Seeing a stride!

slumdog

slumdog

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I can't see a stride for love nor money! I can use placing poles and correctly stride them, but take away the placing poles and I'm useless! I can shorten and lengthen strides in a double, I can count how many strides he's doing, I even know on takeoff if we're too close or too far away but put an upright up and I just can't get it right!

I watched a YouTube clip of Oliver Townend and Geoff Billington and Geoff comes round the corner to an upright and says "we're on a terrible stride to this" how does he know from that far away?! Lol!

I clearly need some lessons or I'll just start eventing and jumping at funny angles so I don't need to see a stride ;) haha x
 
Everyone's eye kicks in at a different point. Of course, experience helps and you will get better the more you do, but otherwise, it's your job to get the canter right and not interfere. Worst thing you can do is go looking for a stride and disrupting the canter when you think you see it but are wrong!
 
slumdog said:
I
I clearly need some lessons or I'll just start eventing and jumping at funny angles so I don't need to see a stride ;) haha x
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You joke, but funnily enough I very very rarely end up on a duff stride if I come from a funny angle :p

I know when I haven't got a stride as I panic and freeze (or flap - the elbows come out!). I know if I'm not panicking then I'm ok, at which point I then start "pushing" for the stride I know is there, and end up without one as I've lengthened and lost it. Drive myself mad with frustration! It's something I've only started doing on current horse and I think it's because he's not forward going. It's so much easier to feel the stride when you're being taken to the fence. I always think of it as "feeling" the stride as well - I don't "see" it but I can feel what it will feel like to be on this stride - hence the panicking when I'm wrong, as I know it's going to be horrid/lead to a stop/awkward jump or the pushing for the good stride as I can't wait to get there and feel it!

It's hard to explain really :confused: You're going to think I'm a werido now :p

I think it must be easier if you jump a lot than if you just have one horse and jump once a fortnight like me!
 
it's all about the canter, unfortunately.
I tend to get caught up worrying about seeing a stride then I panick and end up pushing on and unbalancing my horse. :o

my instructor says to concentrate on the quality of the canter and to make sure your horse is listening so you can shorten or push on if needed. the fences are just interruptions.

well, it made sense when he said it :p
 
Two poles at either end of the school and canter over them repeatedly. Count strides on normal canter then add one in take one away ride first distance again. This is best exercise I have found for teaching about distance of canter stride. Same as driving a car and knowing when to brake to stop or accelerate to get out a junction. We can all learn to judge distance and its just a case of repeating the same thing over and over again. You don't fall off the pavement when you are walking (well not on a good day lol ;) )
 
I used to think and panic about seeing strides - and spent years trying to perfect ''seeing'' a stride...when in fact I should have been working on my canter instead.

If you have an uphill, positive canter with some engine in their hocks/under them, as long as you keep the rhythm/power and sit up, keep a nice straight line to the fence, the stride just happens....when someone first told me this I was like ''what?! no, it can't surely it'll go wrong'' - but in fact, when put to practise, a good canter really does make you hit the fence prettymuch bang on, and even if you're slightly off, if the canter has a good quality, the horse will have enough engine in the canter to shorten/lengthen themselves.

The jump is just an obstacle in the way of all your canter strides, keep the rhythm and canter the same, ignore the jump, and just 'go with it' as people say :)

Now I never worry about seeing strides, I just concentrate on the canter - and when I find myself ending up on a bit of a misser/knock a pole...when I look back/think back to that particular jump, I usually realise there was something wrong with my canter - not the striding. :)

A good exercise to help you make sure you have a good ''ring canter'' as my SJ instructor calls it, is setting two poles at a set distance apart e.g. 4 canter strides, and practise cantering down them in a rhythm - helps you get the ''feel'' of what the correct canter should feel like. The first time I did the exercise I found I was getting around 6 strides in a 4 stride distance!!! my canter was no way ''oomph-y'' enough - so after working on my canter a lot over the past few months I rarely have striding issues :)
 
No magic answers other than practise i'm afraid!!

1 - Get your canter right - in a nice forward, but adjustable rhythm.
2 - Get your approach right - look at the fence early, and approach the fence straight and in the centre of the top pole
3 - Once straight look ahead, not at the jump
4 - Wait for the jump to come to you, be ready to support with your hand, seat or leg, but try not to fuss!!


* Dont practise until you get it right, practise until you don't get it wrong!! *
 
blood_magik said:
it's all about the canter, unfortunately.
I tend to get caught up worrying about seeing a stride then I panick and end up pushing on and unbalancing my horse.
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Whilst I do agree that having a rhythmical, balanced canter [which can be shortened and lengthened easily] is desirable, my personal feeling about whether a rider can 'see a stride' has to do with your BRAIN and your PROPRIOCEPTION!

In other words its about how good your 'spatial awareness' is and then how good your body is at telling your brain where it is in time and space - all sounds a bit weird! Basically its your ability [or inability!] to view a space in front of you and decided how to best negotiate that space by moving your body in it. Although, there is a horse involved [which you have to also move] it's still your body's ability to organise itself within this space, to then organise the horse also within that space - to reach the jump on the best stride possible.

A recent study has found that the most sucessful showjumpers are those who are able to hold their gaze [on the next obstacle] whilst jumping the present obstacle and then all throughout until they jump the next ostacle and so on.

So, what they're basically doing is using their spatical awarenes to the full by continuing to hold their gaze on the obstacle they wish to jump. That way, the body makes changes to best negotiate itself within this space. So, in turn they are able to 'aid' the horse to arrive at the jump on the best possible stride.

So, where you look is key to help your body use the aids to try to place the horse in the best possible position for the jump. Does your instructor moan at you for not looking at the jumps, especially immediately after landing?? If so, this may be the key to improving your 'eye'.

You can help develop this skill but placing poles in between the jumps too or using markers that will try to improve your spatial awareness within a space. How many canter strides does your horse take within this space? You should also try to count the horse's stride within these markers or poles in order to train your brain in working out how many strides your horse makes within a space. Your body then will become more acustomed and trained at altering your horse's stride within this space to best meet the jump.

So, its basically trying to visualise a space and then how your horse needs to move within that space to meet an obstacle. I'm sorry if this sounds wierd but that's how I teach it. I then use some exercises to try to improve a riders spatial awareness.

I may be wrong, by that's my position on it!!
 
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You have all been really helpful, thanks :)

I've not had lessons since I was a teenager, I always had stereotypical jumping ponies so I've never had a say in what stride we jump on lol!

Now I'm older (Ive been back jumping a year, I'm 26) I'm obviously much more aware of the technical aspects of showjumping, but its one thing I just can't seem to do. My horse is young and I've wrote before about him dropping poles, after having my sister ride him and see him jump brilliantly it would appear he's probably always had someone set him up so he can't see a stride either and waits for me to sort him out!

I always thought his canter was good until I saw my sis ride him and it actually looks quite flat (I'd not rode him or seen him ridden before I bought him lol) so canter is defiantly something I'm working on, and yes, I do have a habit of looking at the floor lol! :)
 
I can see a stride and while some of it is luck, I have had many, many lessons with a SJ'er who specifically made you count the strides into a fence and if you fluffed it, you had to do it again and as I hated jumping, I learnt PDQ!!

I also find using the lines across the road helpful, or the tramline road repairs. As you drive, practicing counting until the noise change or imagine flying over them. Yes you will look a plonker because you find yourself 'folding' over the imaginary fence :D
 
slumdog said:
You have all been really helpful, thanks :)

I've not had lessons since I was a teenager, I always had stereotypical jumping ponies so I've never had a say in what stride we jump on lol!

Now I'm older (Ive been back jumping a year, I'm 26) I'm obviously much more aware of the technical aspects of showjumping, but its one thing I just can't seem to do. My horse is young and I've wrote before about him dropping poles, after having my sister ride him and see him jump brilliantly it would appear he's probably always had someone set him up so he can't see a stride either and waits for me to sort him out! So, good rhythm is first and then try some counting exercises.

I always thought his canter was good until I saw my sis ride him and it actually looks quite flat (I'd not rode him or seen him ridden before I bought him lol) so canter is defiantly something I'm working on, and yes, I do have a habit of looking at the floor lol! :)
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You can even do exercises off the horse - run around the garden yourself with jumps!! This will also improve your spatial awareness concerning how your body moves and how many 'strides' you need to get to the fence. It all helps improve the awareness.

However, nothing can replace riding the horse as you have to train your body to 'feel' the canter stride, relay this to your brain and then for your brain to work out how many of those 'up/downs' will fit into the space in front of you [before the jump.] That's why everybody bangs on about 'rhythm'. If the horse is taking equal canter stride lengths it is easier for your body to work out how many of them are needed to 'fit' into the space in front of you to best meet the jump! Bingo!!

If your horse is not in cruise control and continously alters the canter stride length himself (rhythm) it is more difficult for your body to work out how many of these irregualar strides are needed to fit into the space in front of you to adequately meet the fence 'on a good one'.

Good luck.
 
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I thoroughly agree with mandymoo. Keep a good canter right to the take off point, dont get a good canter and then ruin it in the last few strides by pushing or holding just keep it and the stride will appear as the horse can make any minor adjustments from a good canter easily.
I also stare like a freak at the middle of the top pole. I know people say you shouldn't look at the jump but beyond it as it's the horses job to jump the fence but I can't do that! I find it helps me if I stare at the top of the next jump, helps me get a straight line I find.
 
I never used to worry about strides when I was younger but now I do! I always watch as many as I can jump before me & pick out those that are similar to my horse, that way I know how many strides I need to count for between doubles/related distances, it does really help!! Also I never seem to have a problem in jump-offs, when i'm trying to get round quickly not worrying about strides. I try & keep in a forward going canter, leg on & let her have her head & try not to fiddle. If you can get someone to video you it will help greatly (well it did me) you will see what you need to try to correct in your way of riding. I think most of us worry about strides!
 
Sorry can't quote but yes I do, then I usually 'over ride' and he'll have it down. I've also noticed I ride differently the bigger they get, I'm more likely to 'push' once were above 90cm, where as anything fairly small I just leave him alone x
 
Two quick suggestions:

1. If you can't see a stride, look away from the fence & then look back. Often a stride appears as if by magic.
2. Get your eyes tested! I could never see a stride, then after going 20 years without an eye test, got them done. It turns out that one eye is a lot more short sighted than the other, which makes it hard to judge distance. I now have contacts & can see a stride! I had a really duff day schooling at home recently & it later transpired that I'd forgotten to put in my lenses.

T x
 
slumdog said:
Sorry can't quote but yes I do, then I usually 'over ride' and he'll have it down. I've also noticed I ride differently the bigger they get, I'm more likely to 'push' once were above 90cm, where as anything fairly small I just leave him alone x
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I really struggle with this - I ride so quiet up to anything smaller than 85/90cm, then once it gets to that I have a bad habit of ''firing'' on the last two strides or so and ruining the rhythm.

I found it just helped really concentrating on the canter and either looking past the fence, or at the back rail of an oxer rather than the base/take off point so you're concentrating on something else. (or just have someone shout SIT QUIET at you from the ground also helped me ;) haha)

Don't worry, it will come with time :)
 
Love this thread - with a horse who bowls on and doesnt seem to worry about strides I feel I need to be a bit more aware and do more setting up. I will certainly continue to work on that canter.
thanks everyone and OP for a good topic
 
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