Question:

Hunter horse showing tips........

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I have been riding for 10 years but am fairly new to showing becasue it never really appealed to me b4. Now i am really into it and I am doing amazingly well in jumping (1st and 2md) but keep gettin 4th and below in flats. Please help! I dont know what i am doing wrong. I have pretty good equitation so i dont think thats it. Any tips or general showing advice?

Also, my horse can be hyper, any calming tricks?

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  1. Since we can't see the problems you may be having, you may want to stay behind and ask the judge what you could do to improve your score. If that is not a option then ride a few months with an instructor. Use someone that you can trust and that has winners in the ring. Lots of the time we can move the horse like we need to because the horse knows us and reads us.  It may not be what the judges are looking for even though you are a good rider.

    A hyper situation with your horse may be because you are going in tense, he can feel that and act accordingly. Practice standing quietly at the gate before going in and take several deep breaths, calm your body language mainly your hands and seat,and see if he doesn't relax. Do this at home before you get to the ring just before you are practicing. Once he realizes you are ready he will listen better.

    Good Luck,EM


  2. well for hunters its not about the rider and never has been, though the rider does influence the horse so IN A WAY it does but...your horse may just not have the "look" his strides have to be long and lengthy and cover ground without using much enegry also some kind of frame is nice to see, they are also judged on manners and if your horse is a little hot then it is beacuse he doesnt have the proper diet and exersize plan so consult your vet to help you with creating a plan to fit his needs also make sure he isnt in any pain such as ulcers which are hard to diagnoise and often make horses "cranky" and make sure his tack fits and also D-rings are most desired so if your using a pelham and the judge likes both u and another rider about the same, the rider with the D- ring will often get the place ahead as D-rings are more traditional.

    good luck!

    =]] AA

  3. You have to be a very active rider in the equitation ring so the judge notices you. Keep your space, and don't just go around in circles on the rail. Make sure your boots are the shiniest in the ring, your horse is the cleanest in the ring, and your tack is the cleanest in the ring. When you do the lineup at the end of the class, don't be on the ends, you tend to get overlooked there. Have a good time, and make sure it looks like you're having fun on your horse. Keep your horse collected, too. Braiding your horse's mane and tail will make him stand out more, too. People say they're just looking at equitation in some of these classes, but the judges still prefer good turnout, for both horse and rider. It shows good horsemanship. And don't use a crop. You can carry one, but you must keep your aids as subtle as possible.

    As for your horse being hyper, I think it's just a nerves thing. I absolutely hate it when someone's horse cannot stay still for the ribbon pinning, and it can detract from the score. So practice just standing in the middle of your workouts with your horse. Pretend you're in a class, and do two laps cantering each way and halt, and just stand there for a few minutes. The longer he stays still, the better.

    It may help to give your horse a massage before your class... while you're on his back, massage his crest between the knuckles on both hands, one hand on either side. Work your way up and down the mane. This gets almost all of my horses to relax and drop their heads. It also gives me something to do before the class instead of being nervous, since your horse will feed off your negative energy.

  4. Well, you have two flat classes right? Hunter Under Saddle and Eq. At least, that's what I have. For the hunter under saddle classes you need to have a hunter horse, because the horse is what is being judged there, not you. You should smile at the judges and always try to get right in front of the judge when you line up. These little tips helped me a bit...

  5. The jumping and the equitation part of the hunter classes are base on different criteria.

    Over fences, they are looking for a constant pace, where the horse goes as if the jumps weren't even there. And don't forget, since you have a more hyper horse, she would tend to love jumping more, since it's all canter and she gets to go over jumps. There are just some horses that are better over jumps than on the flat.

    Equitation, is based on the whole picture(though it depends on whether you're in horse eq or rider eq, although both affect each other directly). On the flat, your horse might be bored. She's moving at slower paces and gets to look around more. Also, she's in the ring with other horses, another cause for distraction. For equitation, they want the horse to be relatively quiet, yet ready for anything. They also love daisy-cutter movement, where there is little "knee movement" and the horse just flows.

    As for standing, try not to fidget so much yourself. Trust her a little. Give her a little rein to take a breather and give her a pat. She'll get better as you go to more shows.

    For me, it's the opposite. I get firsts in eq and hacks, and 3rd and below for jumping. My mare has lovely movement, everyone comments on it, and the judges love it(if she's not having her wild tb moments). Jumping, she tends to hang her knees, or blasts over jumps, or does happy bucks, and our pace isn't always consistant.

    So it might not be you. It might just be that there are other horses whose movement is better than your mare's. And that's bound to happen.

  6. I would consult with my trainer since he has seen both you and your horse working together.

  7. Sounds JUST like me lol. In a normal show I place 1st or 2nd in both jumping classes and I seem to ALWAYS place 5th in the flat o.O (last show I placed 3rd but I think there were only 8people)

    I think the probley for me (so it might be the same for you since we seem to ahve the same problem) is that I was originally trained for classical (ei. dressage) and tend to have a more straight back in the sitting and posting trot...when Hunters you are supposed to be at a 90degree angle (or SLIGHTLY forward that's why it is sometimes called "forward seat" lol)

    If you tupoint in the canter, have your heels REALLY far down, and are looking straight ahead then the posture is probley the thing,

    Also, a spunky hose isn;t very appealing in the Hunter ring. My horse isn't very hunter which is probley another reason. He takes more "short and quick" steps than the normal "long and slow" stride :D

    I woul keep practicing, and I am sure you will start placing higher :)

    You can also try "Be Calm" for your horse...I think it is a paste.

  8. Well... you don't really NEED to have good equitation in the hunter's classes. The fact that she might not stand still will take extra points off, because hunter's is solely judged on the horse, not your riding capability. Your job is to disappear, and to be able to play up your horse's good things, and learn to tone down her faults. She may have a bad headset, or not move right. It could just be the fact that she cannot stand still. I would ask someone at a show to watch you, then tell you if anything looks funny as you go....

  9. it is impossible to tell without seeing you and your horse move together. in the hunter ring, the judges are looking for a long, low stride, ease of movement from the horse, the neck carried parallel to the ground, and the head at a right angle to the ground. the horse should be CALM. the three most important things in hunters are MANNERS, MOVEMENT and CONSISTANCY. as for you as the rider, stay straight in the saddle, and make sure you pick up the right diagonal. in the flat classes such as hunters under saddle, the rider doesnt matter too much, but in equitation, it matters a whole lot. and when you canter, dont two-point, sit deep in the saddle and rock easily with the canter. if you would like me to get into more of the things the judges look for in equitation or hunter flat classes, post another question with that specifically and i will answer in length. but i dont know if this is what you're even looking for so i dont want to type it all out if thats not what you want. =]

    Edit: you place in jumping and not in flat because both classes look for different things! its like some one who throws shotput and does well, going out and running sprints. they are similar, but totally different. these classes are based on totally different things, so it makes total sense that you might not do so hot in one but do awesome in another.

  10. Something to help with the pony.

    Try joining up with it. Do it at the show. Get it really trusting you. and go to a few shows and not compete. Just get the horse to relax at shows.

    Also Go to shows earlier and this will help you and the horse to relax.

    You just need to relax and stay calm.

    What I used to do is go 1 hr earlier and warm up. Then join up and massage the horse. then go into my class then stay calm and pretend the judge was my riding instructor. This helped a lot as I was competing a 2 yo.

    Heres a link for join up  http://www.montyroberts.com/ju_about.htm...

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