“Ten Potential Problems With Horse Friendly Solutions For Cross Country Riding”
About Jonna
– If you would like to know more about Jonna then listen to his previous chats
First Chat – 042 – Jonathan McLean
Second Chat – 144 – Jonathan McLean 2 – “Ten Tips for Initial Foal Handling”
Third Chat – 172 – Jonathan McLean 3 – “Ten Steps for Further Foal Handling”
Listeners’ Choice- 211 – Listeners’ Choice Chat (042)
Fourth Chat – 292 – Jonathan McLean 4 – “Ten Tips on The Weaning Transition, Safe, Horse Friendly Ways to Interact with Young Horses”
Fifth Chat – 318 – Jonna McLean 5 – “Ten Training Tips From Weaning to Yearling”
Sixth Chat – 348 – Jonna McLean 6 – “Ten Steps To Starting The Young Horse Under Saddle”
Seventh Chat – 378 – Jonna McLean 7 – “Ten Points to Remember When Training Your Horse”
Listeners’ Choice- 394 – Listeners’ Choice Chat (172)
Eighth Chat – 543 – Jonna McLean 8 – “Ten Essential When Breaking In/ Starting Young Horses”
Ninth Chat – 556 – Jonna McLean 9 – “Ten Tips on Proofing the Riding Aids (From the Round Yard to Open Spaces in Walk, Trot and Canter)”
Tenth Chat – 568 – Jonna McLean 10 – “Ten Things to Remember About Proofing the Aids”
Eleventh Chat – 580 – Jonna McLean 11 – “Ten Potential Problems When Riding a Young Horse Outside for the First Time”
Twelfth Chat – 592- Jonna McLean 12 – “Ten Questions To Ask About A Potential Horse Purchase”
Thirteenth Chat – 606 – Jonna McLean 13 – “Ten Questions to Ask About Training Direction”
Fourteenth Chat – 619 – Jonna McLean 14 – Case study 01 “Frankie”
Fifteenth Chat – 631 – Jonna McLean 15 – Case Study – Ten Steps to Train/ Retrain Benny, The Retired Racehorse
Sixteenth Chat – 645 – Jonna McLean 16 – “Ten Steps to Teach the Horse to Start Jumping”
Seventeenth Chat – 658 – Jonna McLean 17 – “Ten Things To Remember About Coaching A Nervous Rider”
Eighteenth Chat – 670 – Jonna McLean 18 – “Ten ‘Must Know’ Strategies When Teaching Horses Who Rush Their Jumps”
Nineteenth Chat – 697 – Jonna McLean 19 – “Ten Tips For Retraining The Horse Who Stops and/or Runs Out Of Jumps”
About This Episode
“Ten Potential Problems With Horse Friendly Solutions For Cross Country Riding”
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“Ten Potential Problems With Horse Friendly Solutions For Cross Country Riding”
1. Ditches/Coffins
a. Enough impulsion has to be established in order for the Horse to negotiate the width.
b. These are important fences to expose your horse to, as later they become
i. Trakehners,
ii. Palisades and then in
iii. combination and
iv. commonly used in conjunction with up and down banks
c. Establishing the appropriate tempo (according to Related offences and the terrain ) And if on an angle it also
tests your ability to ride straight, whilst jumping the ditch on an angle.
2. Banks
a. Jumping up a bank also requires a powerful tempo/impulsion, as the horse has to jump vertically, then land
with little or no loss of that impulsion.
b. The position of the rider would be be about the same for jumping in equivalent vertical fence. In all these cases
it’s important not to get left behind and touch the horses mouth as that will drastically reduce his ability to
produce power from the hindquarter
c. Once again most horses jump up a bank well naturally, but usually in training takes a little more convincing to
establish that desire for jumping down the bank.
Often horses that are reluctant to jump ditches also hesitate on banks especially into water.
In order of difficulty, depending on the horse, jumping up, jumping down a bank, jumping off a bank into water
and jumping ditches
3. Narrow fences
a. These obstacles need to be trained thoroughly (at the beginning of his cross country jumping education) over
low narrow inviting fences so as the horse understands that the line is not optional
Practicing jumping plastic blocks and drums are a good idea than placing them in a cross country format.
b. These fences are commonly placed where the course designer is testing your ability to ride an accurate line,
therefore the rider should makes some adjustment to the galloping tempo (i.e. half halt)
So then the horse is listening to your leg signals and hte reins are light because he is already straight
These are becoming more common at the higher levels, where the course designer complacent these narrow
fences in very tricky situations
c. These fences commonly occur Junction with other narrow fences or other obstacles on a rallied distance
4. Water
a. These fences are notoriously difficult because Horses (being quite suspicious) are reluctant to jump into it
Water presents a highly reflective, moving and depth is not always easy to ascertain
b. Like banks water reduces your impulsion therefor maintaining it into water, for the next obstacle i.e. jumping
up a bank is really important
c. practice over five different contexts involving water, ten you will notice the horses hesitation becoming less
5. Trakehners,
– after ditches
6. Palisades and then in
7. Combination (various)
8. Up and down banks after individual banks
9. Riding from light to dark
10. Starting box
Remember
- Calculated, consistent exposure to all these fences, and practicing them until the horse is conversant twitch then no matter the change of context. i.e. terrain, background etc.
- Try to start with little fences that look like FEI fences but they are smaller!
- Practice makes perfect in training, for you and the horse, so practice them until they feel fluent and easy
- The horse responses become delayed as they become tired so the preparation towards your fence i.e. turning, half halt, and leg signals take more time
- Never interfere with the horses mouth after the take off has commenced, as it will only interrupt his concentration and also his ability to provide power (impulsion)
- Don’t just practice the fences, practice the transitions prior to the fences, so it is that you can understand if he stays in the newly adjusted the line, tempo by himself to the base the fence
- Cross Country is the biggest test of your training, as it is the greatest variation of context. Changing terrain, footing, light, colour, backgrounds including atmosphere text these boundaries to the maximum.
Time Stamp
02:55 – Jonna’s Cross Country experience
09:29 – 1. Ditches/Coffins
17:14 – 2. Banks
19:38 – 3. Narrow fences
20:51 – 4. Water
22:20 – 5. Trakehners,
26:18 – 6. Palisades and then in
31:04 – 7. Combination (various)
36:10 – 8. Up and down banks after individual banks
41:56 – 9. Riding from light to dark
44:44 – 10. Starting box
48:50 – Contact details see below
49:37- Remember
Jonna’s Contact Details
Phone: 0417 116 471 or +61 417 116 471
Email: jonamclean@gmail.com
Website: traintowin.com.au
Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/jonna.mclean Train To Win Facebook Page
Music
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