Gina had me going over to the neighbor's beeyootiful jump field today for a jump school, which was unexpected and a pleasant surprise. We've been doing nothing but trotting jumps and going through gymnastics, so I wondered what we were doing over there with all the colorful stadium jumps.
Oliver was a bit spooky on the hack over, being very silly about a rolltop in the fenceline (but I guarantee if we had been cantering at it to jump it, he wouldn't have spooked at it) and then spooking at Cathy (I think that's her name - she owns the field) working a lovely bay horse in-hand at the top by the barn, and then spooking one last time at a bright neon green hose coiled up by the entry gate to the field. He hasn't spooked this much in months. I think it's a combination of Gina feeding him more and him being almost completely naked (I think I stripped too much hair off him when I clipped him). He started his warmup by going too quickly in his tempo, wanting to run downhill and not stay soft, and I could tell his neck was elevated and curled in. I halted him and then asked him to bend his neck around to touch my toes, and then asked him to walk off in a straight line with his neck still being bent around, and then asked him to make small circles and push his haunches out. After a few minutes of that, he started to soften and listen to me instead of bulling onto the bit and hauling me around. When Gina finished up her lesson, she had me trot endlessly over a single pole on the ground - I say endlessly because Oliver wasn't paying the least bit of attention to it and was sort of wobbling over it and tripping over it during a few passes. Finally, when I was able to keep him straight, get him to step OVER the pole and lift his feet, and keep him straight on the landing side, Gina had me canter over the pole. Again, I was to keep the same rhythm, keep the canter smaller and contained, and canter over the center of the pole. Gina explained that Oliver wants the canter to get long and quick because then he doesn't have to use his butt. Keeping things slower for him when he wants to run off like that helps keep his body parts in alignment, which in turn keeps him pushing from behind onto the bit.
Gina also told me that I should never, ever start jumping this horse, even out of a trot, until I've done this exercise and kept him straight, or else he'll just push through the reins to the jump or get squiggly. Once we did a few good passes over the fence, all done on a big circle, she had me canter random jumps in the arena. Gina wanted me to really hold him together and not allow him to waggle his head up and down and back and forth, and for the first time in a long time I was able to see just how MUCH he loves to bounce around in the bridle at the canter. If I kept my weight distributed evenly between my feet and my thighs, I could sit down, really TAKE that outside rein (even if he's counterbent in the neck), and then regulate the canter through that. Keeping my weight evenly distributed also helped keep my left foot from falling asleep. Gina and I both think that I tend to put too much weight in my feet, pushing down too hard through the heel, which causes it to fall numb. Supporting myself through my entire leg and concentrating on keeping my thigh closed (not gripped, just closed) enabled me to ride without pain - always a good thing. I also really focused on riding the outside of his body - outside rein to regulate speed, outside rein to turn. I got yelled at once because I turned toward a blue gate too soon - I was heading down a slight inclince, and I thought I gave myself enough room to straighten before the fence, but Gina told me that with Oliver (for now), I had to really give myself at least 5-6 strides of being completely straight before I jumped anything. Keeping him straight helped with seeing a spot.
There were a couple of times I saw a long spot and resisted (somewhat successfully) my inclination to gun at it, which of course makes Oliver leap over it inverted like a stag and then run afterwards. Since I didn't make that bid, I also didn't do anything else, so we sort of barfed over the fence. I got chastised for that by Gina, and I told her that I knew what I was supposed to do, but couldn't seem to make myself do it in time. The next time that happened, I really focused on sitting up but keeping my hips back, hands closed around the reins, and adding leg to support him and we took the jump out of a shortened stride, but no barfing.
Gina said that the reason why he's barfing over the fence when I do nothing is because he is no longer making a bid towards the jump, so he doesn't know WHAT to do when I don't help him. This is progress, because before he'd just grab the bit and run. NOw that he's waiting for me and jumping very quietly (YES!), I have to help him and support him. Very cool. Lucky for me, he's quite honest and willing. G says that he still has to push off more at the base of the fence, since he's "drapey" (good with his knees but hangs below them), but these fences are also only 2ish feet high. He's also fairly new to getting to the base and pushing off, so hopefully the more we do this, and the stronger his canter gets, and the more gymnastic time we spend, he'll push off and round more. Right now, I'm thrilled that he's waiting for me at the fences.
Now, I just have to get into that dressage ring and practice the new, weird tests...
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