You see it all the the time – a nervous amateur or junior comes barreling out of the corner in their jump off, but half-halts the horse all the way to the upcoming triple combination.
We’ve all done it, at one time or another. Sometimes it’s a nervous habit that can be hard to break. Other times we think we’re doing the right thing by our horse when in reality, we’re just driving him crazy.
Eventer-turned show jumper, Justine Dutton, offered her advice on how to stop micromanaging the horse on every jump approach. To start, she said the rider needs to go back to the basics.
“You have to figure out how to count the rhythm,” explained Justine, who operates her own training and sales business out of her farm in Ocala, Fla. “I prefer to come out of a turn and start counting down to the fence, that way you’re married to it by the time you get to one.”
But for riders who need to practice, there’s nothing wrong with “counting up.”
Riders who are learning to be more comfortable at establishing and maintaining the rhythm of the stride should start over ground poles or cross rails until they feel like they’ve mastered it.
“Practice over smaller stuff with just putting your hands down and leaving the horse alone,” Justine explained.
And riders shouldn’t be afraid of letting the horse make a mistake.
“The horse won’t learn if you’re always jumping the jump for them,” she said. “Let (a rail down or an awkward distance) be a lesson for them.”