Hi all. Can anyone give me some advice for slowing down a horse that gets too fast and rushes jumps? I’m in a large group lesson that doesn’t allow for time to lunge or work the horse on a circle. The only advice I’ve gotten from the instructor is don’t hang on the reins which of course I agree with but what do I do instead?
I think you would have more responses if you posted this question on the Hunter/Jumper forum. 
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I have found that if I tweak my finger(s) when the horse’s head is going UP and back I get my best results. As the horse’s head is near its highest, close your finger(s) smoothly, and just as smoothly relax your fingers right away and give the horse room to lower its head and reach out calmly for the bit. I find that horses often react positively when I move my hands forward a little bit as I relax my rein aid.
If you want to get somewhat better results give leg aids when the hind legs land on the ground and start moving back. You do this by using the leg aid almost right after the horse’s head starts going down. This is your coordinating the hand and leg aids, which often gives better results.
If I give the rein aid when the horse’s head goes down I get into all sorts of troubles as the horse graphically shows me how displeased it is with how I use my reins, usually by gaping and going behind the vertical/behind the bit sometimes with some head shaking thrown in.
Avoid giving hand and leg aids at the same time. Many horses do not appreciate being told to go fast and to slow down at the same time.
Many people here may disagree with me about this. They have their own methods that work for their hands, their seats, their legs and the horses they ride, and their methods work very well for them and most of their students.
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Circles.
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Half halts with the outside aids and more training for the horse cantering only 4 strides then walking so it doesnt get heavy on the forehand.
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Lots of transition.
Cantering over a rail on the ground without speeding up.
But those are a bit difficult in the middle of a group lesson.
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This is something your instructor should be addressing with you and the lesson horse. Ask them. It doesn’t matter if it’s a group lesson; others can learn from this as well, and someday it might end up being a safety issue. Surely your instructor sees you struggling with this in lessons? If they don’t, or it doesn’t seem to bother them, or they can’t be bothered to help you when you ask, that would be a huge red flag for me.
I don’t ride hunters, but my understanding is that they use half-halts to slow and balance the horse when approaching the jump? Trying to recall this from some VERY old issues of Practical Horseman, so I may not have it correct.
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This is called a half halt.
If youre trainer doesnt teach it find one that uses the word.
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Stupid question, but are half halts typically given only with the outside aids (rein)? That’s how I used to employ half halts but then took a horse hiatus, came back, and was genuinely confused as to whether I had been doing it wrong all this time or not.
I now tend to use both reins for a half halt but am second-guessing this strategy as my mare tends to view half halts as an “ask” for a transition (usually downward).
Its not the rein, then youre just pulling, its the outside aids, like shoulder elbow seat, and theres a lot of timing to it like trot to walk you do on the down of your post only. Canter trot is on the down, canter walk is on the up. Develop that in the trot first and then go for it in the canter.
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You actually put legs on to slow down a horse. Half halts are seat then legs then rein. If in 2 point, legs then rein, even though it seems to happen simultaneously.
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You use your leg in a dressage half halt after you use the outside aids. Definitly helpful someplace like a corner before an awesome huge extended trot…
But this is jumping and she is already out of control so squeezing and gasing the horse with an already grippy leg is just a recipe for disaster.
So canter 4 strides and walk and when you go to the walk teach the horse to rebalance by turning their shoulder in - this will shift the weight to the haunches amd devolope a real halfhalt to give you control.
So this is not pull straight line and stop. Canter on the rail and when you are ready to stop tap the shoulder in off the rail like a 1/4 turn until the horse stops. Dont get in their face, teach the horse to lift the shoulder and rebalance the weight to the haunch to stop.
Half-halts use the rein, seat, and leg aids in conjunction with each other.
In dressage, we first sit deeply, close your hands on the reins (you don’t PULL the reins, you close both hands and stop giving, because you should already have contact with the mouth), then gently put the legs on the horse to ride them into the contact. This asks the horse to stop, balance, and listen. It sounds like three distinct steps, but in a true half-halt, they are almost simultaneous with each other.
But it’s not something to start asking for the first time as you’re approaching a jump, if either you or the horse are unsure. It’s something to school on the flat, so that when you need it, it’s there.
Again, this is something your instructor should be teaching his/her students in lessons.
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Gymnastic exercises. Often horses get anxious and speed up when they are not confident that they have the power to get over the fences. Then, of course, when they get strung out and downhill, it is more difficult to jump up and over, so it’s a vicious circle.
Lots of gymnastics (lines poles and cavelletti working up to smaller cross bars and oxers) little by little strengthen the horse’s muscles to give him power and slow him down at the same time as increasing his confidence that he can do it.
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Great advice if OP was working on her own.
But she said “large group lesson”.
IIWM, I’d ask the trainer if my speed was too fast. OP’s perception may be off.
If trainer agrees, the next question would be “How do I correct this?”
If no advice besides “don’t hang on the reins”, I might start looking for either a private lesson, or a new trainer.
OP:
To be fair to your instructor, I had a WB who came to me with a canter depart best described as Shot From A Gun.
If I tried to hold him < hung on the reins, he got very light in front 
Never a full rear, but at 17’3, not fun.
What fixed this was my trainers advice to let go.
Worked for us & his depart softened so it felt like I just thought canter & he did.
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Oh you’re right, I missed the large group lesson thing. This may, in fact, be more more of a separation anxiety thing if there are horses waiting at the other end of the ring. OP definitely needs to talk to the instructor to diagnose the problem and find a solution.
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Your horse has to be physically fit to carry a rider and stay balanced. You must build topline. Lots of long/low and SLOW at the w/trot for 4-6 months. Ground pole and caveletti work as well.
@hjbaby, is this your horse or a lesson horse?
If it’s your horse, I suggest:
- Lots of flatwork, including learning the half halt and teaching your horse to respect it.
- Canter poles with downward transitions four or five strides out. Also, if you have room, make a 20m circle and slowly spiral in. The horse should respond by adjusting his tempo. The leg yield out. Rinse, repeat.
If it’s not your horse, it’s not your problem to solve. You shouldn’t be paying the trainer to train her or his lesson horse. Your trainer, at the very least, should be helping you learn to ride this horse. At best, the trainer should be putting in time on the horse to make lessons on it safe and productive for you.
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Does your trainer have anything else to say in the lesson about this? I think you should discuss with them that you need some more ideas. They are the ones seeing and knowing the situation.
