My horse jumps to side of the jump, how to fix?

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lukecampbell

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Hi there,
My name is Luke Campbell, I have a 6YO bay stallion that I show jump here in Ireland. He didn't start show jumping until he was a 5YO and since he has started jumping he has had a problem of jumping to the left hand side of the jump going down doubles and combinations. Does anyone know of any exercises that I can do on him to help him jump in the centre of the jump?

Here is some more info:
- Doubles and combinations are the main problem, the more he jumps into the, the worse he gets, so the second jump he will be drifting over to the wing, and by the 3rd part of the combination he is jumping to the extreme left of it.

- when he came to us he had a slight hollow back but when he muscled up and got correct feeding he has a fine back now, should I get it scanned to make sure it's not hurting him and that's the cause of the problem?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Really stuck with this one!

Many thanks
Luke
 
Don't know if its the correct way of doing it but I've seen a trainer put the pole on a slant with the higher end at the side the horse usually jumps at so it makes them jump towards the lower side.
 
V poles might work? You can make the narrower or wider- the top of the pole is placed on the pole that's making the jump then the other end is placed on the floor, creating a v that's like a funnel to ride into.

Can't explain v well and can't link pictures as on phone.
 
I use v poles alot on him, they really improve his shape but still when the v poles get took away he still drifts to the side, as for the slanted pole I think that works similar to v poles without the second pole again that helps his shape but does not fix the problem.
 
It sounds as if he may still have a physical problem, I am not sure if you have many physios in Ireland but that would be a good place to start, his back may now look and feel good but often there is an underlying issue that causes the horse to drift one way and any amount of exercises will not resolve the issue until it is treated.
 
Keep your left leg on more than your right leg. Hold your whip in your left hand, you don't have to use it, just make sure he knows there is a whip there. If he ignores your leg, then give him a tap to back up your leg aid.
Where are you looking when you are jumping? Straight over the next fence or down at it? You could be subconsciously letting him drift off your line.

Make sure once you have your line, stick to it... don't let him drift or wander off it. Most of the drifters I have seen do it due to riders not having enough leg. It will be hard work at the start, but it will get easier the more he realises that you chose lines not him. Poles are good at the start, but you want to be able to jump straight without them.

Start with V poles, then take away the right one leaving you with just one pole looking like this / on the jump... really concentrate on the leg aids though. Once he is doing that alright, see if you can have your instructer or a friend stand by the left jump wing. Once that is going well, take the training wheels off and do it by yourself.
 
Really not correct but if you have tried everything else training wise a differnt bit may help.

Are you fences measured out correctly? He could be trying to create room for himself as a diagnol is longer than a straight line. Ditto for over facing could be a lack of experience thing, how big are the fences? Might pay to go back to lower heights and get the basics established.

I had a gelding like this I put him in a dutch gag and I actually used less contact than when he was in a snaffle and he was perfectly straight. He used to duck sideways at the last minute the gag corrected it straight away was weird but might be worth try.
 
Just poles as a guide.
place one end ont he jump pole so horse has to jump to the inside of it.

Also a lot of it is probable the rider.

make sure you are clear with your aids and balanced.

try jumping without reins and se if this makes a difference.

Other wise be really obvious and a little stonger (with leg and rein aids) to stop horse drifting
 
My 6 yr old also does this so very interested to hear any replies.

I find that if I come into the grid/combination at trot that helps, and as others have said, keeping the left leg on, inside rein tight, and whip to reinforce the leg aids. I also chant 'straight' to myself which seems to help!

I also use 'v' poles atm and x poles so have a obvious middle to aim for.

I took mine to his first fun ride yesterday and jumped loads of skinnies - again I kept him in a slow trot, kept my outside leg on, and bar one which was a single barrel, managed to get him over all the rest first time and straight.

Good luck!
 
Thanks for all the great replies, I will be trying these to see if he improves. I think first I will get his back scanned before I continue with the exercises just to make sure he is not hurting and compensating for it by drifting.

Here is a video of him jumping a 1m30 yesterday at a local show, you can see clearly what he is doing down the combination.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBSXoxAle04&list=UUAgPX4j0fVCIZmXZKLMnRSA&index=1

Have a look and see what you guys think?
 
A little bit hard to tell on the video but it looks to me like you are over riding the combination which is causing him to speed up and there for he is creating more room for himself by drifting sideways.

Lovely boy however.
 
The drift by the second jump is quite pronounced isn't it?

I'd try all the aforementioned ideas.

Have you tried removing the third component and going back a step with the jumping? Just wondering if he does it with a double on it's own.

I'd be tempted to remove the third jump and focus on adjusting the drift for the second jump by coming back down to a crosspole for the second/ placing the V poles/ trying more pronounced left leg aides and a combination of all of these.

Once I'd got my line sorted for the double I'd then reintroduce the third jump starting with it as a pole on the ground to a small crosspole and work it up from there again using the V poles and pronounced aides.
 
Nice pop he has in him :) should be lots of fun when fully developed. What I can see in the video, both combinations being off right rein, he actually falls out through the shoulder on the bend, so you need more left leg and straighter on the approach. Now, it gets more obvious in combinations, as you don't have time to keep correcting between jumps, so you basically lose him at the take off to the first part and it only gets worse from there.
What I would be doing is flexing to the left (outside) with a bit of a half halt before the fence, and then drawing my right hand away from the neck throughout the combination, to regain the shoulders.
I also think that he jumps in big and hasn't got the tools to shorten effectively yet, so creates more room for himself through drifting.
Hope that makes sense and helps.
ETA - if he is an honest, genuine type, I would get off his back a bit more, too, so you aren't tempted to override the combinations and it is easier for him to work out how to shorten himself a bit. And lots of grids at home.
 
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Lovely horse but a couple of other things to pick up on- his trot at the start looks a little disunited, is this normal or is he getting excited?
Also he swaps his back end coming into combinations.
He is obviously a valuable horse so I would consider having a full work up. It is often difficult to distinguish between back pain, hock pain and even hind suspensories.
 
I might get shot down for this and dont know how 'ok' they are now but would a cheek guard with bristles help maybe? They used to be used on drifting horses when I was a kid

That's of course when any pain related issues are ruled out
 
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