Trotting a 65cm course??

J_sarahd

J_sarahd

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I started riding a new Welsh Section D who i am really enjoying. But he pulls a lot in canter when doing flat work so my instructor said that we aren't going to canter into fences until I can control the canter properly on the flat. So we have been trotting into them and he goes calmly and still has tonnes of scope (occasionally he will canter the last few strides before take off)

I entered a competition on Bank Holiday weekend, initially just to do the dressage but thought I was pointless going all that way just to do an intro test so entered a jumping class - just 65cm as I didn't want to be the oldest in a class with 5 year olds in the beginners pony class.

I'm just wondering if it's okay to trot our first jumping class? I'm just going for fun. And also if any of you have any tips to go forward with our jumping.
 
Yes, of course it is. You probably won't be the only one trotting and it is far better to stick to the plan you have made with your instructor than to upset the horse. The show will probably be exciting enough for him without being allowed to canter in the jumping class.
 
I did a 50cm WHP class recently with a lot of small kids including my own lol....

I don't see a problem with you trotting your class personally, especially at your first show..

Good luck x

Fiona
 
yep i trot tons of even smaller crosspoles courses with any green/young horses. And im 40 and usually against 7 year olds on 12.2s! Your instructor sounds like they have a plan for you, so just follow it and you will fly around.
 
It is absolutely fine to trot. Better to be safe than sorry.
My Welsh mare will often drop back to trot if anxious. I let her do this as she will jump it easily from trot but if I force canter she will run out if unsure.
I spent the first six months trotting round courses as she was insane in canter and it was terrifying.
As you progress round the course you naturally go into canter and if it feels safe stay in it.
Good exercises are to jump a fence and see how quickly you can stop after the fence. This will help with control. Each time you will stop more quickly.
Good luck
 
J_sarahd said:
I started riding a new Welsh Section D who i am really enjoying. But he pulls a lot in canter when doing flat work so my instructor said that we aren't going to canter into fences until I can control the canter properly on the flat. So we have been trotting into them and he goes calmly and still has tonnes of scope (occasionally he will canter the last few strides before take off)

I entered a competition on Bank Holiday weekend, initially just to do the dressage but thought I was pointless going all that way just to do an intro test so entered a jumping class - just 65cm as I didn't want to be the oldest in a class with 5 year olds in the beginners pony class.

I'm just wondering if it's okay to trot our first jumping class? I'm just going for fun. And also if any of you have any tips to go forward with our jumping.
Click to expand...

Sounds like you have a very good instructor with lots of sense. No horse is safe until the whoa and go are established. Have fun.
 
Of course you can! I did the same thing with Henry's first show, did 50cm and 60cm, looked a bit funny trotting round on a 16.1 in a class full of ponies but there you go! I've also trotted round 80/90cm courses, that did get some odd looks, you'd be surprised how big they can jump from trot! Good luck :)
 
agree with iknowmyvalue - surprising how scopey they are in trot. There are a few event riders (i think ian stark included) that says they find the right spot in trot. Certainly worth trotting round and allowing the last few strides of approach to be in canter will increase the confidence and make a more comfortable jump and improve the quality of the canter. You'll have far more control in the trot.
 
Sounds like a good plan - as you've been working on jumping from trot so I assume your horse is happy jumping from trot.

Less likely to be on a horrid stride (no risk of half stride) and less risk of running out too.
 
Trotted round the 75-85 the other night, madam gets rather keen otherwise, plus on grass with no studs so it minimised the skid risk. Where we were going in a straight line and as she got more settled we cantered some but most we trotted :) You'll be fine.
 
NF has spent a lot of time trotting into jumps, we have recently only started cantering into an in an arena, this grounding has made her quite confident and also better balanced when landing.
Just forget the speed kids in the same class and enjoy taking him round :)
 
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