Developing a horse/pony for jumping?

[maya2008]

It has been well over a decade since I jumped competitively at a decent height. So here I am now, needing to help my son train his pony with the hope of jumping more than the lower heights at the local show. Can I just check that my memories of what to do are correct?

From what I can remember, the basis of everything is flatwork. Creating muscle, power and adjustability within the canter. Working on suppleness to aid all that and enable tighter turns. Then working on the rider over single jumps and round courses - using that adjustability to create a smooth efficient round.

If my memory is correct then we’ll do just fine with arena hire once a week and flatwork at home in the field. I see people doing grids and bounces and all sorts though to develop the horse and wonder if we’d be lacking something by not doing those? My training was mainly on the flat and we got to a decent height incl courses - I can still remember being told over and over and over that it was all about the canter and that a horse had only so many decent sized jumps in them in their lifetime.

Happy to take recommendations of good books/YouTube channels to jog my memory too!

 

[humblepie]

It’s longer than that since I jumped at a decent height but yes flatwork and hacking for variety. Use poles to work on canter strides and control. I agree re not jumping too much at home particularly once established. Sometimes the rider needs the practice as much as the horse but depends how often competing.

 

[I'm Dun]

A fit pony with a good canter and you're most of the way there. I know you have a few ponies so get your son jumping as many as are physically capable. He needs to develop his eye as much as the pony needs to develop. Jumping once a week is more than enough but use that time constructively. Dont just stick a couple of jumps up and pop over. Do some grids, ask some small questions and slowly build up. Theres bound to be a book or youtube video giving you ideas for gymnastic jumping exercises to give you a bit of guidance. I'd be looking for a show jumping specific trainer who works with kids and ponies though. Thats probably the most important thing you can do, even if you have to box over there once every month or two if you're not close enough to do more often.

 

[Gloi]

Is he in the pony club? Round here they do regular jumping training sessions.

 

[IrishMilo]

I don’t jump more than twice a month unless I’m out or competing. But I think when you’re learning or getting into the swing of it doing it as much as you can is really beneficial. To be fair I feel rusty now compared to when I was doing it 3/4 times a week and I was definitely at my bravest back then too!

I’d do loads of canter poles as a course, if he can see a stride to a pole he can see a stride to a jump. Grids are good for strength work for the pony and balance for the rider but take away your eye.

 

[maya2008]

A fit pony with a good canter and you're most of the way there. I know you have a few ponies so get your son jumping as many as are physically capable. He needs to develop his eye as much as the pony needs to develop. Jumping once a week is more than enough but use that time constructively. Dont just stick a couple of jumps up and pop over. Do some grids, ask some small questions and slowly build up. Theres bound to be a book or youtube video giving you ideas for gymnastic jumping exercises to give you a bit of guidance. I'd be looking for a show jumping specific trainer who works with kids and ponies though. Thats probably the most important thing you can do, even if you have to box over there once every month or two if you're not close enough to do more often.

Thanks, it’s very much the transition between ‘teach young small pony to jump, train them to get round an appropriate course for age/size clear and in a rhythm’ - which he’s brilliant at - and ‘develop 6yo larger pony with talent into something that will jump over a metre’.

Pony arrived unfit in March. Is now fully fit for everyday activities and out at arena hire. Current jumping focus is filler training at small heights to build confidence, but that is going well so have started to add the flatwork needed to build the canter further. Once we have a jumping fit pony that blinks at nothing, it will definitely be worth travelling to someone good once a month or so to develop that further.

He does already jump multiple ponies weekly - from whizzy smaller ones he just fits on to larger. But he has never had anything old enough or talented enough to develop beyond basic Prelim dressage and lower level jumping - so all the theory is there to learn. Pony is relatively green but willing. They have basic flatwork established and have just started to play with adjusting the trot/canter.

Grids are good for strength work for the pony and balance for the rider but take away your eye.

So we don’t necessarily need grids? At least not at home with me? Current strength work is mostly hills - from mild ones in our schooling field (nothing is flat) to steep ones out hacking.

 

[I'm Dun]

Thanks, it’s very much the transition between ‘teach young small pony to jump, train them to get round an appropriate course for age/size clear and in a rhythm’ - which he’s brilliant at - and ‘develop 6yo larger pony with talent into something that will jump over a metre’.

Pony arrived unfit in March. Is now fully fit for everyday activities and out at arena hire. Current jumping focus is filler training at small heights to build confidence, but that is going well so have started to add the flatwork needed to build the canter further. Once we have a jumping fit pony that blinks at nothing, it will definitely be worth travelling to someone good once a month or so to develop that further.

He does already jump multiple ponies weekly - from whizzy smaller ones he just fits on to larger. But he has never had anything old enough or talented enough to develop beyond basic Prelim dressage and lower level jumping - so all the theory is there to learn. Pony is relatively green but willing. They have basic flatwork established and have just started to play with adjusting the trot/canter.



So we don’t necessarily need grids? At least not at home with me? Current strength work is mostly hills - from mild ones in our schooling field (nothing is flat) to steep ones out hacking.

Its a balance. They are good for pony an rider but IM is absolutely right that they dont help develop an eye as they place you at the right spot. But if hes riding lots of ponies and doing various other things then hes getting that anyway. I wouldnt over do them but theres definitely a place for them. Thats probably where the jump trainer comes in. They will know what needs work and have ideas to help. Id still be playing around with them while you wait to get to that point though.