a horse with an upright shoulder, which makes it physically more difficult for the horse to lift it's forearm and 2.) a very petite rider compared to the size and bulk of the horse. I also noticed that the mare consistently hangs her left knee lower than the right, yet the rider doesn't appear to be leaning or weighting that side. Since the horse is overjumping with her body to compensate for the front end, she probably feels like she's jumping way bigger than she is and is hard to stick with.

 

[anrz]

Ridingismylife,

Rude, uncalled for and not particularly helpful. Head on jumping shots are never useful for judging rider form; when I looked at the over fences photos linked to in the thread, I did not see anywhere near enough jumping ahead/leaning on the front end to explain the mare's form. What I did see was 1.) a horse with an upright shoulder, which makes it physically more difficult for the horse to lift it's forearm and 2.) a very petite rider compared to the size and bulk of the horse. I also noticed that the mare consistently hangs her left knee lower than the right, yet the rider doesn't appear to be leaning or weighting that side. Since the horse is overjumping with her body to compensate for the front end, she probably feels like she's jumping way bigger than she is and is hard to stick with.

I don't think it was rude . She was just pointing out that sometimes the rider's position will affect the horse's form. It's true, and everyone has things to work on. Instead of just saying that she needs to work on her position, she explained why and what. Not rude, and I think it would be helpful, if it was me. I agree with other people that schooling over small jumps/gridwork will help the OP's horse to tidy up her front-end some more .

 

[savvylover112]

Ridingismylife,

Rude, uncalled for and not particularly helpful. Head on jumping shots are never useful for judging rider form; when I looked at the over fences photos linked to in the thread, I did not see anywhere near enough jumping ahead/leaning on the front end to explain the mare's form. What I did see was 1.) a horse with an upright shoulder, which makes it physically more difficult for the horse to lift it's forearm and 2.) a very petite rider compared to the size and bulk of the horse. I also noticed that the mare consistently hangs her left knee lower than the right, yet the rider doesn't appear to be leaning or weighting that side. Since the horse is overjumping with her body to compensate for the front end, she probably feels like she's jumping way bigger than she is and is hard to stick with.

Thank you everyone for your replies you have all been very helpful to me

So you think her conformation is affecting her a bit on the way she jumps?

Yes after looking through my other pictures at home she does hang her leg knee lower than the right.

Do you think that more work on the flat would also help as well as gridwork?

and just for more reference here is a video I am the last person in the video. From where it says me and Phoebe till the end