On subject of bits & showjumpers....

[MrsMagoo]

Just read somone elses post on another question about 'showjumpers having fussy bits etc' (not quoted by the way) and just thought, why is that??? At Hickstead at the weekend, my OH was always asking why they all had weird looking combo bits in and trying to make me buy one just to fit in the 'showjumping' crowd lol...
Maybe thought to myself, big horses, big courses maybe need extremely strong bits, but then you can go to somwhere say like Limes etc and still see it on horses jumping 80cm - 1m!!! Is it really nessesary (sp?)....I'm jumping my girly 1m upwards and we are just in a myler comfort snaffle, shortly going to a loose ring normal snaffle.
Am I missing some secret about these bits that are gonna make me into a superstar??

comments on a postcard please lol

 

[SpruceRI]

I think the professional SJ'ers maybe get a touch more control put of their fancy bits and the rest of the world follows suit because they can!

 

[Super_Kat]

If you imagine having a 1.60m high, 2m wide fence in front of you and you have to meet it perfectly and you have a big strong warmblood, those bits give far greater control of the horse so your not sat there hauling away at it's mouth (well thats the way I see it anyway)

 

[Weezy]

Me too Kat - personally I would rather have a tad too much in the mouth than not enough - if I touch coming into a fence I want an instant "OK" not a "I will think about it"

 

[Taz975]

Yeah Im with Weezy & SuperKat on this one.

 

[MrsMagoo]

I do agree with what there saying dont get me wrong....

 

[dieseldog]

What people don't seem to understand that if the bit was too strong the horse wouldn't jump, therefore for that horse/rider combination, if it is going well in it, its the right bit. The quickest way to make a horse stop is to put something in its mouth it doesn't like.

 

[H-J]

These bits are totally needed and I dont think would be used just to show off as it wouldnt work in their favour!!

I jump my horse in a myler combo with long shanks and a port and a grakkle it does look fussy but I definitely need it!!! I would be in trouble if i didnt need it. Id love to compete him in a snaffle but that is just not going to happen!! Its what suits the horse and rider isnt it

 

[MrsMagoo]

I always hear alot of people using the myler comber with shanks etc...can someome just tell me a bit about them?? are they strong bits, or just bits with more 'centred' control (if you know what i mean)...

 

[SillyMare]

I was thinking that at a show the other day (not that I profess to know anything about SJ - only muddle around eventer-style from time to time).

It wasn't the professional showjumpers going over huge fences with massive bits that struck me (I'm sure they are there for a good reason - the top level SJers are amazing and prescision control must be vital at that level).

The class I was watching when thinking about gadgets was in the 'small ring' with fences about 1m / 1m10ish. Presumably jumping that high they would generally have been novice horses / riders.

There were riders wearing huge spurs with massive combination bits on their horses (so is the problem starting or stopping then?).

So many of them rely on their hands to gather the horses up really short then firing into fences. Can't be necessary when they are only jumping a meter or so can it?

(In fact watching John Whitaker SJ in the 'big ring' at the same show, he seems to see the stride so far out that he maintains his rhythm and any change he makes to the length of stride on the appraoch is almost invisible - amazing).

Would terrify me to ride in one of those bits - there is no way my riding is good enough for that sort of thing - if I lost my balance or the horse pecked it would loose it's back teeth!! (and I'm not convinced I am all that much worse than a few of them in the class I watched).

 

[H-J]

They use nose, curb and poll pressure, and you can choose the size of the shanks and the mouthpiece, so you could have a comfort snaffle inside therefore not harsh in the mouth just uses the above pressure points more.

I love my Myler combinations, pricey but excellent and you can adjust the curb to have it tighter/looser.

 

[teapot]

I agree with the fine tuning etc, and the age old adage - far rather see something which is deemed "harasher" but being used well then a snaffle being hauled around.

And just another point, when jumping in BIG arenas say Hickstead for example, when you've got a lot of distance to cover between say fence 5 and 6 (Hickstead isn't small plus you're going up.downhill)- you're pushing on due to time constraints but they then need something that's going to be able to get their large hunk of Wb back and under control

 

[MrsMagoo]

Ok...just checking out the combo bits...can people who use them tell me - once you've been using one of those for say jumping etc, is your horse still happy to go in a normal bit for dressage etc?? are they any different? I'd imagine there not dressage legal yet, or are they??

 

[H-J]

Combination bits arent dressage legal, but Myler do, do snaffle dressage legal bits. ANd I SJ mine and a short shank ported combo and for XC I use a long shank comfort snaffle and he goes fine in a normal snaffle for the dressage.

 

[Patchwork]

[ QUOTE ]
There were riders wearing huge spurs with massive combination bits on their horses (so is the problem starting or stopping then?).

[/ QUOTE ]

Grand prix dressage riders also wear spurs and double bridles - it isn't a question of having trouble starting and stopping so much as finesse and requiring an instant reaction (although this may not be the case for the riders you are mentioning - quite possibly they merely saw somebody else using this equipment and followed suit).

 

[dieseldog]

I ride mine in a combo for jumping, but the one I use although it looks strong is only just a little bit stronger than a snaffle. I tried the traditional next step up from a snaffle and they were too strong for my horse. For flatwork/dressage I use a Sprenger loose ring snaffle and he is great in it. I wear spurs on my horse not to make him go faster but to hold him up together and it helps with steering as well.

Our other horse has the biggest myler on it going as it is so strong XC but it is also fine in a snaffle for dressage.

Even if someone is using a bit to follow fashion, they won't last long in it if it doesn't work.

The John whitaker comment, well thats why he is one of the best in the world, mere mortals will never ride like that.

 

[Helena88]

i do sometimes wonder why people ride with spurs and strong bits - and im not talking to top sjers or dressage riders when its all down to finesse, just your normal BN/disc riders...

as for the top then yes the amount of control and precision required is unimaginable!

 

[Rachel_M]

I agree about over tacking horses. I sometimes cringe when you see, especially in the juniors and young riders, where they have every single fashionable piece of tack on -ALL at the same time! My way of thinking is that the point of getting the right bit is too find one that both horse and rider can work the best together without as much fuss as possible. If you are lucky and have a lovely straight forward horse with a soft mouth that responds on a snaffle then stick with the snaffle but a rider under bitting a horse will cause more damage fighting the horse all the way.

 

[flyingfeet]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm jumping my girly 1m upwards and we are just in a myler comfort snaffle, shortly going to a loose ring normal snaffle.

[/ QUOTE ]
Oh so what has your girl done wrong to being changed from her myler? I hope you are not going for a single jointed version, otherwise back to the old fashioned nutcracker action!

I am sure if it was easy to jump 1.6m in a snaffle SJ's would. However to have a horse bouncy enough to do that, you need some serious brakes.

Also if you notice SJ's rarely haul, which is all too often seen on the eventing circuit.