If I wanted 3 XC style jumps - what would you build?

[luckycricket123]

I’m looking for advice on a few XC jumps that I can have built for schooling at home. I probably won’t install any permanent obstacles (like ditches/banks etc). I also was thinking I’d avoid any giant logs since half my property is wooded and I can get those and set them up for free

Bonus if they’re simple enough that I can build them myself, but I do have a local guy that can build XC and SJ fences if its more complicated than I can handle. I only want a few starter-level obstacles to test my sales horses over XC fences at home.

[Highflyer1]

Portable Schooling Jumps - ETB Equine Construction

Here are some ideas-- I’d probably do some kind of little rolltop or house and an adjustable fence and maybe a little brush fence. You can always do a fake ditch with a couple of square fence posts and some mulch in between them.

[LCDR]

Coop, corner, and rethink your not wanting to do a ditch.

[endlessclimb]

If you’re just looking for starter type stuff, could you do one that looks like a coop from one side, and a roll top from the other? Then make a little brushy thing for the top that’s removeable.

That’s 4 jumps in one!

Then I’d personally make a ditch, and a cabin. The cabin is another one that you can make it look different from each side if you wanted to.

[sophie]

Starter-level?
Coop / doghouse / barrel / tires - type jump
a ditch (you can build a fake one, easily)
ideally a water jump but that might be trickier!

[Janet]

@luckycricket123

I only want a few starter-level obstacles to test my sales horses over XC fences at home.

If that is your objective, I would consider

• coop from one side and roll top from the other (with the possibility of sticking brush into the top)
• house/cabin/barn jump painted/decorated differently on each side
• chair fence

But bear in mind that potential buyers WILL want to see how the horse deals with water, small ditch, small bank. Is there a schooling cross country course nearby you can use to introduce them to those?

[luckycricket123]

Yes! We have a couple nearby XC courses (within 15 minutes) where I can go school some of the other obstacles, which is why I don’t want to bother with a water complex or a ditch. (Also $$$)

I do have a creek running through my property to introduce water, but I know it’s not quite the same as a true water complex.

It would just be nice to have some jumps around for trials rides and just to get a feel for how they like XC before I have to go through the hassle of coordinating a field trip over to another farm.

[Jealoushe]

I would do the fences that cause the most issues normally at events, like chevron type fences or slatted front tables. Spookier the better.

I also would reconsider not using a log, because funny enough horses tend to look at logs a lot on course especially when they are starting out.
A small log stripped of bark is perfect and it makes an excellent warm up fence for when you school.

[endlessclimb]

Guys. She wants STARTER fences.

[luckycricket123]

I’m not looking to school my own event horses at home, I’m looking to introduce sales horses who have never seen an XC fence before to something small at home.

Also, to be clear I will have logs. I just won’t count them to my 3 jump maximum because I already have those set up for free.

[Jealoushe]

These are some examples, all of which caused the end of quite a few riders days last summer lol

[Jealoushe]

You can build all of these at starter level though.

[Jealoushe]

Oh gotcha misunderstood. For sales horses I would think coops would be enough.

[endlessclimb]

Right but that’s not what OP is aiming at. Nor would I put a totally green horse at a chevron, that’s a little above their paygrade of “go straight and from one side to the other, and kinda steer”

[LCDR]

Again, rethink a ditch at home. There is nothing expensive about digging a hole.

I traveled to Ocala to try out an prospect not long ago. The trainer met me at a cross country schooling course, where things looked pretty good with the horse up until a ditch. He could not get the horse to jump the ditch. I walked away.

A ditch is a building block for other types of more.advanced jumps, and I would definitely have one available at home as a familiarization tool. Even one 6 inches deep with black plastic to simulate depth is good.

[Jealoushe]

A green horse can jump a tiny chevron but a sales horse is totally different situation which I missed originally. I would go basic basic there.

[luckycricket123]

That’s definitely fair, but my XC jumps have to go in a field that doubles as turnout and I don’t want any oopsies with a horse stepping into a ditch when they’re out doing their daily gallops

[endlessclimb]

Ah, that makes more sense. Ok, no ditches unless you can find somewhere outside of turnout!

[Willesdon]

Can you use your creek to introduce a water element? A roll top on one side, couple of strides, down into the creek, a couple of strides out, a log - or whatever, with an easy profile. The slopes up and down are useful experience for a beginner as much as the water.

[luckycricket123]

Not really! The footing gets pretty bad around the creek so we only walk through and around the creek.

It’s a nice way to make sure that horses are willing to get their feet wet, but it will never serve as a true substitute for a water complex.