Please may I have some CC on my Borde Hill escapades?? Pretty please?

[jules89]

Naughty dressage, felt horrible, like I was riding a poking nose lunatic! Cue about 3.15mins in where he goes WILD! Oh and yes my dog loves to be on camera

Like I said in my report, the SJ went wrong at the double and the triple, but he could have not shuffled in the triple? He jumped huge in and just lost all momentum, but I did boot him in the hope he would not make the same mistake again, argh! But do I look better in position and hands?



And XC, I circle after the corner as he was just not going as I wanted to, bit looky and needing my help a lot more than normal! This was sadly not the best part of the course but hey, it's still a vid




Compared to this time last year : http://s523.photobucket.com/albums/w356/...nt=101_0407.flv
Please be kind

I am a bit wobbly!

 

[seabiscuit]

Ooohh buzzy pony!!

He is looking VERY well at the moment- is he on a lot of food?

No CC needed for the dressage- I thought that you rode it great, he just wasn't as submissive and as engaged as usual,which is understandable if he was feeling fresh.

SJ and XC- do agree that he was being very rude!! again just too fresh- its so difficult to ride them when they are being like this. Dont think you could have done anything more, you do need to soften your hands a lot more way before the fence and put hands forward, but that is v.easy for me to say as I know that I do exactly the same thing when my horse is being too strong- its just not easy jumping them when they're being like that

Anyway, if he'd had the edge off him that day/had been calmer you would have both have easily gained a good placing, no probs, I dont think you have anything at all to worry about!

 

[vicky86]

No real CC but he looks very keen and enthusiastic also seems to have plenty of jump - maybe just a little too keen at times . Well done and well ridden and I think you were definatley right to circle xc. He/she looks ace.

 

[humph]

My impressions having watched all 3 vids is "what a nice horse" He's got naturally good movement, with well engaged hocks and conformation that means he'll naturally round. In the dressage, I just thought hmm, nice mover, particularly his trot work. I reckon the blip was a tension thing where he was really engaging his inside hind to strike into canter it looked like perhaps his muscles just went ow, hence a buck and a disunited strike off. My guess would be that he'd done a bit of schooling the day before and was a tad stiff from it. His trot work and walk looked very soft and supple as did his canter in the sj so this made me wonder whether he's finding you're sitting into him a bit too much, as in making an effort to sit hard on him rather than using your core muscles to enable your body to go with his movement. I'm not saying you aren't sitting well but just trying to read his body to see what he might be trying to say.

SJ, I started to really really like him - he's got that cocky edge to him where he seems to think he knows best and in his book fast is best - he only knocks them and gets it wrong when he's fast, flat and suddenly realises at the last minute that he's got a jump right in front of him and whoops it's gone. I thought sheepskin noseband but from seeing the previous vid, think that perhaps that might have led to his stop last year - if he rushed and didn't see the jump til the last minute, he wouldnt' have enough time to drop his head low enough to see it over teh sheepskin so had to stop. I think I'd suggest working on schooling him to slow down with the seat, trying to teach him to listen really carefully to what your body's saying so that you can sit up before a jump, or in a combination, to get him back to you.

Hmm, now i've had another look and I think actually between jumps he comes back quite nicely, and he's got a really super bouncy jumping canter. Where he rushes is in the last few strides before a fence, and in this case it was the combinations that caused trouble. It's tricky to fix in competition but at home you could do lots of jumping where you throw the reins to him over the jump (not literally but enough to give him confidence that jumping won't hurt his mouth when he tries to stretch his neck) because the reason for rushing could be him worrying that he's not getting enough head room to stretch over the jump.

XC I didn't see much problem - he's bold and a really lovely stamp of horse. Again, he sometimes just takes the bit between the teeth, so to speak, just before the fence and that's where he cocks up his striding. As with the SJ, I think you need to practice giving him his neck over jumps at home so that he learns to relax into it and jump from his normal rhythm rather than having a last minute rush.

I hope this makes sense, but please don't feel wobbly, it looks to me like you've got a cracker there and just a couple of blips that it sounds like you're over analysing.

 

[Tangaroo]

Really want to watch it but it keeps stopping and starting all the time. Is there anything i can do to make it run smoothly?

 

[charliebo]

Wow, what a lovely and talented horse! He really enjoys the job, doesn't he? And I think you are doing a good job too

Dressage: Great mover but needs to slow down a bit to help his balance and allow him to move more uphill. I think working on this could also help with the jumping, teaching him to be a bit more patient and helping him to relax into a rhythm (easier said than done when he is so enthusiastic!)

As far as your hands are concerned, there are times when you are holding a little too much, before fences and also in the air (again, this is hard for the rider to correct when the horse is buzzing). Don't be afraid to keep the same contact all the time, before fences and in the air. As long as your hands follow his mouth during the jumping phase and you allow him to use his head and neck, it is fine to maintain a contact while he jumps, (as long as you do not make the contact stronger when he is in the air).

I think the flatwork may be the key for helping the jumping phases. When he learns to wait, balance and push off the floor (upwards and forwards rather than just forwards) he may become easier to ride to a fence in competition.

Where did you find him? I want one!

 

[MissDeMeena]

I hate trying to word CCs on here, just as i hate teaching, as i never know how to word what i'm thinking..
But i'll give it a go anyway

My over-all thought, with all 3 videos is more leg and less hand, esp with the SJing.

Dressage, this is my weakest phase so i don't like crit'ing others, but i feel that the over-all picture would be improved with a few more half-halts before each movement (but don't forget to engage away from them), and a slightly shorter rein, therefore you could have a softer hand.. also thumbs ontop of the reins

and trying to keep them more as a pair...

SJing.. too much speed and not enough power..
To me it looks like you're killing all the power on the corners, then having to create something from nothing, by having to fire in the last 3 strides.. If you do it the other way round, create as much power on the corners as you can, you can then sit quietly and just ride that power to the fence, without having to suddenly kick at the last min which will change the horses balance. Also, whatever the jump you get, try and remember to give with your hands over the fence

XC, see SJing

but at a slightly faster pace

 

[UncleJr]

I love that boy! He’s looking super!

Dressage: He moves nicely!

More half halts before each movement (as MDS says), so Zeb will not be surprised when changing direction, flexion, etc... Half halts also help to recover rhythm.

SJ: Zeb snatches reins off hands before fence 3 (double), and even more before fence 8 (triple); you were not in control and could not make a good approach. Horse should be in control at all times. A martingale would help.
Try to give more with your hands on the air. He was being strong, and it’s difficult, but try; one thing is before the jump, another on the air.

XC: he was being very strong; right decision to circle after the corner.

Was this the first comp after resting? Maybe that’s the reason for him being so strong and naughty

He will get better

I liked him very much, and you rode nicely!

 

[jules89]

Uncle Jr yep first comp for a while (about 2 months and before that another 2 months?!) and he's been on a lot of feed to help bulk up so he was very excited!

I was trying to half halt using my seat, which is why I think I look like I sit into him a bit too much? But I just couldn't do anything when I was in that arena as he was just being so bolshy (he was on two legs outside just threatening to rear) so I was trying to be tactful and sort of sit and try not to leave the arena!

Ahem yes I do crotch grab and turn wrists in when I forget

Thanks MissDS

Humph you hit the nail on the head with the SJ - he clocks the fence then tries to run to the bottom of it! He is clever, and thinks he knows it all because he used to SJ but it is quite hhairy to sit on when that bit of control goes out of the window. If I go for a long one, or am slightly inaccurate, it gets a hell of a lot worse

I am working on trying and putting my hands "down" over the fence, because of how he bascules, but when I am in a competition environment it sort of goes a bit pear shaped, if I remember to do that, then something else will get forgotten, is this normal?!

MDS yeah I try to get him back on the corner as it's my prime time to actually have some control, hadn't realised how much I killed it?

chazza - he was a SJer in the Isle Of Wight before I got him, I was looking for an experienced eventer and I sat on him ( who had never seen a XC fence in his life) and didn't want to get off, so I've produced him myself which means all these problems are my fault

stilton - cuold be your internet. Don't let the vid start automatically; pause it, let it load up, then try again?


Thanks everyone for your replies, I tried to reply last night but my computer had killed the internet and as I clicked send everything got deleted and I was so angry that I just turned off computer and went to bed

But thanks for taking the time to watch and give me some really really good advice, thanks

 

[prudunce]

ooooo i like your pone!!! All looks pretty good to me,hey,at least u know ur pone is going to tackle any jump,he's loving it!!! ok so the test cud have been a bit calmer(easier said than done,i know!!),but lovely trot work from wat i cud see!!
I take it that was the novice track????looked FUNNNNNNNNNNNNN

 

[milz88]

Hey, well I agree with MDS, Zeb looks fab though, so springy and enthusiastic which is of course what you want.

In the SJ though he seems to stay calm and wait nicely then lengthen his stride/speed up so he becomes out of his rhythm which makes the final few strides to the fence more difficult, as he has to take a long one, or like he seems to, chip in a short one.

I had the same problem with mine, and it was all my fault for not knowing any better, but have got someone to have SJ lessons with now and he has taught me so much.

All I can say is, you have to try and keep the canter rhythm even rather than say to him, wait, wait, wait, go.....where he lengthens and gets out of rhythm and has to chip/go long, its so easy to practice this over a few poles on the ground at home then you get used to it and its much easier over the bigger fences.

However he did jump really well and looked better when he stayed calm and did not go out of his rhythm , which only happened the most at the double and triple. Good luck and well done.

 

[jules89]

prudence - ys the Novice, it was huge!

thanks milz88 yeah that's what I have been doing but he never does it with poles, he's a clever little thing!

 

[milz88]

ah bless him, well the only other option is grids where he has to stay in a rhythm, you do alot of these already though don't you? hmm, maybe small fences instead of poles, something more to ride to.