Overthinking when jumps get bigger

[greenbean10]

Does anyone else do this and how do you stop it?

I can get round most of a Discovery now in a good rhythm, waiting for the fences and generally getting a decent stride to each fence.

Whenever I have put the jumps up in training (or the oxers start to get bigger in the second half of a course), I start overthinking. I pull too much so we get too close, or I kick when I don't need to, and totally forget to just be calm and trust that there is a stride.

I think it's because the stakes are higher. I can get away with a bad stride to a 90cm square oxer, but a 1m10 square oxer from a duff stride will put my horse in an awkward position, and I am worried about my horse losing confidence or having a horrible jump.

But I can get a good stride to a cross pole every time!

Any show jumpers do the same thing or is anyone able to help?

Thank you in advance.

 

[HelenBack]

I do this too, either hold way too much and interfere or gun for a long one and send the horse flat, often resulting in a stop. I blame pony club days where we were made to count down the last three strides into a fence and I can't help but over think and look almost too hard for the stride now.

I've not really found a great solution but a lot of the good instructors I have are moving away from the whole seeing a stride thing, probably because of this sort of issue, and they reckon the horse can od a far better job of deciding where to take off than we can. The main things now seem to be focussing on a good quality canter and not interfering and if you have that it should be okay, almost like the jump is just a big canter stride that goes into the air!

I try and focus on the quality and rhythm of the canter stride and count days of the week in my head to try and focus more on that than on seeing the stride. I also get told off for looking at the fence and get told to look beyond it a tree in the distance or something like that.

The only other things are I do try to tell myself it's fine and to stop being so silly and I find that repeated exposure at bigger fences gets you more comfortable so that you stop riding nervously. Maybe stick to heights you're comfortable with when you're on your own and only go bigger when there's an instructor there to help keep you calm? In time they shouldn't look so big and then you won't be making a big deal about them in your head.

 

[Irish Sally]

How are you with gridwork? Can you put up the last fence of a grid without panicking?

 

[greenbean10]

How are you with gridwork? Can you put up the last fence of a grid without panicking?

Yes I could jump 1.30 at the end of a grid and not worry! It's anything where I have to make a decision on the stride

 

[greenbean10]

I do this too, either hold way too much and interfere or gun for a long one and send the horse flat, often resulting in a stop. I blame pony club days where we were made to count down the last three strides into a fence and I can't help but over think and look almost too hard for the stride now.

I've not really found a great solution but a lot of the good instructors I have are moving away from the whole seeing a stride thing, probably because of this sort of issue, and they reckon the horse can od a far better job of deciding where to take off than we can. The main things now seem to be focussing on a good quality canter and not interfering and if you have that it should be okay, almost like the jump is just a big canter stride that goes into the air!

I try and focus on the quality and rhythm of the canter stride and count days of the week in my head to try and focus more on that than on seeing the stride. I also get told off for looking at the fence and get told to look beyond it a tree in the distance or something like that.

The only other things are I do try to tell myself it's fine and to stop being so silly and I find that repeated exposure at bigger fences gets you more comfortable so that you stop riding nervously. Maybe stick to heights you're comfortable with when you're on your own and only go bigger when there's an instructor there to help keep you calm? In time they shouldn't look so big and then you won't be making a big deal about them in your head.

This totally makes sense. I think the reason I can see good strides to 90cm is because that is a small fence in my head. Perhaps I just need to get more comfortable with the bigger jumps (until they start to look small) and then I will ride them just the same as I do the smaller jumps.

I have been told not to look for a stride too, but not looking for a stride when heading towards a square 1m10 oxer feels even more terrifying!

 

[Tacobell]

this could have honestly been me writing this. feel your pain.

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Yes I am totally with you. I can ride 90s fine. But them up 100 and suddenly I'm over-thinking and over-riding.

Various suggestions.

* focus on rhythm and canter quality and the fences generally end up in the right place anyway because the horse adjusts. The problem with trying to see a stride is you can kill the canter by riding on a backwards stride or chase them in. Popping out of a decent canter, a bit deep or a bit off feel much nicer than either of those options.
* Ride courses with most jumps at the comfort zone height with 1-2 fences a bit bigger so the bigger ones are sort of hidden mid-round. Then slowly add in more bigger ones
* Look up and over fences, not at them. So you can't see which the 'big scary' ones are.
* Focus on lines and the overall space, not the jumps.
* Trim the track a bit so you have less time to fixate on the upcoming jump. Turn, jump, turn, jump. Don't ride wide lines.
* Just keep riding courses - the jumps at any given height will shrink in your mind's eye and then you'll have to do it all again and the next height up!

Good luck!

 

[myheartinahoofbeat]

I do this too, either hold way too much and interfere or gun for a long one and send the horse flat, often resulting in a stop. I blame pony club days where we were made to count down the last three strides into a fence and I can't help but over think and look almost too hard for the stride now.

I've not really found a great solution but a lot of the good instructors I have are moving away from the whole seeing a stride thing, probably because of this sort of issue, and they reckon the horse can od a far better job of deciding where to take off than we can. The main things now seem to be focussing on a good quality canter and not interfering and if you have that it should be okay, almost like the jump is just a big canter stride that goes into the air!

I try and focus on the quality and rhythm of the canter stride and count days of the week in my head to try and focus more on that than on seeing the stride. I also get told off for looking at the fence and get told to look beyond it a tree in the distance or something like that.

The only other things are I do try to tell myself it's fine and to stop being so silly and I find that repeated exposure at bigger fences gets you more comfortable so that you stop riding nervously. Maybe stick to heights you're comfortable with when you're on your own and only go bigger when there's an instructor there to help keep you calm? In time they shouldn't look so big and then you won't be making a big deal about them in your head.

This exactly. Great advice. It's just an elevated canter stride afterall! If you have a really decent canter then you are only going to be half a stride of either way. Don't allow yourself to fiddle. One half halt after the fence before and thats it. I'm not jumping as high as you but I still over think but what has really helped me is a change of instructor who isn't into the micromanaging the other one was. I listened to Pippa Funnell talking about nerves and she said in training she just puts one fence up, not the whole lot as that is too scary. Get used to that and then start putting another one up and so on.

 

[Birker2020]

This used to be me too. I get where you are coming from. I never used to care about how big an upright was but for me spreads just gave me the eebie jeebies. I think this was because before my wobblers horse was diagnosed (and before he showed any real symptoms) he ended up landing on top of a double with an oxer. It was very scary as we ended up on the floor.

Following this he went through the last fence in a jump off without picking up his hind feet. It was only when we played back the video in slow motion that we realised and that is when I started pushing for a diagnosis.

When you think about it a horse can never be more than 1/2 stride wrong to a fence and is more than capable of jumping a wide oxer given that its stride length is 12ft.

Does anyone else do this and how do you stop it?

I can get round most of a Discovery now in a good rhythm, waiting for the fences and generally getting a decent stride to each fence.

Whenever I have put the jumps up in training (or the oxers start to get bigger in the second half of a course), I start overthinking. I pull too much so we get too close, or I kick when I don't need to, and totally forget to just be calm and trust that there is a stride.

I think it's because the stakes are higher. I can get away with a bad stride to a 90cm square oxer, but a 1m10 square oxer from a duff stride will put my horse in an awkward position, and I am worried about my horse losing confidence or having a horrible jump.

But I can get a good stride to a cross pole every time!

Any show jumpers do the same thing or is anyone able to help?

Thank you in advance.

 

[TheHairyOne]

Me! I do this. It used to be with x poles!

I did little and often.

Practice has now increased this to 80, 90 on a good day.

However, if i dont jump for a while the height goes back down.

Hoping for some more tips and tricks from your question!!!

 

[HelenBack]

Me! I do this. It used to be with x poles!

I did little and often.

Practice has now increased this to 80, 90 on a good day.

However, if i dont jump for a while the height goes back down.

Hoping for some more tips and tricks from your question!!!

I'm the same. When I had my last horse when he was young I thought 90 was big and that was the height I aimed to be comfortable at. After a while 90 was easy, 100 was fun but challenging, 105 a little bit scary but exhilarating and 110 made me brick it a bit! That horse retired from competition (and sadly now completely) but we'd still pop the odd log or whatever, probably no bigger than 60 but that was easy peasy and I never even thought about.

Along came the new horse about three years after I stopped competing the first one and now there is categorically no way I'd even contemplate going over a 90cm fence! 60 is easy, 70 is getting a bit nerve wracking and 80 I would only do with an instructor there and might well make a hash of it. I haven't been able to get him out enough to make much progress on this and if I try to be clever when I'm on my own it invariably goes wrong!

I think a lot of it really is practice and just keeping going over and over things until it's familiar enough to feel easy.

 

[greenbean10]

Yes I am totally with you. I can ride 90s fine. But them up 100 and suddenly I'm over-thinking and over-riding.

Various suggestions.

* focus on rhythm and canter quality and the fences generally end up in the right place anyway because the horse adjusts. The problem with trying to see a stride is you can kill the canter by riding on a backwards stride or chase them in. Popping out of a decent canter, a bit deep or a bit off feel much nicer than either of those options.
* Ride courses with most jumps at the comfort zone height with 1-2 fences a bit bigger so the bigger ones are sort of hidden mid-round. Then slowly add in more bigger ones
* Look up and over fences, not at them. So you can't see which the 'big scary' ones are.
* Focus on lines and the overall space, not the jumps.
* Trim the track a bit so you have less time to fixate on the upcoming jump. Turn, jump, turn, jump. Don't ride wide lines.
* Just keep riding courses - the jumps at any given height will shrink in your mind's eye and then you'll have to do it all again and the next height up!

Good luck!

These are all SO helpful, thank you! Especially point 2 actually. It's so silly because 105 is only 1 hole higher than 1m, on a course I probably wouldn't even notice that!

I definitely find when I have less of a run up I get a better stride too (as I am forced to make a decision coming round the corner) so that is definitely a good idea too.

Thank you very much.

 

[greenbean10]

I'm the same. When I had my last horse when he was young I thought 90 was big and that was the height I aimed to be comfortable at. After a while 90 was easy, 100 was fun but challenging, 105 a little bit scary but exhilarating and 110 made me brick it a bit! That horse retired from competition (and sadly now completely) but we'd still pop the odd log or whatever, probably no bigger than 60 but that was easy peasy and I never even thought about.

Along came the new horse about three years after I stopped competing the first one and now there is categorically no way I'd even contemplate going over a 90cm fence! 60 is easy, 70 is getting a bit nerve wracking and 80 I would only do with an instructor there and might well make a hash of it. I haven't been able to get him out enough to make much progress on this and if I try to be clever when I'm on my own it invariably goes wrong!

I think a lot of it really is practice and just keeping going over and over things until it's familiar enough to feel easy.

I totally agree. I think I need to keep practicing - jump 1m until it feels boring!