Nervous about jumping at shows - help needed.

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Gorgeous George

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I really want to get out and about and do some jumping competitions (only 2’3” or 2’6 if I’m feeling brave!), especially now I have my own jumping saddle
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. The problem is that at shows I know there will be fillers, when I practice at home we only have poles and wings, no fillers etc. and I am scared of fillers because I think George will stop and of course when I think that it is what happens
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It is not helped by the fact that the last 2 times I did go to an event I ended up on the floor
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, I think George senses my doubts about a jump, stops to save us both, and then being a numpty I fall off. I do sometimes try jumping odd things, feed buckets, crates etc. and George always stops first time, and then jumps when I try again – obviously this is pretty hopeless in a competition
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I know this is really pathetic, but we both actually enjoy our jumping but both have confidence issues – help!
 
Can you not get out to some SJ clinics where you can jump a variety of jumps in a new setting with a good instructor to help you? Have you got any local Riding Clubs that organise such things?
 
D is alot like that, she likes to refuse things the first time before going over them the next.

You might be surprised how he goes at a show. I started D off in the 1ft8 class on the principle that even if she refused she could go over it one leg at a time. I was really determined that I wasn't going to have refusals in the beginners class and a few pony club kicks later she was flying round loving it once we had established that we were going to do the jumps.

My other question would be to ask if you look at the jumps? My worst habit is to gawp at the jump myself and then funnily enough D stops because she can feel me staring at it.

I'd say find the smallest class you can, look up, kick and go for it. Everyone has to start somewhere and there's no shame in not doing the most stylish round.
 
Hi, how is that lovely horsie of yours !! If I was you I would start off with the clear round jumping. Just have a go at a few and progress from there with no pressure. I would also get some help at home. I go to an instructor once a week and it has worked wonders for me. Both of you can build up confidence together - Good luck and let us know how your first jumping show goes !
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Go to a few clear rounds first? Then there isn't so much pressure and really you can both just have a look round, go at your own pace
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Hiring an arena somewhere else is also great, and gets your horse jumping away from home
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And you could always have a go at making your own fillers! xD Good fun, if you got some boards & painted them up (however you like! Be inventive! hehe!) and as long as they're secured well... you could even go as far as getting some blue/black plastic and putting it under two poles to make a water tray. I'm sure if you turned to google you could find some amazing filler making ideas online
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Have also seen (mostly at shows) people doing things like putting coats or jackets over the top rail of the fence to make it more spooky, but that doesn't seem the safest option...

Good luck! Hope you do get to do some competitions soon
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Just remember that you're there to learn AND have fun - not to win! And then when you're more confident, you go to win as well! xP
 
If it helps, in the absence of fillers I tend to go around finding things that can stand in their place!

So if you put up a straight pole, hang a brightly patterned rug over it, the heavier the better as it will stay in place in the wind. Or line up some buckets underneath.

Get some broken off tree branches and stick them underneath. Get feed bins, and put them on their side underneath
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Get any junk you have lying around at home, and make a jumble of things - anything to get him to look, so fillers will be no problem
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You'll be fine
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xx
 
I know how you feel! I've just got some show schedules and am determind to enter some of the very small jumping rounds - I'm worried more about doing stuff wrong though as I have never even entered anything at a show.
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Your water bucket idea sounds good - could you attach some laminted pics of pigs/duck etc or print off some pics of the internet and attach them to cardboard then stick to a row of water buckets under the poles?
 
We have done some clear round jumping and did ok, but there weren't any fillers to scare us! I do have regular lessons and every now and again I team up with a friend to go to Brook Farm to have a lesson with their proper jumps. Problem is I don't have my own transport and by the time we've hired the arena, paid our instructor and the diesel it is quite expensive. Yes the riding club I belong to does do clinics but I can't get to them.

Think I will gather up some spooky stuff and have it ready for my next lesson..............
 
Has anywhere near you got any training shows coming up?
Clear round at 2ft plus?
Or maybe ask if you can go early before a show and pop him round the course before they start?
A lot of places will be helpful if you ask.
i'm such a nervous idiot that i often go before anyone else gets there!
the other tip i got re fillers is don't look at them and the horse won't either - not saying it works everytime but hovis takes no notice of the things. In fact he jumps better when the fillers are there to when they are not.
Could you use a sheet / blanket, piece of ply wood at home to make it look like fillers? the whole point is what it looks like to them not what it actually is -if that makes sense?!
Maybe come down from the height you jump at home so you "know" you and george have jumped bigger and that will give you confidence.
 
I have yet to read the above but cant you try using bales of hay and straw as fillers or just put general stuff under your fences to tackle them.
Also try rescue remedy when out at shows its from Holland and Barrantt and calms your nerves
 
get making!

my most recent items found in a ditch are the plastic temporary signs saying new road surface that were never collected by council- nailed to a pole they are 2'6 sideways on.

Also- 25L drums

flower pots (we have fake flowers)

painted up some MDF and made some little feet stands.

we have 2 giant black seed trays from the garden centre for a fiver each.

I have the lids off a 45L jam drum (large round plastic disks) I tie them to the poles.

Be imaginative you can normally make much worse at home than you see at shows.
 
I wonder if you and GG would benefit from visualisation exercises? There are some fab Cds and confidence coaches around!
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A girl at a riding school I was at had a mare who refused to jump fillers esp at shows. She painted cardborad boxes opened and flattened out and then somehow secured them so they didn't flap around - I think she had one actual set of fillers and then would attach the cardboard in different colours to it. Maybe worth seeing if you can build (or get someone to build) one set of wood fillers and then jazz them up with tester pots of paint and cardboard?

Good luck!
 
I could have written your post as I have exactly the same problem with my horse, with the filler issue. All I would suggest is getting hypnotherapy help if possible, I found a brilliant cognitive therapist and it really helped me, until I fell off again and got a slipped disc as a result!

I am starting to get back into showjumping again after declaring myself a totally reformed dressage character. I swore I would never set foot nor hoof near a flipping show jump but the lure of the one day events and more importantly the lure of the milton keynes 3 days has drawn me back in. I have a one day event on 5th Sept at my local club and I am dreading the fillers but I will just go round the course at a nice steady trot. I have also been doing grid work once or twice per week at home and by hiring out my local clubs indoor school have managed to practice away from too many curious onlookers. It has really helped although obviously the grid work has not had fillers in it, the actuall process of jumping and gaining confidence week by week in terms of jumping slightly higher/wider and approaching the fence in a canter rather than trot has really helped. I am hopefull that I will be able to tackle the 80cm course from trot without taking a fall if my horse runs out! He is 17.1hh so should be able to. I wish you luck xxx
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Please be careful when using water buckets, feed bins, etc, especially if they are of the plastic type. If a horse should spook and put a foot through it could end up disasterous. Also milk crates, I cannot abide milk crates, these should be cast from everyones livery yard, they are dangerous and should NOT be used around or near horses. I know of someone that uses one near her youngster. If he were to put his foot through that could well be the end of him. However unlikley you think an accident is - believe me it can happen. I am talking from experience - I must be the only person in the world to have a horse impale himself with a broom up his bum whilst tied outside his stable eating a haynet???!!!!
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I was just about to post exactly the same about plastic - I have seen a horses leg shredded when it went through a plastic water bucket - worse than barbed wire. You really shouldn't stack anything like that under jumps - if it is going to break if stamped on by a hoof, it isn't safe, so no water buckets, feed bins, milk crates, flowerpots etc etc. Bales of hay / straw are fine - you can pop them inside black bin bags to protect the hay/straw and make it a bit more leery, cardboard is fine, you can paint it with scary patterns, etc. The scariest filler (in the horses opinion) that we created was a red check picnic rug hung over the pole - horse rugs would be fine too, provided you remove the metal surcingle fastners.
 
as difficult as it may be at the moment i think training is the best option cos you'll get confidence from a good instructor and they know where your limits are, then you can start to build scarier jumps at home to practise with but i think attempting it on your own is just going to teach the horse to stop and knock your confidence even more. you're obviously doing well i just think some good consistent training would really benefit you both so that when you get in the ring you're ready rather than learning in the ring which is the hard way to do things
 
I agree you have to be careful and not use the type of plastic that shatters though I have seen several hooves go through the slats on jump 4 joys

- our flower pots have flowers in! much like you would get XC, in fact this why they were bought as one horse didn't much fancy the fence dressing that goes on at ODE!
 
As long as they aren't terracotta or plastic flower pots, you are fine! We had some great big wooden planters in the YO garden that were known to appear under fences at shows (much to YO disgust!)
 
I use tub trug buckets. The barrels were the barrels that are usually used on cross country courses. I have seen a number of pictures in the picture gallery of people jumping barrels on XC courses... whats the difference?
 
Just another idea for you....

You know when they do really little classes where the jumps are less than the height of the fillers. So they move the fillers out to the side so there's a gap between them?

Like this.....

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How are you jumping those? You could hire a course of jumps as suggested and start with the fillers out to the side (the actual jumps can be any height I guess). Perhaps if you don't have to go over them first time he can have a good look with less chance of having that first time refusal, which in turn will give you the confidence to get him over them when you later move the fillers together and jump them for real?
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I know it doesn't 'solve' your problem with tackling fillers first time as such but I think you need a good confidence boost to break the cycle of refusals and get past that mental block, and hopefully this will help. Good luck
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