Show Jumping.....Please give me advice!

[XxCoriexX]

Ok so i have only ever competed in dressage but recently i have been really enjoying jumping with my mare. We have only been jumping at home and i would say max a meter....so not ground breaking stuff but fun for us both....i am thinking about taking her out to a little unaffiliated show jumping competition but i'm very nervous!
She is really bad for refusing when there are fillers she hasnt seen before (even sometimes when she has seen them before!) So i have two options really and i am not sure which one to pick!

Option A - Take her to the little unaffiliated show on sunday and only do the 70/80 (will the fillers be under the fence at this point or just at the sides?) and use it to try and remember my course and just make it around a course!
Option B - Attempt to rent the arena on the Monday after the jumping is finished in the hopes they can leave the course up for me and do some practicing....but it would mean that my first show would be a CAT 2 show the following weekend......

I am not sure i will be able to remember the course and i do tend t shut down when i get nervous so a friendlier unaffiliated show may be better? What do you think?


thanks for your advice everyone!

 

[be positive]

I believe in trying to set them, and the rider, up to succeed so the first outing should always be a clear round opportunity at a very low height where you can go round several times to ensure they have every chance of completing.
There is no way I would recommend anyone with nerves, a horse that lacks confidence with fillers to go to a competition so unprepared that even learning the course is a challenge so I would do a course hire if that is an option and forget about competing until you are a bit more prepared, that may sound negative but there is little point in giving the horse a bad experience if it can be avoided and another month or two spent on training, work put in now will be worthwhile in the long run.

 

[siennamiller]

I would say there’s no rush. I would hire the arena and have a nice schooling round to boost both your confidence, but then wait for a smaller unaff show and have a pop round a little class. There’s no reason why you have to do the Cat 2 show the following weekend. You have nothing to prove, and it’s much better to have a few confidence giving rounds before you jump competitively.

 

[Squeak]

I would say there’s no rush. I would hire the arena and have a nice schooling round to boost both your confidence, but then wait for a smaller unaff show and have a pop round a little class. There’s no reason why you have to do the Cat 2 show the following weekend. You have nothing to prove, and it’s much better to have a few confidence giving rounds before you jump competitively.

This. I would do a couple of course hires until you're confident that your mare will jump happily around fillers and you can also practice remembering courses as well. Then you can also have a look at or ring the local shows and see what height they usually put fillers in so that you can do your first show with the fillers out and I would go for a good local unaffiliated for your first show not an affiliated as the courses affiliated are often more technical and have more fillers etc.

 

[JustMe22]

Have to say I agree - a course hire or clear round opportunity so that you can jump it a few times if need be.

I would postpone the Cat 2 show until you are confident and do a few course hires and unaffiliated shows until then. I know it's exciting to want to get in there and compete but I'd rather have a smooth and successful round two months later. You may well overface her at a big competitive environment after just one course hire, and it is not a risk worth running IMO.