The new and improved pingy pony Andy **videos**

Kokopelli

Kokopelli

Well-Known Member
Joined
12 July 2010
Messages
7,170
Location
Gloucester
Visit site
For those who don't know Andy is a 148cm ex racing pony who was very hot and loves his jumping and in fact anything where he gets to canter.

I have recently had lessons with a new instructor unfortunately they won't be regular as I really can't afford them all the time but they have just made a huge difference.

Our first lesson was spent on the buckle end of the rein! This is a major for Andy who would have taken this as an advantage to bugger off with me. I can now stop him by breathing and I very rarely have to touch my reins.

On Saturday is PC area (wish us luck please) and having not been out competing for over a month I thought I better take him out so we took him to a CR evening at the local ec. To start with we were in a french link snaffle for show jumping!!!

I'm so proud of my little man, if anything he needed a bit more energy. Had a pole the first time round but that's because I bodged up the corner and lost momentum. The second round we had a few sticky moments but all in all he jumped well (and in a snaffle.)

To say I'm proud is an understatement. :D :D Isn't it amazing what a good instructor can do? After 2 lessons I feel like I'm riding a normal horse not some crazy thing that feels like it's going to explode any minute.

Anyway here's the vid:

[youtube]b_TdR9N_xoo?hd=1[/youtube]

CC as always please but don't be too harsh as I haven't jumped him in over a month and that arena is very tight so the jumps come very quickly.

Here's a vid from our last comp for comparison (in a pelham here):

[youtube]k4u8-CGSTuw?hd=1[/youtube]

Also forgot to add that we've moved up a height now as he wasn't respecting the 90s and was hurdling the fences. He's jump much better at 1m and 1.05m.
 
What a diffrence :eek:!! Well done :). He looks so much better and is making a better shape over his fences now. Am I right in thinking his neck is more muscled than in the earlier video??
Good luck for the areas, let us know how you get on.
 
Well done to both of you! He looks like he's really enjoying himself :) I completely agree that even 1 lesson can make such a difference, i'm planning on having some lessons/ attending clinics, in the holidays :) Well done again :D
 
Thanks for kind comments! Yes I think someone may have swapped him for a nice pony, I was even ambling around the warm up on a long rein :eek:

I think his neck has improved a bit, his bum has really muscled out lately his neck is still a bit upside down but tonnes better than what it was. :)
 
What a big difference, he looks much happier in the snaffle!!!
Its better to have less lessons that you get more from than more frequant not so good lessons. And even 2 seem to have made a massive difference. You look so much more relaxed aswell.
Glad things are finally coming together for you.:)
 
you must be so proud :D

i agree one lesson can change everything, if you feel different your horse feels it and now you know how brilliant he 'can' be you'll always have that to focus on :)

He looks great
 
Kokopelli said:
For those who don't know Andy is a 148cm ex racing pony who was very hot and loves his jumping and in fact anything where he gets to canter.

I have recently had lessons with a new instructor unfortunately they won't be regular as I really can't afford them all the time but they have just made a huge difference.

Our first lesson was spent on the buckle end of the rein! This is a major for Andy who would have taken this as an advantage to bugger off with me. I can now stop him by breathing and I very rarely have to touch my reins.

On Saturday is PC area (wish us luck please) and having not been out competing for over a month I thought I better take him out so we took him to a CR evening at the local ec. To start with we were in a french link snaffle for show jumping!!!
Click to expand...

Hey can't watch the vids as internet is sloooww at BF house lol. But are you doing area 9 PC SJ??
 
Wow!!! Well done you :)

Also, well done for keeping your chin up and taking all of the critisim you've had on here because the difference in the pair of you is fantastic.

I hope you're really proud of yourselves because you should be!
 
Thanks everyone you've all put a huge smile on my face, next step is to get out xcing in the snaffle :D

Jenki- Yep doing the area 9 doing the intermediate. :)
 
Kokopelli said:
Thanks everyone you've all put a huge smile on my face, next step is to get out xcing in the snaffle :D

Jenki- Yep doing the area 9 doing the intermediate. :)
Click to expand...

Just managed to watch the videos.. well almost all of it! lol.
He looks so much better now & as above amazing what a change in instructor can do.

Cool I'm with the photographers I'm praying for sunshine (well at least dry!) Good luck :)
 
Yay! First of all SO pleased for you :D. Onwards and upwards, look forward to hearing you're having much fun together :).

Second of all, DITCH the old instructor!!!!! Even if you can only afford a lesson every couple of months with the new one, stick to them! If the old one didn't start where you are now, then what were they doing for all that time and for all of your £££? That's like, basics!
 
The lessons were with Judith Murphy at Huntley. I had a lesson with Carold Broad before as well and that was amazing but very expensive. :p

Also praying for sunshine Jenki, I hate jumping off of wet grass. Might see you there. :)

It's only taken 7 months for him to work out that legs don't always mean go fast. :p
 
'I'm so proud of my little man, if anything he needed a bit more energy. Had a pole the first time round but that's because I bodged up the corner and lost momentum. The second round we had a few sticky moments but all in all he jumped well (and in a snaffle.)'

Well done and so good that you blame yourself for the pole done, you'll go far :)
 
He looks so much more relaxed and happier too! Well done - definitely try and keep with this new instructor, even if you have to have lessons less frequently. (Often with a good instructor they teach you so much that you need fewer lessons in the end anyway!)
 
I think he also prefers the snaffle which is another reason he's going better.

Also noticed a huge difference out hacking, I almost gave up hacking with him because he was just a nightmare but now we can just about get around a short hack in one piece. :)
 
broke_but_happy said:
Can I ask what the 'stopping by breathing' exercise is? May come in useful!
Click to expand...

I wanted to ask this as well, could you give us some tips please as it sounds really interesting. I cannot believe the change in him, it really is soooooo noticeable isn't it. Wow, well done you!!!!

I have real problems with my horse jumping and have followed you with interest (you are a hundred times better than me at riding, but anyway!!) What bit did you change him to, and what are the breathing exercises, woudl love to stop my horse by breathing!!
 
He was in a myler comfort pelham with two reins and for flatwork I had him in a french link loose ring snaffle. He's now in that snaffle for SJ.

It's quite hard to explain but we spent the beginning of the lesson being taught how to breath properly i.e really deep breaths so when you inhale your tummy should expand and when you exhale it should go in. (Apparently it's how singers are taught to breathe to help retain air.)

I then had to have complete trust in him not to bugger off because he was on a loose rein, if I wasn't fully trusting I would be tense which would make the exercise kind of pointless. We then walked around on a loose rein and I would ask for halt with my seat so I kind of pushed my bum into him to block the forward movement but at the same time I would take a bit inhale and once he halted I would exhale. To start with it took a while for him to get it so we did lots of walk-halt transitions without touching the reins.

Once he understood the process I was allowed to collect a bit more rein but still very loose and ask for a trot. I then did lots of walk- trot transitions the same way I did the walk- halt transitions. I also learnt how to slow the trot down by taking a not so big breath of air or completely halt by blocking the movement and taking a big inhale.

He was so relaxed from the way he was ridden like this so when I asked for canter he didn't explode like he normally would he lolloped along quite merrily (still on a long rein.) I think it's all about body awareness and how you're seat can be used to slow down. For example if I'm trotting along and I do a double rise but bend my knees at the right time he'll walk because it blocks the forward movement. Also works in canter.

In the second lesson we began to pick up the rein a bit more but remained the nice relaxed pony which equalled a very nice relaxed outline with Andy swinging through his back. We also jumped a little bit in this lesson still on a loose rein.

The instructor said it worked so well with him because he's so sensitive to the rider and works with the way ex-racers were previously ridden by jockeys kind of like a compromise. I'm not sure it would work with every horse but has done wonders for Andy and definitely worth a try.

Hope this helps, it's really hard to explain whilst typing out.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top