JUMPING QUESTION FROM A NOVICE

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chasingmytail

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My daughter has just started jumping our new (6 months) horse. This evening she was taking her over a smallish (2' 3") jump in the school. As she approaches it, she asks for canter - the horse strikes off on the correct lead but 2 strides out changes leg but then lands on the correct leg. Now, I know I'm not very experienced but I thought the lead leg into a jump was the lead leg after landing?? So, if I'm correct, first of all why would she change leg just before the jump and secondly, how does she end up on the correct leg after the jump? We've looked at videos of her jumping, both in the school and in the paddock and she regularly changes legs coming into a jump. She isn't favouring a particular lead either. This evening she changed to a right lead but I've seen her change to a left lead previously. Also, and not sure if this is relevant, she tends to jump to the right.

Any thoughts and advice very welcome.
 
my pony used to do this it was because she was green and i think probably abit confused, i just continued setting her up on the correct lead and now she doesn't do it. im not sure if that helps at all x
 
chasingmytail said:
My daughter has just started jumping our new (6 months) horse. This evening she was taking her over a smallish (2' 3") jump in the school. As she approaches it, she asks for canter - the horse strikes off on the correct lead but 2 strides out changes leg but then lands on the correct leg. Now, I know I'm not very experienced but I thought the lead leg into a jump was the lead leg after landing??

Actually, a horse will most naturally change the lead over a jump, so no, the lead into the jump isn't necessarily the lead on landing

So, if I'm correct, first of all why would she change leg just before the jump and secondly, how does she end up on the correct leg after the jump? We've looked at videos of her jumping, both in the school and in the paddock and she regularly changes legs coming into a jump. She isn't favouring a particular lead either. This evening she changed to a right lead but I've seen her change to a left lead previously. Also, and not sure if this is relevant, she tends to jump to the right.

Any thoughts and advice very welcome.
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There can be several reasons why the horse is doing changes on the approach, it might be green and unbalanced, the rider might be ''overshooting'' the turn and then over-correcting etc, etc.
Have you tried loose jumping the horse? That would tell you if the issue lies squarely with the horse or if there is some rider influence.
 
Len does this when he's being particularly bouncy or exited :rolleyes: With him I think it's a case of 'you won't let me bowl on into the fence, so I'll just switch leads instead' :p Fairly sure it's not greeness with him - he's 15. Could the rider be correcting her line on the approach and changing direction slightly? Is the horse backing off at all, or is the rider possibly using one rein more than the other to steer?

J&C
 
martlin said:
There can be several reasons why the horse is doing changes on the approach, it might be green and unbalanced, the rider might be ''overshooting'' the turn and then over-correcting etc, etc.
Have you tried loose jumping the horse? That would tell you if the issue lies squarely with the horse or if there is some rider influence.
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That's a good idea, we'll loose-school her. She does have an issue with balance on the right canter lead which we've been working on with our instructor and she's really improving. Although she's 12 we don't think she's done much ground work for quite a long time but it's slowly coming back to her and she's just such a lovely lady she tries really hard to please. Thanks a lot.
 
JessandCharlie said:
Len does this when he's being particularly bouncy or exited :rolleyes: With him I think it's a case of 'you won't let me bowl on into the fence, so I'll just switch leads instead' :p Fairly sure it's not greeness with him - he's 15. Could the rider be correcting her line on the approach and changing direction slightly? Is the horse backing off at all, or is the rider possibly using one rein more than the other to steer?

J&C
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She's not backing off although did run out twice AFTER jumping it twice. My daughter does have a tighter left rein because she tends to jump to the right and that's the side she runs out at. But I think you're all hitting the nail on the head with the balance thing - it's a combination of an inexperienced rider sending mixed messages and an unbalanced horse. More groundwork methinks!!
 
I agree, flatwork is your friend. One point though, I find when they jump to one side, holding the opposite rein can make it worse. Reason being, if she's jumping to the right, she may well be falling out through the right shoulder, and therefore squeezing the right rein, rather than the left, would 'block' the right shoulder and straighten her. Using more left rein, may cause more bend to the left, and make it easier for her to drift out through her right shoulder, am I making sense? It might be worth putting a pole on the right, to encourage her to jump straight, and encourage your daughter to ride straight, rather than trying to counteract the horse's crookedness :p

But in honesty, I wouldn't worry about it too much, if there's nothing physical, I'm sure it will sort itself out as they begin to bond and build their relationship :) Good luck! :D

J&C
 
JessandCharlie said:
I agree, flatwork is your friend. One point though, I find when they jump to one side, holding the opposite rein can make it worse. Reason being, if she's jumping to the right, she may well be falling out through the right shoulder, and therefore squeezing the right rein, rather than the left, would 'block' the right shoulder and straighten her. Using more left rein, may cause more bend to the left, and make it easier for her to drift out through her right shoulder, am I making sense? It might be worth putting a pole on the right, to encourage her to jump straight, and encourage your daughter to ride straight, rather than trying to counteract the horse's crookedness :p

But in honesty, I wouldn't worry about it too much, if there's nothing physical, I'm sure it will sort itself out as they begin to bond and build their relationship :) Good luck! :D

J&C
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I fully understand your explanation about falling out through the right shoulder and you're absolutely right - many thanks!
 
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