Introduction to XC.....

[nikkinoo]

Help, how would you introduce your horse to XC,
She is a 10 year old, sire is master imp so she should be more than capable she is used for SJ at the moment.

thinking of taking her to a Novice 2'3 pairs class to have a lead over fences as there is nowhere near to hire out a course,

what would you suggest?

 

[jenmac_85]

I took T round the mini XC course at my last yard, let him get used to the fences. There are some courses you cna hire out which may help.

I had a slight advantage with T in that he was used for hunting before I got him

 

[Rudey]

Hiya, what area are you from?? I would suggest finding some xc courses in your area to hire out with a few friends first. Around my area, courses range from £5 to £30 per horse to hire out for the day. That way you and your trusty steed will be able to feel relaxed and not under pressure of a competition environment. Also less likely to be as on their toes too much like they can get at shows with the buzzy atmosphere!

Going with other horses will help reassure your horse that it's not scarey, and (s)he will have a more pleasant first experience, which will help you massively in the long run with xc.

The best part is, if you are unsure, or your horse is, a more experienced duo will be able to offer you a lead over fences. The other major advantage, is that problem fences will be able to be ridden as many times you feel necessary to get it right

, unlike if you were competing

!

Another factor can be some horses go round courses better on their own too. Pairs can be a nightmare if you are on something fizzy what likes to be infront and will race. At least hiring out a course you will be able to find out how your horse reacts to the other horses, and see how (s)he copes if you take them away on their own too!

Hope this helps! I adore xc! The bay in my signature is a xc machine lol! When I do pairs on him we have to lead, he is fearless but bloody strong and fast! My pair partner has to be able to keep up, and on something that doesn't mind following! My advice is to find a suitable combination of horse and rider to do pairs with, otherwise it's not the most pleasant of rounds sometimes!

xx

Here's several pictures of Sammi in action showing various style jumps xx

I bloody hate that jump, scares me witless lol! I cling on, shut my eyes and pray lol

xx

 

[posie_honey]

i was in v similar situation last year - got a 10yr old mare but mine had only ever hunted - so i took her out to a meet i knew go round a nice small xc course and jumped following the field

next i had a few jx lessons just to get us jumping on our own and not following - big thing for both of us as we've never really done that before!
after a few lessons in jx to get our style and get us jumping alone over xc "type" course i took her to a xc course on my own ofr a play around over small solid fences - building up to some intro fences (see hedge below

)
next i took her to a 2'3 xc comp (2 weekends ago) just to see how she'd react to it all - and we won!

and qualified for scottish champs this weekend (novice 2'6!) so had our first proper xc lesson last weekend in preparation!
not the most usual route admitedly but worked for us - i def liked the jx lessons to begn with - def helped us get to grips with the whole jumping withouth following the field melarky - could also work for a Sj'er as they are knockdown fences but in xc style so nice introduction they'll maybe understand

 

[nikkinoo]

thanks for all your advice, im in swansea and ou nearest course is about an hour and half drive away.
Thats why I thought of just doing a local pony club event, but after your advice I think hiring out course will be better I want to get it right and give her a good first time,
My friend has a hunter that we regularly ride out together and my horse is used to him so she can come with me and if I do need a lead at least she is to help.

thanks everyone and fab pics, well done posie_honey hope we can follow your fotsteps.

 

[Rudey]

Are the pony club courses near you?? There's 3 local pony club courses near me, and 2 of them hire their course out, whereas one club will only do for members. Might be worth emailing the different clubs to see if you can hire it?? What about riding clubs?? Try seraching for their local courses, they are usually cheaper to hire out then pony club courses xx