jumping problems...please help!!!

[HoRsE ChIcK]

Hello fellow riders!

I have a few questions concerning my horse's jumping problems.here I go:
At home or at just regular competitions, flicka will jump over things fine and rarely refuses. But whenever I go to an event, she will refuse every jump in cross country or stadium. Well, they arn't really refusals, she stops and then i urge her on and she jumps, she would be refusing. It doesnt count as a refusal unless they take a step back from the jump, but she just stops, and then juumps. As I said earlier, she never does this at home or at normal competitons. I am sure she isnt scared of the jumps, it just seems like a game. but no matter how hard I push her before the jump, or even if I give her a tap with the crop a few strides before, she will still stop infront of it, and then jump. Right now, th highest she's jumping in competition is 3 feet and at home 3.6 so she can jump those from a standstill any way, but when we get into higher levels, she is going to fall on cross country, or just collect loads of faults in stadium!!! In eventing they dont care how ** horse does it, so im not placed down for it!!which is why im so happy she doesnt do it in cnormal competitions! I have tried everything and trust me, I mean everything, so if you have any suggestions I would be greatful!!

Next thing, over jumps she twists in midair even just little cross rails. She'll sometimes twist and then buck in midair. Its like a little game to her but its sure annoying to me!!!:mad: hehe.
Last thing, I promise, Would it be benificial in show jumping and stadium if legs were tucked up and even like a hunters?
Some of these questions might sound a bit begginerish, but I have been riding for 6 years and jumping for 3, its just I didnt really learn to ride on a school horse. I learned how to walk trot canter on a thoroughbred off the track, and then when I got my horse, she was barely trained (she is incredibly hyper and was at a summer camp with 5 different kids on her per day) not a good situation. Any way, so when I got her she was not very trained so we taught each other which isnt a good way to do it! any way, any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much
~Holly~

[cvb]

Q:Would it be benificial in show jumping and stadium if legs were tucked up and even like a hunters?

A: yes, because a clean neat jump like that is less likely to knock a pole.

Next thing, over jumps she twists in midair even just little cross rails. She'll sometimes twist and then buck in midair.

Sounds like some work to improve her basic jumping style would help.

she stops and then i urge her on and she jumps

Could be lack of confidence, stress from the environment, or even tension from you ?

Overall it would sound like taking a step back at home, and doing some gymnastic work would improve her style and probably help her confidence too.

Then a few shows where you do some small classes just as schooling rounds, aiming to ride them like an equitation class i.e. flowing and with good style.

(But then, having read your other thread, sorting out bit problems might help as well ;) )

[FreedomStar]

Well, you school over 3'6" fences at home, and do 3' competitions, right? It may be that since you do such large jumps at home and they're half a foot smaller at competitions, she's surprised and starts playing around because she thinks you're not serious about the jumping cuz the jumps are so much smaller.And yes, it does help if the horse has her legs tucked up for showjumping, better form, better jumping. Also, when she bucks, give a small tap with the whip to remind her that you still mean business.

[Cochise]

with regards to the bucking over the jumps and twisting mid air, but only at competitions, check out the ground conditions, she may not be used to it. is the ground too hard?
I have experienced this first hand with my horse bucking over jumps at a show. the problem wasnt him just being at the show, it was that his saddle wasnt fitting. he was just telling me, "hey, I am not comfortable here, and here you are asking me to jump this big and go fast! it HURTS!"
always worth getting this sorted. Otherwise, it may be excitement etc.
Also the refusing of jumps may be that she is not used to jumps like this eg they are weird looking to what she is used to, or it could be the saddle/ back thing again.

[savannah1270]

i think you should work on gymnastics. it also sounds like your horse is bored with the jumps, because you likened her bad habits to a game that she was playing. you should ask a more experienced rider to school her over higher jumps and possibly in the same competitions she has a problem with, because you might be unconsciously anticipating her stopping and then jumping, which might be making her do it. watch an experienced rider and see if she pulls the same stunts. if so, then it really is a disciplinary problem that should be dealt with by solid gymnastics exercises and firm schooling. if she behaves properly with another rider on her back, then you need to rethink your riding mentality. what signals are you projecting when you ride that might be making her do this?

find the root of the problem, and attack it from there. good luck!