What changes for the rider going from 2'9" to 3' jumps?

[jonem004]

The bigger the jumps, the more important it is to be able to accurately ride to the correct distance. For a pro who is always right, the mechanical difference of riding 2’6” vs 3’6” are minimal. It’s just more hang time.

The more difficult to quantify, but perhaps better metric to work from would be how much of your horses scope you’re using at a particular height. If you’re jumping Dobbin around 3ft, and his maximum physical potential is 3’3”, you better be damn accurate. Dobbin just doesn’t have it in the tank to save you if you get him to the oxer on the half stride. But say you’re riding Thunde, who could easily tool around four and a half feet. If you’re jumping a 3ft course and you get him to a funny spot, he’s got the scope and athleticism to take the flyer or get out if his own way if you burry him.

The biggest thing about crossing into the meter’s is that it’s almost never a school horse that’ll take you there. If they can stay sound jumping 3ft+ and take school horse level jokes and bad rides they’re too valuable to be teaching lessons on.

[findeight]

Pros are not always right, not even close. They just react to whatever spot they reach off good canter and ride it appropriately so it looks like it was spot on and what they planned. There is no one perfect spot, only perfect rides. Shame more trainers don’t teach hip angle, releases and riding long, deep or middle distances and create riders that hunt or try to manufacture the non existent “perfect spot’ instead of just manage the canter and ride the horse.

Never seen a trip that scored 100 but saw a 98 from a pair that had. Rider at the out gate asked how he found all the perfect spots. His reply? “Didn’t see a thing, haven’t jumped him for awhile and it just wasn’t there. I just stayed out of his way”. This was a Regular over a 4’ course with a 14’ step except for a tight 3-2-2 combo towards in outgate.

Something to ponder.

[greysfordays]

@findeight

Pros are not always right, not even close. They just react to whatever spot they reach off good canter and ride it appropriately so it looks like it was spot on and what they planned. There is no one perfect spot, only perfect rides. Shame more trainers don’t teach hip angle, releases and riding long, deep or middle distances and create riders that hunt or try to manufacture the non existent “perfect spot’ instead of just manage the canter and ride the horse.

I 100% agree with this. It’s really not about perfect distance, it’s perfect canter and balance. Watch 20 minutes of the Global Champions league and you’ll see alllll the distances but you’ll also see the horses in exactly the right balance to safely get over.

[Cakemom]

Thank you all so much! I appreciate all of the input!

[Tigers_in_Texas]

@anon510129

I haven’t had time to read all the responses, but something I find helpful about jumping 3’+ is that it helps raise my eye. We frequently “jump” cavalletis and cross-rails, which I actually find very difficult to find distances to.

If anything, the bigger the jumps the better I ride.

This. I can’t find a distance to a jump under 2’ to save my life. :eek:

[FAW]

Although I haven’t done that high, watching it seems to me you can’t get away from mistakes you make at the lower heights. You better have a good eye for distance as the step is bigger and things happen faster. Again, the riding mistakes at lower heights will rip you out of ribbons and if the horse has a poor style of jumping that was ok at lower heights, also will rip you out of ribbons. To me, its a new ballgame at three foot and of course higher

[_Zara]

@anon510129

I haven’t had time to read all the responses, but something I find helpful about jumping 3’+ is that it helps raise my eye. We frequently “jump” cavalletis and cross-rails, which I actually find very difficult to find distances to.

If anything, the bigger the jumps the better I ride.

I agree. Any trot fence or ground pole gets about a 50% awkward attempt from my horse, but if there’s actually something to jump, she shows up every time.

[Janet]

It is NOT about “finding a distance”. It is about the quality of the canter. If you have a good canter (the right pace, balance, and straightness) the distance doesn’t matter.