First Real Jumping Lesson for Courage

Cars are for people who can't ride

Well, I didn't get a car and my instructor cancelled my jumping lesson, but if I let little things like logistics stop me, I'd never get anywhere. Instead of the fancy $$ event trainer giving us our first jumping lesson, I scheduled one with our usual dressage/biomechanics instructor who is also a pretty kickass jumping rider.

Of course, she'd never actually seen him jump at all, so I explained what we've been doing and that he's really game and really green.

She had us trot in/canter out over a little placing pole to a crossrail a couple of time and C-rage didn't put a foot wrong, but he's a long ways from being impressed by a plain crossrail these days.

Then she set it up to a vertical. I didn't tell her, but it was higher than anything I've ever pointed him at before. To this point, he's been nothing but brave and honest, and I had no reason to doubt him.

I do love a good straps pic

He trotted in, jumped over his shoulder and took out the top rail. We came back around while S talked about slowing everything down in my head and making time. He has to work through about 7 steps to take off for the jump properly (which is what we're teaching him) and the last thing I need to do is rush him. Instead, I need to let him go slow and figure it out. Since Courage is so well built and always engaged, we can go quite slow and it will be fine.

In order to create the time in my brain, S had my exhale the last 2-3 strides to the fence. Funny thing--I guess I was inhale quickly at the base of the fence, which was bringing my energy up and making everything feel rushed.

It only looks tiny to you

So I exhaled and rode a straight line. It felt magical. All of a sudden, there was extra time in there that I hadn't noticed before. Courage snapped his knees up and jumped the piss out of the fence, then landed and cantered away in a perfect rhythm.

By the end of the lesson, we had a placing pole, enormous (for us) vertical, placing pole, and then jump out over an x. Courage was really getting it figured out and jumping like a rock star. Of course, we neglected to get pics or video, which I am sorely regretting because he felt AMAZING.

I was THRILLED with him though, as was S. He never made the same mistake twice and he was working hard to get everything figured out. It was also really great to get some feedback on my riding over fences--S loved my floppy reins and said I was doing a great job of just staying in the middle and letting him do his job.

The plan for the week is to do some cavalletti work to keep him thinking about his feet and then maybe jump next weekend again. :-D

SO EXCITED CAN'T STAND HOW GREAT MY HORSE IS

PS and maybe I will get a car today? That would be bangin'.