Changing from unaffiliated to affiliated SJ

[ann-jen]

Ok its my last question I think for now. I just wondered if anyone else found the change from unaffiliated to affiliated difficult. So far I've only been to 2 shows but I feel like I've ridden quite poorly at both of them and I have no idea why! We've been jumping similar heights unaffiliated and at home and the idea of affiliating was that the distances and courses would be better and so in theory it should be easier! Yesterday I felt like I was all over the shop! Is this normal LOL? I just wondered how other people felt when they first changed over.
Our next BSJA show is Saturday to do an 80cm open at an intro show but tbh I feel like I need to do a load of homework on my position before doing another BN. I'm off to an unaffiliated show for a confidance boost today and hope I ride a bit better. I'm hoping its just nerves making me ride like a numpty and if I ride better today that might confirm it for me.
How did everyone else get on when they first affiliated - please tell me its not just me.

 

[SpottedCat]

Disaster disaster disaster! I'd been doing PN eventing and went and did a BN on a ticket! I then sat in my lorry and cried afterwards I was so crap! However it did spur me into sorting myself out, and the next time out went really well. Think it is just nerves? I think aff is much more solid looking and spread are wider etc than unaff, plus the JOs are usually much bigger!

Don't worry, you just need to keep doing it! I had a complete revelation at the Dorset show when I realised SJers do not seem to care how badly they do as it doesn't go on your record and there is always another class. Once I had seen someone get eliminated in the BN and Disco at the second fence, then win a 1.10 in the main ring it gave me a bit of perspective as my thought was at least I am not getting eliminated!

 

[MagicMelon]

I think it's best to be jumping higher unaffiliated and go down a level BSJA because the spreads are always much wider and more up to height than unaffiliated which can vary considerably. I was jumping unaffiliated opens before starting BN. However, with my other horse - I have been doing the level BSJA as I do at unaffiliated and have definately noticed problems! We've trashed a few BN's to the point that now Im just going unaffiliated again for a while and am re-considering re-registering him next month.

Agree with SpottedCat - in show jumping, it doesnt matter how bad you look / do. That's why I quite like it because the only aim is to try and get round, doesnt matter HOW you go about doing it! Just remember, everybody has bad days - watch a few classes and you'll see it doesn't go to plan for others either.

 

[ann-jen]

Thanks both of you. We went much better at the unaffiliated show today. I don't know if its just less pressure unaffiliated but even though I was very nervous after my fall yesterday I felt like I rode much better - even when Jen put in one of her humongous 5ft jumps over one of the fences it didn't unseat me. We had the last fence down in the JO to come 6th. My plan is loads of pole and gridwork this week to try to establish strides and build both our confidances before the intro show on Saturday. It seems to have affected Jenny as well as me having the little tumble yesterday - we hit a couple of crap strides in the warm up and I could almost feel her thinking - you're not going to fall off are you? Hopefully a couple of good gridwork sessions will settle us both back down again.

Oh and I know what you mean about those parallels - they are SOOOO much wider than unaffiliated but oddly I seem to find they ride exactly the same so wonder if they are more of a frightener for the rider than the horse?

 

[Rambo]

I hate to admit this but it was so long ago that I made the move from unaff to aff (about 27 years to be precise

) that I really can't remember what it was like. What I can and do remember though is coming back to riding after 18 years off and going into my first affiliated show after all that time off. I was 'only' doing the 1.05m Open (i'd been jumping 1.30m's when I quit !) but hell was I nervous and made a bit of a hash of it

Everything felt so alien and happenned so fast ! A few shows later though and I was happily back in the swing and now nearly two years down the line it feels like I was never away

You will no doubt have noticed that aff tracks tend to be considerably bigger than most unaff equivilents (BSJA courses are generally just built to the correct height !) and they look tougher still because of all the fillers etc. Remember JO's go up 10cms too so even a BN will end up at 1m in the JO. Work on getting your rhythm right and the strides will start to take care of themselves. It will get easier though I promise

 

[ann-jen]

Aww thank you. Yep the JO did seem pretty huge to me! In that respect it was probably a bonus going first so I didn't get a chance to get wound up about it!
I did a lot of competing as a child and certainly jumped a lot bigger and was a lot braver than I am now. I had a break from jumping/competing for about 10 years while I did exams/uni/started working etc so it seems a lot harder coming back as an adult and a lot more consequences if I do fall off or hurt myself.