Amazing Aske and a discussion about some very scarey riding!

[kerilli]

Koko, I'm not sure, R&T was only at 2-days (long gone) and 3 days so it was perfectly possible to event for years without doing a 'chase.
I think the lower levels with small fences are a big part of the problem and the danger, ironically. When we had to start at Novice it was rather black/white... you and your horse were either brave enough and decent enough, or not (in which case you went back to hunter trials, show-jumping etc and never tried eventing with that horse again... as some of my friends did!) 3'7" fixed is not really to be trifled with. Now with 80cm classes, anyone thinks they can get round... and most horses can cope with 80cm, no bravery required!

I was thinking about Firewell's post while I was hacking, and it's weird, and a very fine line... I don't ever expect it to go perfectly, part of the training is for the horse to know enough and be confident enough that when it's NOT perfect, the horse just goes "yeah, got this, can do that from here" and covers for you (seamlessly, hopefully!) if that makes sense. That's a very big part of LG's training clinics... honing horse and rider skills, increasing reaction times of both, so that you will both cope when the distance isn't perfect, for e.g.

 

[suzi]

Have read this with interest as horse and I have our first XC coming up this weekend.

I have owned him 18months and he had done one xc schooling session with his previous owner.

I spent the first year trying to get him balanced and off my seat and not tanking at every fence in sight and when offered the chance to go xc my words were 'no not yet - I'm not jumping a fixed fence at that speed!'.

He's always going to be quick - that's just him. But I am now a million times better at reading him and he is getting better at coming back to a sensible pace (most of the time) and listening to me a little more.

We have xc schooled on several occasions over the summer and have entered a 2ft6 - 2ft9 HT.

We are not ready for competition in one sense as I am still not sure I have suitable control all of the time, but I have decided it is time to try some xc schooling with lots of stuff going on around him as it may well blow his mind - in which case we go back to the SJ.

The plan is to hack round. I already have in mind that I will not be doing one of the fences and steep downhill double of logs on an angle between trees - we are not ready I will take an alternative or miss it out and be eliminated.

My aim is to leave the start box with minimal napping and take it from there!

Now off to hunt for LG's book......

 

[kerilli]

I'm that person too

I'd love to go eventing but I really can't imagine I'd be any cop what so ever. I went to PC as a kid, I hunt, I can gallop but I'll never have 'feel'. I just think some people can't be taught it and how BE are supposed to do anything about that I do not know. Some people can go to as much training as there is in the world and will still not get it right when conditions are constantly changing.

Sorry, meant to respond to this earlier then sidetracked myself!
I think you're too harsh on yourself. IF the horse is rideable and honest, has good style and enjoys the game, it's really not that difficult at all... as long as people don't try to run before they can walk (speed wise or level wise)! It's not like F1 racing or something, where nanoseconds count and there is .0001% margin for error if you're lucky... there are big margins for error a lot of the time (I've seen some horrific missers to HUGE fences, done 1 or 2 myself, nothing to be proud of, just fact) and you only have to look at the different approaches and strides that work perfectly well at various fences to see how flexible it can be. As long as the horse has been taught correctly, s/he will cover for mistakes to a humbling degree. The horse's individual temperament and confidence dictates how long for... But nobody has to be perfect to ride well xc... okay, Michael Jung and WFP come very close maybe!
Tbh I reckon that anyone who is a competent driver (when you take into account the judgement & depth perception required, and the myriad things you have to be taking in and adjusting for) can be a perfectly competent xc rider.

 

[Jesstickle]

K- I am a woeful driver!

I know I have no feel. I don't mind. Not any more. I used to wish I could ride spectacularly but I'm too old for those sort of daydreams these days! I'm quite happy to potter about over little things going slowly. Safer for everyone that way!

 

[TableDancer]

I still don't buy the accreditation idea, sorry I guess I'm seeing it from a coach's point of view, not just me but conversations I have had with a friend who coaches at national level. The problem is that it erodes rider responsibility: suppose you accredit someone based on a session at a training venue where they look reasonably under control and balanced, horse is vaguely coordinated (presumably horses would have to be accredited too?) and you have no real grounds not to accredit them. They then go off to a competition, and something goes horribly wrong: perhaps they ride totally inappropriately under competition conditions, or perhaps the horse turns out to have zero brakes under same. Result is a nasty fall. First thing rider, rider's family etc are going to do is turn round and look for someone to blame, and guess who's in the firing line?

However, perhaps an alternative would be for BE to require all riders up to a certain level, or maybe even all riders, to undergo a certain number of hours XC training every year, with an accredited coach - now the new training database is online it would be easy to administrate. That way you would ensure all riders at least had some decent input, training and advice - the extent to which they take that on board and use it constructively would remain their own responsibility.

 

[kerilli]

I still don't buy the accreditation idea, sorry I guess I'm seeing it from a coach's point of view, not just me but conversations I have had with a friend who coaches at national level. The problem is that it erodes rider responsibility: suppose you accredit someone based on a session at a training venue where they look reasonably under control and balanced, horse is vaguely coordinated (presumably horses would have to be accredited too?) and you have no real grounds not to accredit them. They then go off to a competition, and something goes horribly wrong: perhaps they ride totally inappropriately under competition conditions, or perhaps the horse turns out to have zero brakes under same. Result is a nasty fall. First thing rider, rider's family etc are going to do is turn round and look for someone to blame, and guess who's in the firing line?

However, perhaps an alternative would be for BE to require all riders up to a certain level, or maybe even all riders, to undergo a certain number of hours XC training every year, with an accredited coach - now the new training database is online it would be easy to administrate. That way you would ensure all riders at least had some decent input, training and advice - the extent to which they take that on board and use it constructively would remain their own responsibility.

Yes, good idea. I see your point, our litigious society being what it is...
I know someone who teaches a rider who is competent at home and xc schooling, but had some very dodgy results... trainer went to watch her, discovered she rides like a TOTAL lunatic at competitions. Not quite sure how on earth you can legislate for that sort of thing!

jesstickle... ah, okay. I won't ever get in a car with you then!

 

[TGM]

However, perhaps an alternative would be for BE to require all riders up to a certain level, or maybe even all riders, to undergo a certain number of hours XC training every year, with an accredited coach - now the new training database is online it would be easy to administrate. That way you would ensure all riders at least had some decent input, training and advice - the extent to which they take that on board and use it constructively would remain their own responsibility.

Sounds like a sensible idea to me!