Chippers1
Well-Known Member
Hi all, I'm mainly a lurker answering the odd thread but I just wanted to make my own to just say how proud I am of my horse and what we've achieved so far! It may be a little long...
I bought him March 2017 as something to get back into competing on as my old pony had been retired for 2 years. He was the second horse I viewed (the first being that morning!) Only 2 weeks after starting to look, there were many reasons why I went for him so quickly but that's not for here. Soon after purchase I discovered I had lost all my nerve for jumping which was a disaster! I had to re start, jumping only tiny cross poles which still terrified me but I wanted to work on it.
Unfortunately in May he ruptured a tendon so spent the whole summer on box rest, two horses and neither rideable...then I sadly lost my old pony.
Fast forward to March/April this year after all the rehab work and I start getting back to jumping, we had our first competition in April which was a 60cm and a 70cm. Well, the 60 was ok (still terrified) and we came 5th 😊 but the 70 was an absolute disaster. He then realised that once I was too nervous to do anything he could run out as many times as he liked!
From then I worked on building my confidence, having lessons and doing clinics, jumping tiny courses and slowly building them up. Learning how to ride him too, he's very different to my old pony who would literally jump anything with no instruction needed!
Now is the whole point of the post really, we are now happily popping round 60/70 courses, he absolutely loves xc and we will fly over 80 or even 90 jumps out there, we have quite a few winnings now, we were working hunter reserve champion at a local show, won a 60 hunter trial AND and 80 pairs hunter trial (only about 2 jumps were 80...) and I am just so so so proud of how much we've come together and have really clicked into a team. Don't get me wrong he will still throw in an odd nip to the side if I'm not 100% commited to the jump but I'm much better at spotting it.
Our aim is to do a BE80 so hopefully in the next few years we will manage it 😊 love him so much.
I'm not sure how to add photos or I'd add the one of me jumping him 1m05 grinning away, there's no way that would've happened only a few months ago!
I bought him March 2017 as something to get back into competing on as my old pony had been retired for 2 years. He was the second horse I viewed (the first being that morning!) Only 2 weeks after starting to look, there were many reasons why I went for him so quickly but that's not for here. Soon after purchase I discovered I had lost all my nerve for jumping which was a disaster! I had to re start, jumping only tiny cross poles which still terrified me but I wanted to work on it.
Unfortunately in May he ruptured a tendon so spent the whole summer on box rest, two horses and neither rideable...then I sadly lost my old pony.
Fast forward to March/April this year after all the rehab work and I start getting back to jumping, we had our first competition in April which was a 60cm and a 70cm. Well, the 60 was ok (still terrified) and we came 5th 😊 but the 70 was an absolute disaster. He then realised that once I was too nervous to do anything he could run out as many times as he liked!
From then I worked on building my confidence, having lessons and doing clinics, jumping tiny courses and slowly building them up. Learning how to ride him too, he's very different to my old pony who would literally jump anything with no instruction needed!
Now is the whole point of the post really, we are now happily popping round 60/70 courses, he absolutely loves xc and we will fly over 80 or even 90 jumps out there, we have quite a few winnings now, we were working hunter reserve champion at a local show, won a 60 hunter trial AND and 80 pairs hunter trial (only about 2 jumps were 80...) and I am just so so so proud of how much we've come together and have really clicked into a team. Don't get me wrong he will still throw in an odd nip to the side if I'm not 100% commited to the jump but I'm much better at spotting it.
Our aim is to do a BE80 so hopefully in the next few years we will manage it 😊 love him so much.
I'm not sure how to add photos or I'd add the one of me jumping him 1m05 grinning away, there's no way that would've happened only a few months ago!
