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Post by jimmy on Jul 30, 2016 21:38:25 GMT
Oh I see it now. That may not even be her, but one of her students, I think.
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Post by jimmy on Aug 8, 2016 3:15:38 GMT
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Post by horseguy on Aug 8, 2016 13:41:58 GMT
I appreciate the high quality of the video. Very nice run. For me the 6th jump, a straightforward combination of benches with a right hand downhill turn approach shows how this horse likes her job. The approach is blind until seven or so strides before takeoff due to the turn and terrain. Before seeing the jump the horse is looking for it. The rhythm is steady, the ears forward, the horse is ready for whatever comes and when it appears their is immediate commitment. Love that kind of horse, ready. The only problem with this readiness is that when the horse gets out in the open and there are many jumps scattered across the visual landscape from other levels of the competition, the horse starts to look very hard at each one asking, "Is that my next jump?" These tend to be a "be careful where you point it" kind of horse. The rider stays in very close touch with the horse using the reins in a strong but subtle way to keep the horse focused and connected. When the next jump at their level comes into view, the rider shows the horse the jump and that seems to create some relief for the mare. Eventually these kinds of horses after many competitions realize that every jump they see is not their jump and they become more generally relaxed. The only measurable hesitation or concern I saw this horse show in a jump was over the ditch. Again, after lots of ditches, horses like this become familiar and relax. I know the horse is based in Colorado, so what I am about to say may not be possible there, but a very good thing to do with a horse like this is to fox hunt over uneven terrain in wooded country. In that setting virtually everything is a jump. Downed trees, ditches, bushes, rock wall fences, board and rail fences, drops into creeks, banks, even items meant for the dump like coke machines and mattresses dropped off by people too cheap to pay a dump fee become obstacles in your path to jump. In this environment a horse looking for the next jump simply gets overloaded and starts to listen to the rider for the new line to a specific obstacle. This brings on relaxation sooner and easier than taking the horse to a half dozen competitions so they can get used to seeing more jumps that they will be asked to jump. In Colorado most hunts chase coyotes over more open territory than an east coast woodland, so that terrain and vegetation may not be as effective as an eastern woods. But still, hours out hunting with constantly changing slopes, footing, and obstacles like washed out western ditches, makes for a random and unending variation experience that can take the edge off a horse's intensity to jump without diminishing their commitment when put to a jump.
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