The Sport of Show Jumping and Its Techniques - A Collection of Classic Equestrian Magazine Articles

By Read Books Ltd.

This collection of articles were originally published in equestrian magazines in the early part of the 20th century. Carefully selecting the best articles from our collection we have compiled a series of historical and informative publications on the subject of horse riding. The titles in this range include 'The Use of Horses in the Military,' 'The Sport of Point-to-Point Horse Riding,' 'The Beautiful Sport of Horse Racing,' and many more. Each publication has been professionally curated and includes all details on the original source material. This particular instalment, 'The Sport of Show Jumping and its Techniques' contains a variety of articles on the history and methods of show jumping. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900's and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Read Books Ltd.
• Release date: Sep 7, 2016
• ISBN: 9781473359109

Book preview

YOUNG RIDERS’ SECTION

TEACHING YOUR PONY TO JUMP

A Suggestion for the Summer Holidays—and a Hint from Mr. John Jorrocks

By Lieut.-Col. BRIAN ROBINSON, M.C.

PRACTISING FOR A TRICK JUMP: Daphne Robinson, the author’s daughter, shows an example of a good seat at the take-off—knees bent, legs close to pony’s side, hands low.

WHEN you get back for the summer holidays you will probably find that your pony is terribly fat and blown out with grass. This is only natural as grass is the finest balanced ration known for horses and ponies, especially during the months of May and June.

Before you can really enjoy riding you must try to reduce this superfluous fat of your mount, otherwise the saddle will slip forward on to your pony’s shoulders and will also rock sideways—a most uncomfortable feeling as you probably know—so go out before breakfast each day and bring your pony in to a cool stall, shed, or box.

Be sure you see he has plenty of water which he can easily reach at all times; you can now limit his food according to his fatness and how much work you are going to give him.

I find it a very good plan to tether a too fat pony in some shady place during the day and move him as often as necessary. The best place for him, at night, during the summer is in the field.

With any luck, you will get a few days’ cub-hunting before the end of holidays, so you must get him gradually fit and his back hard, and you must both have a refresher course in jumping. Now before you start jumping be sure you and your pony thoroughly know one another: have you taught him to obey the aids—hands and legs? If not, he will be able to refuse or run out just as often as he likes.

Here, again, I want to impress on you how you must teach your pony to obey the indirect rein (or rein on the neck) used with your outward leg, of course; it is no good pulling a pony’s head round if his body does not follow it.

When you both understand one another and feel happy together, start your jumping lesson over the tiniest obstacle—a pole on the ground will do to start with; do not attempt anything larger until you both go over the pole in the proper style, and together.

I will tell you one or two points to be sure of. Be sure you use your legs; by that I mean keep them close to your pony’s sides with your heels just behind his girths. Take him quietly up to the jump and increase the pace a little the last two or three strides; never let your pony get slower as he gets nearer the fence.

You have no doubt heard a lot about the forward seat over fences; that does not mean that you crane forward as you canter at the jump. Sit naturally during the approach and simply bow to the fence, with your body, from the hips, as your mount takes off; this ensures that you are not left behind and gives freedom to hindquarters and head of your pony. It has another advantage; at the moment of taking off the part you sit upon is raised slightly out of the saddle and does not get that lift from the hindquarters that it would if you practised the backward seat.

There are generally two types of jumpers that you will have to contend with sooner or later; the first is the one that rushes up to the fence as though it would eat it and then stops under it and props over it—a most annoying trick and very apt to unseat one. The second type is the one that rushes its fences, but jumps freely as long as allowed to go all out. Both have, of course, been allowed to get into bad habits. How shall we cure them?

We will take the first type; the only thing to do is to trot it at its fences and only allow it to canter the last three strides, making sure you give it plenty of leg pressure to induce it to lengthen its stride; it is also a help to place a low pole about 8 to 10 yards (according to size of pony) away from fence to be jumped so that the pony jumps this and has not time to prop before reaching the fence.

The second type will take longer to cure, as it has evidently been over-excited and jumping has gone to its head. Here, again, the only cure is patience and great care in bridling the pony. Make sure he has not got a sore mouth or curb gall; have a lot of tiny fences, all at different angles, put up in your field so that he never knows which one he is to be asked to jump. At the least sign of any desire to rush a fence, turn his head away from it and jump another from a trot; if you have the patience, you will soon cure all but the very few that are incurable.

If you are keen there is always time to ride each day of the holidays, in spite of all the parties arranged for you—and please don’t forget what Mr. John Jorrocks said: Them as does much dancing don’t do much hunting.

THE MAKING OF A JUMPER

Good Jumpers and Bad Jumpers

By H. WYNMALEN

A GOOD JUMPER will meet his fences fairly and squarely; he will come at them calmly and collectedly and accelerate during the last few strides of the approach; thus, with the maximum of impetus, he will take off well back from the obstacle and sail over it in a long, easy leap that carries him well into the next field, where he will land, light as a feather, to canter on serenely and without further ado. He will not need the excitement of the chase and the encouragement of other horses jumping in front or with him, for he will perform equally well alone and in cold blood.

Such a horse is a delight to ride, easy to sit, and perfectly safe over big or difficult places. There is no terror for him in the unexpected ditch behind the obstacle; if of ordinary dimensions, his normal leap will carry him well over it, and if a bit, even a good bit, too wide for that, why, he can easily stretch those few extra feet required. He won’t peck or fall on his nose, his style is much too free, too easy and too light for that. He takes his fences in the stride of his gallop, his jumping stride being merely a bit bigger, and that’s about all there is to it, as far as he is concerned.

Not many people, I imagine, would want to find fault with this definition of a good jumper, and a good few, I should think, would quite like to have a ride on him, over a country. And they no doubt would realise that our good jumper has confidence in himself and will be ready to go that free and easy way, wherever he be put, provided only that he be properly ridden, so that he too has confidence in the man on his back.

And here we have arrived at the root of the matter, at the key to our system of schooling a jumper, which must produce this double confidence in the horse, confidence in himself and confidence in his rider.

Now that sounds, and is in fact, easy and simple enough and provided we are able and prepared to devote to ou schooling a good deal of time, tact, understanding, kindnes and infinite patience, we shall be well