Can't jump without trainer?!?!? Yes or no?

[findeight]

@sauvignon1008

I’m 17 but I have been riding for 12 years and have trained several horses. The trainer is always on site and lives there so there would always be someone there. I just find it annoying as she is MY horse. I would totally understand if I was leasing her or something… I’m probably over thinking it. Thank’s for the reply’s!

But it’s their property, their business covered by their insurance at their cost and therefore their decision, BTW.most don’t count riding when you are 5 years old to around 9 years old as the kind experience that would qualify you to jump alone. And you are still a minor.

After you’ve been in a barn and they get to know you well, you can sometimes be allowed to take a few jumps but only if other clients don’t see you and you keep your mouth shut. Otherwise if you do it all others will want the same privilege.

Just a reminder here, be careful how you present yourself when looking for a barn. You come off as rather entitled and proclaim yourself superior rider with superior knowledge. Won’t endear you to future trainers and barn managers, barn mates might not care for that attitude much either.

Find a barn with rules you agree with, don’t pick one and demand they change for you.

[endlessclimb]

I know of many barns with this rule. I can’t board at one. I have a horse who is the type that benefits far more from a jump or two every ride instead of one huge jump session per week.

Find a barn without the rule - however, you are a minor so you may still encounter problems.

[mvp]

I see why barns do it, especially for kids.

But as an adult who has made her own jumping horses, I wouldn’t be able to live with that limit. Often, a great program for me includes a jumping lesson with the pro once a week or so, but I might work over poles or through a small cross rail into some flat work on the other days I work. IMO, the horse’s program would be lesser without those non-jumping days that included poles.

Oh, but I was that kid who wanted to see if I could jump this or that when no one was looking. Again, I see why those policies in our modern, litigious times exist.

[scrbear11]

I don’t jump without my trainer.

I’m an adult ammy with my own farm. I trailer in for lessons.

My horses are green. I would prefer to jump only while she’s supervising. The horses jump once a week (at our lessons). At home we work over ground rails and cavaletti to master whatever we’ve worked on during our lesson.

Works for me and my horses. They don’t need to jump more than once a week.

[trubandloki]

@sauvignon1008

Hi, so I’m switching to a new barn to board my ottb. I’ve owned her for a little under a year and she is still pretty green however, at my current boarding barn, I’m allowed to jump whenever. Now of course I don’t, only maybe a few crossrails every once in a while or to work on position or finding distances in between lessons as I don’t think it’s good to overjump your horses - we do mainly focus on flatwork however I like having the option. At this new barn though, we aren’t allowed to jump unless in a lesson. Not even tiny crossrails. Is this normal? I’m the only boarder as the barn just opened and this is a fancier barn but does this commonly happen? I get maybe for safety reasons, but she is my horse and if one of us gets hurt, that is my fault. She doesn’t want the horse to learn any bad habits but I just want to have fun with her and if I do accidently teach her a bad habit, then I can live with that and we will work through it and learn and it’s not like we would be jumping 4ft courses. Any advice? Am I over thinking it? Is this common? Thanks!

@sauvignon1008

I’m 17 but I have been riding for 12 years and have trained several horses. The trainer is always on site and lives there so there would always be someone there. I just find it annoying as she is MY horse. I would totally understand if I was leasing her or something… I’m probably over thinking it. Thank’s for the reply’s!

When YOU own YOUR OWN barn you can make your own rules, that you discuss with your own insurance agent/company. Until then, pick a barn whose rules work for you. It does no one any good for your to get all upset about such a common rule and puffing your chest and proclaiming how experienced you are only makes it more obvious that this rules is important and needed (to protect the barn owner).

My experience is that this is a very common rule.

[Xctrygirl]

Interesting flip side of things… I rent my own barn 2 miles from my house. I am my own trainer. I refuse to jump alone. I always grab someone (Neighbor, land owner, friend or most often my husband) to make sure that someone is there with me and capable of helping pick the pieces back up or at least call 911.

I think what gets unthought of (no offense, but especially by the under 21 crowd) is how much can go awry in a moment and if no one is there during crucial reaction times… things can get exponentially worse.

Em

[SonnysMom]

@Xctrygirl

Interesting flip side of things… I rent my own barn 2 miles from my house. I am my own trainer. I refuse to jump alone. I always grab someone (Neighbor, land owner, friend or most often my husband) to make sure that someone is there with me and capable of helping pick the pieces back up or at least call 911.

I think what gets unthought of (no offense, but especially by the under 21 crowd) is how much can go awry in a moment and if no one is there during crucial reaction times… things can get exponentially worse.

Em

I certainly understand not jumping while alone. That is just smart from a safety perspective.
However that is different than not jumping in a formal lesson. I also think it makes a difference on the type of barn. Only jumping in a lesson if you are at a training/show barn is different than only being able to jump in lessons at a boarding barn.
Junior versus adult is different too.

[hoopoe]

I have never been at a barn where this was permitted. Along with the previous mentions, the use of the equipment and its wear and tear enters in to it. Also being responsible and returning things the way things were. Many people dont

You make no mention , OP. of a trainer. If you are doing all of this on your own, then I , as a barn manager / owner, would really double down on the unsupervised jumping activity

[The_Centaurian]

I don’t like to jump without eyes on the ground, whether a trainer or a friend, mostly because I need a jump crew!

There aren’t any formal rules against jumping outside of lessons at my barn; I could jump my horse anytime, and I do incorporate poles and cavaletti into my flatwork. However, I choose to save jumping for lessons. Without a trainer or friend, I would make up courses that don’t necessarily challenge me to work on my weaknesses-- just galloping down the lines is easy, so that’s what I would do on my own, but my trainer makes me stop, add strides, and do things that I would never challenge myself to do.

FWIW, I would never, ever let a junior ride alone, let alone jump without supervision, on my property.

Maybe moving is not such a great idea. You’re already having a conflict and haven’t even moved in yet. (Of course, my advice is worth what you paid for it.)

[BeeHoney]

This is a very common rule for barns to have. While some riders have the experience, knowledge, skill and judgement to school their own horse over fences, many riders do not. IME it is not uncommon to see people trying to school their horses on their own make a lot of mistakes–setting awkward distances, setting inappropriate exercises for the horse in question, setting jumps in an unsafe manner, and failing to recognize or be able to troubleshoot basic issues that might come up. In addition to liability, a BO might also have concerns about random jump schooling being disruptive/unsafe for other people trying to use the arena, or concerns about accidents / unprofessional riding reflecting poorly on their reputation.

I think your best bet here is to either find a different place to board, or try to discuss with the BO how you might be able to find a workable solution. Perhaps your BO would be amenable to you being in a weekly lesson program, but then doing a second jump school on a different day, with a parent present, where you do “homework” from your lesson. For example, repeat an exercise that you did at a lower height. I think you will have the best luck with this conversation if you make it clear to the BO that you understand and respect his or her concerns with regard to safety and liability. These are significant issues for a BO.

Unfortunately your age is also a factor. I don’t know any barns that would allow a minor to jump school without a trainer or responsible adult present ringside. Another factor is that it sounds like you are looking at a very small facility without someone onsite–actually physically present in the barn or arena–during all riding hours. Someone being in a house on the property isn’t good enough IMO.

[GoneAway]

Very common rule, and as a former professional I support it. I currently board at a barn with this rule, and while it might be nice to jump more often, it’s not necessary with my young horse. I jump in a lesson once a week, and the other days I can focus on dressage schools, hacking, etc. If anything, I think it’s a good rule to have in place to encourage that shift in focus and to see added value in cross training. As others have said, using ground poles/cavaletti in lieu of jumps helps you work on everything you need between the fences: rhythm, pace, straightness, lengthening/shortening, track, balance etc.

[wannabedvm]

@findeight

But it’s their property, their business covered by their insurance at their cost and therefore their decision, BTW.most don’t count riding when you are 5 years old to around 9 years old as the kind experience that would qualify you to jump alone. And you are still a minor.

After you’ve been in a barn and they get to know you well, you can sometimes be allowed to take a few jumps but only if other clients don’t see you and you keep your mouth shut. Otherwise if you do it all others will want the same privilege.

Just a reminder here, be careful how you present yourself when looking for a barn. You come off as rather entitled and proclaim yourself superior rider with superior knowledge. Won’t endear you to future trainers and barn managers, barn mates might not care for that attitude much either.

Find a barn with rules you agree with, don’t pick one and demand they change for you.

Seems you’re overstating what OP is doing. She was looking for information, not demanding the barn change for her. For someone who is an inexperienced boarder, her questions are legitimate.

[wannabedvm]

@trubandloki

When YOU own YOUR OWN barn you can make your own rules, that you discuss with your own insurance agent/company. Until then, pick a barn whose rules work for you. It does no one any good for your to get all upset about such a common rule and puffing your chest and proclaiming how experienced you are only makes it more obvious that this rules is important and needed (to protect the barn owner).

My experience is that this is a very common rule.

Not understanding the rudeness toward OP here.

[Janet]

If you are riding on your own property, the insurance company doesn’t put any restrictions on what you do. If you do get hurt, there is no-one to sue you, and that is what the insurance company cares about. (You can not sue yourself.)

I have kept my horses at home for the last 30 years, but before that I boarded. There was no restriction (at least for adults, I do not know about juniors) on jumping outside a lesson.

[Standard_Bread]

@wannabedvm

Not understanding the rudeness toward OP here.

The double whammy of it’s COTH, and the OP openly admitted to being a minor and being relatively inexperienced with negotiating this sort of situation. COTH can be hostile on a good day, but if the sharks smell blood in the water…

[caryledee]

Where I used to live, every barn went by this rule. Where I live now none of them do. I’m sure part of it is trainers wanting to make lesson money and part of it has to do with liability/safety issues. I don’t always like the rules of a certain barn, but I live by the “your barn, your rules” motto. I know I can always look elsewhere if I can’t live with certain rules.

[trubandloki]

@Standard Bread

The double whammy of it’s COTH, and the OP openly admitted to being a minor and being relatively inexperienced with negotiating this sort of situation. COTH can be hostile on a good day, but if the sharks smell blood in the water…

Not really.

I was only giving the OP back the same attitude that they gave to us in their second post.

I just find it annoying as she is MY horse.

[Belowthesalt]

I’m a DQ now, but when I showed jumpers and/or evented, I boarded at a barn where we were allowed to jump the solid permanent jumps (two coops, a couple of small log jumps, a small log in-and-out, and a ditch, unsupervised, but we could not set and jump the poles outside of a lesson. For some reason, that’s what their insurance permitted.

[Standard_Bread]

@trubandloki

Not really.

I was only giving the OP back the same attitude that they gave to us in their second post.

So you’d rather act like a teenager than act like an adult is what you’re saying. You could have taken the opportunity to model healthy, proactive behavior, but instead you decided that being churlish was a better use of your time.

[mvp]

@trubandloki

When YOU own YOUR OWN barn you can make your own rules, that you discuss with your own insurance agent/company. Until then, pick a barn whose rules work for you. It does no one any good for your to get all upset about such a common rule and puffing your chest and proclaiming how experienced you are only makes it more obvious that this rules is important and needed (to protect the barn owner).

My experience is that this is a very common rule.

Now, now. There is a bit of a downside to this finger wagging at the whippersnappers.

1. You don’t want to sound so exclusive that they accept your invitation to leave the sport. Think about what you are saying-- some two or so decades in the future and if you acquire the wealth required to own your own farm, then you can have this freedom. No thank you.

2. And for the juniors who stay but never have a chance to figure out how to jump on their own… they miss so much horsemanship! Jumping on your own means making training decisions. It means really re-playing your last lesson or several and asking yourself “What would Trainer do in this situation”? It deprives someone of the chance to learn to “ride what they have” and do the job (hopefully safely) and while taking some responsibility. It means the rider doesn’t get a chance to pick her own line and really see how those lines she chose will work out.

Every time we all roll our eyes at that amateur (or *that trainer) that holds up the ring because of a conflict and the inability to jump eight fences without the “security blanket” of the trainer’s supervision (a great term coined up thread), you can probably find this policy contributing to that. I feel for the rider who has never, ever gotten to jump a course without someone there to advise and then debrief.