Sports And Recreational Activities

Horse jumping is a sport that even non-riders love to watch. Seeing a thousand pound horse propel himself over an obstacle never gets old. Horses are natural athletes with unmatched beauty.

Before you begin jumping, make sure you’ve got the basics of horse riding down pat. You know both your leads well and can hold a two-point position out of your saddle without holding onto the reins or your horse’s neck for balance. Leg strength and correct positioning are critical while going over fences.

Start off with simple poles on the ground laid out in a grid. Use four poles and space them 3 feet apart for trotting and 5 to 6 feet for an easy canter. As you approach the poles, go into a two point position and rest your hands on your horse’s crest. You don’t have to put weight on them but get into the habit of moving your hands forward and down. This will keep you from hitting your horse in the mouth when you start jumping. But if you need to, grab some mane! Hold that position over all the poles in your grid then sit back into the saddle and regroup.

When you and your horse are comfortable with this, set up a small jump with 2 poles in an ‘X’ shape about 18″ high. Put four poles on the ground spaced 3′ apart and approach the jump at a trot. As you reach the ground poles, take your two point position and put your hands on your horse’s neck. He’ll give you a little hop over that ‘X’ and probably land in a canter. You slowly build from that foundation.

If you’ve got a yen to take up jumping - go for it. It’s exciting and fun. Start with baby steps while you’re learning and before you know it, you and your horse will be a well-oiled jumping team.