a few jumping problems

[~*sugarlump*~]

ok :p
Firstly:
i dont know why but when riding certain horses i fold differently. i rode 4 different horses on 1 day, jumped 3 of them. with the first one i had jumped him before (13hh plucky little cobby pony, very bouncy, love him;)) and i felt confident and guy who was jumping with me said i had a good balance jump position.
however! when jumping in the night on an arab that id only ever done flatwork on my position was different. tbh i was nervous of jumping the arab, i dont know why but i feel alot less confident jumping skinnier horses :o and apparently for the first few jumps i was bacially just standing up abit in the saddle, and i wasnt really "with" the horse:confused: after that i made more of a conscious effort to fold properly. and as my confidence grew abit it got better and we looked alot more together.
do nerves really change your jump position?

ok secondly:
i dont know whether i only just noticed it on the arab, but i was tending to not sit up properly for awhile after the jump. i really have just noticed that while i was on the arab which makes me woner if i actually do it on the other ponies, my RI said that i was riding "defensively" whilst jumping her, and especially on the get away of the jump
sooo any hints on how to sit up more after the jump?


it really does seem strange, my confidence whilst jumping silv (13hh pony) is growing and im really happy with it, and for some reason whilst jumping cobs i feel alot more confident, but when i was on Athena (arab) all i could think was "i really dont feel comfortable"
:confused:
please helpx

[-x-laurrie-x-]

hi :)

i know what you mean, i love jumping my horse but theres something that feels so much better about jumping a solid little pony. I'm the same - i feel much more connected!
First problem - I'd say yes. If you're confident you really throw yourself at it and go with the movement; if you're abit hesitant and letting the jump come to you you're likely to get left behind or just loose the rhythm. Something else I've found from experience - it may not be true of other people - but with ponies the jump lasts along longer. Of course it depends on the height of the jump but a pony can leave the ground going over a 2ft3 jump whereas for a horse its more of a big canter stride. Does that make sense? With a horse over low jumps I find its very up-down and very hard to get a decent position in that time. Ponies can power at it and give you a much nicer rounded shape. Of course that may be irrelevant depending on how high your jumping with Athena but just a thought :) my position improved HUGELY after jumping the yard pocket rocket which then helped me which the horses.

Second problem - Not as much to say on this one you'll be glad to hear! I think now you're aware of it you will probably improve anyway - identifying the problem is half way to solving it and all that :rolleyes:

and thirdly, credit to you for riding 4 horses in a day :D

Don't know if that helped, but concentrate on the cobs for a while and get your position sussed. Once you've got it it's hard to loose - not that I'd know, my position is nonexistent at the moment :rolleyes:! But then when you ride the skinny long legged things you shouldnt have to think about it. :D

best of luck
xx

[Merrybridge]

Maybe it's more in the mind..... perhaps you were thinking, sub-conciously, that the Arab was going to be more "buzzy" than the cob (not that cobs can't be like that, cos my old RS had several) and that's what made you more uptight on the Arab? Plus, you'd never jumped the Arab before and that always sets the nerves off a bit cos you didn't know how it was going to feel. My mare (a horse) bends a lot over a fence as if her neck and head are disappearing from you but a grade A pony I jumped recently held himself really upright. I think you're riding ok if you're on 4 different horses/ponies in a day:D

[~*sugarlump*~]

tbh i dont mind fast, i dont know why i was more nervous, :rolleyes:

anyone anymore ideas?:)