Jumping Questions/Advice

[cowgurl_up]

Hi everyone!

I have been working with my stallion on jumping latelty and he has been doing quite well. So I decided to enter him in Hunter and Jumper in an AMHR show coming up next weekend. I have been fine with the thought up until last night and am suddenly getting very nervous as this is my first time ever showing in something not halter or color or showmanship!!!!!!

Does anyone have any advice, stories, pictures, ect...that they might share with me about jumping in AMHR shows? How high do the jumps go? What have you seen used for "scarey things placed under the jump"? What patterns have you seen set up for the two classes? Any advice and such would be much appriciated!!!! I am just looking for something to help ease my nerves and maybe give me more of an insite about what I am doing in these classes. I hate not feeling prepared or not knowing exactly what I need to do in a class!

Also, here is a picture of me jumping Tee a couple of weeks ago. I measured and estimate this jump to be about 18 inches, and since then we have made it up to the next cup which seems to be just over 24 inches. Anyone see anything here they can critique?

Thanks a million!!!

 

[Reble]

Hi cowgurl_up, just wanted to say, love how you made your jumps, with horseshoes. Excellent ideal.

Good Luck

 

[Keri]

I've done jumping for 3 years. We have some ladies in Idaho that design our jumps with a theme each year. One year it was christmas in July, the next school days, and this year its knights of the round table. And they are pretty elaborate and very neat. But they have colors, banners and so forth on them. I pretty much stuck anything on a jump to make sure my horse would jump. I've started a new horse this year and I was just training him on PVC pipe. Well we get to an AMHA show and they have frilly stuff on the jumps. He refused them. So I need to make sure I jump him with everything. I also went to a show in Powell, Wy last year. They put sage brush below a jump and most horses wouldn't jump it becuase of the scent. So jump him over anything you can think of and you'll be fine. Also, our jumps are pretty much below 30" (our highest generally being 28"), but it depends on your course designer.

 

[Sanny]

I think he looks great, and he looks like he is a natural and loves to jump. That is the biggest challenge.

I would add a ground pole to your jumps, it will help him judge the height of the jump better and he needs to be used to them because you will always see a ground pole at each jump at shows. It lays on the ground on the side of the jump the horse is jumping over.

In hunter class most of the local shows keep it pretty simple with just plain poles but you might see flower boxes or plants in a row under the pole or plants or little evergreen trees on each side of the jumps and you need to get him used to going over a solid jump because you may see something that looks solid like a fake brick wall, a blue folded tarp under the pole for a fake water jump and you could also see striped poles. We bought colored duct tape and and put it on the white pvc pipes to make stripes in different designs. I don't think you will see any jumps over 24 in hunter.

For jumper the jumps will likely be plain poles, the key being that you need to have a clean jumping round to advance to the timed round and they will raise one or two of the jumps for the timed round and you probably will have at least one jump raised to 30 inches so you need to get him up to that height at home but don't jump him that high more than once or twice a practice session.

Only other thing I can think of is make sure you are used to going through the orange cones when you start and when you finish. I got disqualifed at my first show for not doing that.

If you haven't already done so, it would be helpful to go to the official rulebook and read the section about hunter and jumper that starts on page 269.

Here is the link for the rulebook. AMHR rulebook

Good Luck..............let us know how the show goes!

 

[mondak]

He looks great! I think he will do very well in the hunter division since they tend to stay at the 18 inch mark. Here on the east coast most of the jump off heights stay under 30 inches with the max being 31 inches or 2 foot 6 inches. Like others have said try to jump him over all kinds of things because you never know what they will come up with. Most of the time it is flowers or brush that "fill" the space. If he refuses them at home or runs out on you try placing guide poles on either side of the jump. these poles set on the top rail of the jump and angle down to the ground. I have found that these works well and you can slowly wean them off of the guide poles as they get more confident. And don't worry, and DON'T give up if he refuses at the show, he will figure out what you want and LOVE it!!!

Courtney

P.S. The horse in my avatar lives to jump. that was his first show last year jumping and he just knew he had to jump everything three foot, LOL

 

[muffntuf]

As a show manager that likes to use a good amount of items for hunter/jumper within the rules, Bob's post is correct:

From Bob, multi-national hunter/jumping winner: "I would add a ground pole to your jumps, it will help him judge the height of the jump better and he needs to be used to them because you will always see a ground pole at each jump at shows. It lays on the ground on the side of the jump the horse is jumping over.

In hunter class most of the local shows keep it pretty simple with just plain poles but you might see flower boxes or plants in a row under the pole or plants or little evergreen trees on each side of the jumps and you need to get him used to going over a solid jump because you may see something that looks solid like a fake brick wall, a blue folded tarp under the pole for a fake water jump and you could also see striped poles. We bought colored duct tape and and put it on the white pvc pipes to make stripes in different designs. I don't think you will see any jumps over 24 in hunter."

I have used all these, including real evergreen trees in pots and one year we had a wall and water hazard.

Most shows just have poles, but I like to try to make it like they would see at Nationals.

Good luck, I wouldn't worry about entering, just go have fun!

 

[cowgurl_up]

Thanks everyone!!!

I have been thinking of things to add under the jumps and have so far come up with fake flowers, an old 3 ft fake X-mas tree, buckets, and have been hoping with the storms lately that I can find some down tree limb with the leaves and such on them to maybe put under just to give them a different look. I bet I can find a tarp to fold up and put under a jump as well!

I will take the advice of adding a ground pole and put that to use tonight! We have jumped with a ground pole before, but he has never seemed to care if there is one there or not, he jumps it anyway.

Well, I have new things to work on this week and next!!! I will add my stuff and start very slowly moving up in height to see if I can get him jumping a little bit closer to 30. I don't exactly care how I do in placings, I just want to go and have him try at least!

And thanks for sharing your picture Keri!!!!! It looks like on the one jump that they used a cut off shower curtain? What a neat idea!!!!

 

[Sandee]

Always check your rule book. The hunter jumps should not be over 24". That class is judged on the "way the horse goes" - in other words smooth. You want him to trot or canter over the entire course and make it look easy! The hunter will have solid jumps and flowers anything that you might find in a cross country hunter course.

Jumper can and most always does go to 30" or just under. Normally a few of the jumps are at 24" in the qualifying round and moved to 30" in the "jump off". However the last show we were at had the 2 final jumps at 28" and then they didn't need a qualify round as very few made both. Jumper will often have an "in and out" which is 2 jumps placed close about 1 stride (see the book) so that if you make one but refuse the next you have to rejump both.

Reread Sanny advice as her family does great in these events.

 

[targetsmom]

You look like you are off to a great start! The most important thing to me is to just have fun! You have to start somewhere and every show just builds up experience. The photos in this recent thread on the photo forum: jumping thread show the jumps at the Maple E AMHR show May 24. This was our first R show and we had a blast doing the jumps in hunter and jumper - same jumps, different order. We had a memorable "go" over the last jump, where we almost got DQ'd but pulled out a miracle at the last second! All part of the fun as long as no one gets hurt. (We are not in any of these photos).

Good luck!

 

[MiniHunterHorseFan]

These are some courses I designed.

The Hunter class is all judged on style. One must present a clean polished picture as they navigate their horse through a jump course on a lead line. They may either trot or canter but not both. Jumps should be taken centered and smooth and handlers should keep their shoulders back and straight. Jumps may be up to 24in in height.

The Jumping class for AMHR is all about speed. The first round everyone jumps up to 24in to see who makes it to the next round. They can take as much time as they want; it's just to see who qualfies for the speed round. During the second round, jumps can be raised only to 30in. Whoever has the fastest time in that round wins.

 

[MyBarakah]

Hi Sara!

I think Tee looks great jumping and I think he will do good at his first time jumping! Sara's going to be stalled next to me and we are good friends and she's been a HUGE help with me at the shows this year!

Sara has allot of natural talant for the horses & showing so I think she will do VERY WELL!!!

I can't wait to watch her show Tee at this show coming up next weekend! I heard there was 100 horses entered at this show!!

I can't wait to go!!

P.S.

That is GREAT advice everyone too! I have only done halter & liberty classes.... everything has not been old enough to do the performance events..... but NEXT YEAR!!!! I have a few that are born to do the performance and can not WAIT to get out there and try the jumping & stuff!! So after reading the post there is some EXCELLENT advice!! And can not wait to try it!! Very helpful!!

 

[shane]

sorry i dont mean to hijack this thread but how do you get the horse to STOP runnning out the side and just jump the jump,

my horse absolutley LOVES to jump,

but i have got to jump it with him,

which isnt good as they raise the jump after a clear round

any advise????

 

[Keri]

Start your horse slowly. Lunge him over trot poles and each time he get ones, signal him with a "kiss" or some type of cue. This also teaches your horse to pick up his feet. After he goes over these good, raise the poles on one end (like sticking the one end on the panel and do it). And just lunge him in a circle over these. Then preceed by making little 1 foot jumps for him to lunge over. After he starts accepting these, you can start raising the jumps more. Then if you're running straight and he goes to the side, make him lunge them in a circle. Or carry a driving whip and tap him if he starts to go behind you. Also, make sure you don't give him a ton of lead at first so that you have total control over him. The idea with teaching them to jump is to start with baby steps. You want to make sure the horse can do it over the little jumps rather than start him on the huge jumps first.