I'm a coward can anyone suggest a way to get confidance with drops?

comicduo

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I really would love to take my mare Intro this year but when I schooled around Hexham this weekend I really scared myself with quite a small drop. I know that I need to be back but when nervous I creep forward and put myself in the wrong place.

Can anyone suggest confidance trick with this to get me sitting back?

When I am nervous with other fences I have always found something over the other side to focus on but I can't seem to get this right with drops. Also can anyone suggest a nice intro course (mostly flat or uphill) in the North East for us to make a start?
 

poggio

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Look up !! never look down at a drop... look forwards into the distance rather than down at the landing. Keep your leg on strong and your weight back slightly... theres no need to emphasise it too much by leaning right back, the important thing it to be in balance. Keep it all really small until you get the hang of it, that way you don't feel like you're actually jumping down a drop but you can practise the 'technique' of how to ride a drop.
 

sarah07

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Hi Penshaw Equestrian centre is quite flat they only have 1 field which is on a hill and have fences both up and down hill, they have a xc schooling day this saturday with fences upto 3ft, also Glouster Lodge (sp?) is also nice to ride around, they have events there but you can also hire out the course, i have taken my mare to both and enjoyed both places.
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jumpthemoon

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See if you can get some xc lessons - it really helps when someone on the ground is telling you to sit up. Once you've done it a few times you'll soon get the hang of it
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Thistle

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start off down hill, then on and off banks, then steps gradually getting more and bigger, finally introduce a drop fence, tiny to start with.
Drops are all about rider confidence horses generally don't mind them at all (unless they get socked in the teeth or have back pain or a bad saddle, but that's another story!)
 

rdc1000

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I would echo some comments above, you need to have some xc lessons to build your skills up. If you're shown how to tackle such fences properly, it will hopefully give you a good experience and consequently some confidence.

If you're thinking of doing some intros anyway then xc lessons should be on your general list of things to do before entering.

Good luck with them, and honestly, they're a doddle!
 

4whitesocks

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I am a complete chicken and had same problem and I'm only trying to get round a local hunter trials course.....went schooling with my instructor on a local course which had what seemed like hundreds of drops....I tried to treat them like a regular fence whereby you keep an eye on something on the far side of it, don't lean forward until the horse does (as in don't preempt the jump) and then you'll find you actually don't lean forward at all your natural reaction is to stay where you are.....make sure you're well in the saddle before you get to the drop

what I had been doing was looking down, spooking the horse into thinking there was something scary at the bottom and he was then skidding to a halt at the top!

The best thing for me though was just to get out and school over them, drop after drop after drop......at one stage instructor sent me over an up & down bank & only as we took off on the down bit did I realise there was ditch at that side....next time over horse stopped - amazing example of how my fear totally transmitted to him!
 

SillyMare

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You are in the North East - I hunted with the Tynedale as a child - drops, banks, crags(!!) hold no fear!!

Wrong time of year but I can definitely recommend a few days hunting up there.
 

sarahs

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Adding on to sillymares comment - think of the hunting position that you see in old pics/paintings - its a very safe position, slightly slip the reins through your fingers so you dont remove half their teeth, lower leg slightly forward, bottom safely in saddle, lean only slightly back and you'll be fine! Im not an instructor so if any of the above is incorrect please noone shot me down! but i just know that this is the position i use on anything down hill.
Once you get going you'll figure out that drops are the least of your worries !!! xx
 
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