HELP - We need to stop the stops!

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Moosegoose20

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Sorry it’s a long one… I have an 8yr old warmblood who I have had from a 5yr old. We’ve been gradually jumping up the levels, everything was going great at the start of 2025.. couple of 1.15 placings and just about to step up to Foxhunter/1.20’s and regularly training around 1.25+ at home and in lessons. We had a little confidence blip in March so I stepped him down for a few weeks and then we went to Bluechip. We got eliminated in every single class we jumped at bluechip and the stops have continued through the summer. My confidence was at rock bottom and it got to the point that I couldn’t even get over a little cross pole on the floor without crying about it. We’ve put so much work in, his flat work is a million times better, we are now happy schooling over 1.10ish at home and we have a perfect warm up in the collecting ring every single time but we are still getting the stops in the ring. I’ve had vet, physio, he’s got a brand new custom saddle, I’ve had psychotherapy to get me out of the initial panicking, I’ve had a horse communicator speak to him (mental I know 😅), he has a good variety of work with flatwork, jumping once a week and hacking. He seems to just be a very intelligent horse and learnt that two stops at a competition and he’s out (we can hire a competition venue and I can jump round fine). My instructor has competed him and he doesn’t do it so it is literally just me. I’ve tried everything (we are now all the way back down at jumping 90’s so he should be able to step over them).. is it a case of just keep persevering and eventually we will get through it or does anyone have any other ideas?
 
Just food for thought - no idea if it applies to you. I am NO where near your level, but I have had a spate of stops with one of mine.

It turns out he is crazily sensitive to me tipping the TINIEST forwards just before take-off.

My default panic mode is to try to jump the jump before the horse, and end up on his head when he stopped. I have worked really hard on this, including simulator sessions, and thought I had nailed it. Certainly most instructors thought I had, and most of the time he jumped fine, but we still had the stops at times, especially in competition. A particularly experienced and perceptive clinician (best clinic ever!) told me to keep off my pubic bone - I was never to feel it tip towards the pommel. This was light-bulb for me. So often I was told shoulders back, but by then it was too late. Focusing on the lower part of my body caught my forward tip so much sooner.

Once I was sitting up properly and consistently ( it felt like leaning back at times, but videos proved otherwise) we had far fewer stops.
 
Gosh, no suggestions as you have done everything I would have suggested.

One small question…………why do you need to jump at that level right now? If you are cruising around 90cm and you are both having a good time, could you not stay at level for awhile and create some new brain patterns/goood experiences.

I’m coming back from a serious ski-ing accident and this season bored myself to death with green runs. In doing so I improved my technical skill, got my head straight and really felt ready to get back to intermediate ski-ing again by end of season. The hardest bit was to stop comparing myself to who I was pre-accident and just pull my head in when it came to ego.

Maybe be a bit kinder to yourself? Give yourself the time to get out and enjoy the 90cms rounds.
 
Have you tried a couple of different trainers/ clinics? A new set of eyes might just catch something new.

Otherwise if it’s just at shows can you find a local friendly venue who will let you jump HC and not eliminate you for two stops (if you explain beforehand) if you think that’s what he’s learnt he can do?

Otherwise what about stepping away from sj for a bit and do some xc, hunting, dressage, showing etc.? Take the pressure off for both of you.
 
If you can afford it, send him to a pro sj for a few weeks, see what they think.

If that’s out the question… what exactly have the vets done with him?
 
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