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♘ مدیریت انجمن اسب ایران ♞
When you're warming up for a class, you want to simulate the upcoming conditions as much as possible. If you're going to ride in an under saddle class, then you should walk, trot, and canter your horse in the schooling arena in the same frame and with the same pace at each gait that you will be using in the class.
If you find your horse is too strong or too dull, now is the time to correct these errors, while you are still out of the judge's view. You may want to switch bits--say, from a snaffle to a pelham--if your horse is too strong, or add spurs if an additional driving aid is needed. The time you spend in warm-up, then,should not be just to loosen the horse up for the class, but to correct any last-minute problems.
When you're going to show over fences, begin by warming up on the flat for a short time--less than ten minutes, unless the animal is excited and needs to be worked longer. Start the jumping portion of your warm-up by trotting the horse over a small X (about a foot off the ground at the center for horses and even lower for ponies), then halt at the end of the line.
After trotting back and forth over the X two or three times, change its construction to a vertical fence, set about six inches lower than the height of the fences in the upcoing hunter or equitation class. Hand gallop the horse around the schooling arena once to wake it up a bit, then approach the fence, seeking a medium take-off spot from a medium pace. After the jump, halt at the end of the line--that is, on a straight line from the obstacle. If your horse is excited and wants to rush the fence, turn the animal around and jump the fence off a short approach. If the horse is dull and doesn't want to reach the proper pace, make a large circle at the hand gallop and approach the fence again, being prepared to use your stick if the animal tries to slow down.
Once the horse is jumping the vertical well at the low height, raise the fence three inches and jump it once or twice at the new height. Then raise it another three inches, so that it's at the height at which the horse will be shown. When you have jumped the vertical one or two times at this height, you can change the fence to an oxer to encourage good form in the air. You may even want to raise the uppermost poles of each element of the oxer one notch higher than the height of the fences in the class to make the horse pay attention. (Although a square oxer --i.e., parallel poles at the same height off the ground--will not be found in hunter classes, you can use it for warming up both hunters and equitation horses. It makes a horse try harder to clear the fence than does an ascending oxer and thus "tunes" the horse.)
Consider the type of course you'll be jumping and prepare during your warm-up for the specific tests on course. For example, if a hunter course is set with long strides between the fences, practice riding up to pace by galloping around the arena then approaching the warm-up fence with long, bold strides. If an equitation course contains a tight turn, a fence to be jumped at an angle, or some other test that is difficult, then simulate it in your warm-up. (Difficult tests should be practiced over fences set no higher than the normal height for the class, since a higher fence will encourage the horse to stop.)
If your horse tends to spook at colorful or unusual objects in a ring, you can prepare by placing a wool cooler or towel over a vertical fence to make the animal hesitant to approach it in practice. If the horse tries to slow down or stop at the fence, punish it with the stick so that it knows it must go forward. Once you have cleared the obstacle, take the cooler or towel away and jump the fence again. In this way, the horse will not end the practice being anxious, but will clearly get the message that it must go forward.
When you have finished schooling , you should feel completely prepared to rider the course ahead. The schooling area is not a place for you to try new tests which you haven't taken the time to practice at home. Instead, it should be used as a last-minute preparation, to ready youself and your horse to perform well in the upcoming class.
Make sure you have enough time to think about the course before you enter the ring. Mount early enough that you can school and still have one or two horses waiting ahead of you when you get to the in-gate. If there is a delay and you cannot compete soon after warming up, take the horse to an area where you can gallop just before you go in, so that it won't be dull from waiting.
If you find your horse is too strong or too dull, now is the time to correct these errors, while you are still out of the judge's view. You may want to switch bits--say, from a snaffle to a pelham--if your horse is too strong, or add spurs if an additional driving aid is needed. The time you spend in warm-up, then,should not be just to loosen the horse up for the class, but to correct any last-minute problems.
When you're going to show over fences, begin by warming up on the flat for a short time--less than ten minutes, unless the animal is excited and needs to be worked longer. Start the jumping portion of your warm-up by trotting the horse over a small X (about a foot off the ground at the center for horses and even lower for ponies), then halt at the end of the line.
After trotting back and forth over the X two or three times, change its construction to a vertical fence, set about six inches lower than the height of the fences in the upcoing hunter or equitation class. Hand gallop the horse around the schooling arena once to wake it up a bit, then approach the fence, seeking a medium take-off spot from a medium pace. After the jump, halt at the end of the line--that is, on a straight line from the obstacle. If your horse is excited and wants to rush the fence, turn the animal around and jump the fence off a short approach. If the horse is dull and doesn't want to reach the proper pace, make a large circle at the hand gallop and approach the fence again, being prepared to use your stick if the animal tries to slow down.
Once the horse is jumping the vertical well at the low height, raise the fence three inches and jump it once or twice at the new height. Then raise it another three inches, so that it's at the height at which the horse will be shown. When you have jumped the vertical one or two times at this height, you can change the fence to an oxer to encourage good form in the air. You may even want to raise the uppermost poles of each element of the oxer one notch higher than the height of the fences in the class to make the horse pay attention. (Although a square oxer --i.e., parallel poles at the same height off the ground--will not be found in hunter classes, you can use it for warming up both hunters and equitation horses. It makes a horse try harder to clear the fence than does an ascending oxer and thus "tunes" the horse.)
Consider the type of course you'll be jumping and prepare during your warm-up for the specific tests on course. For example, if a hunter course is set with long strides between the fences, practice riding up to pace by galloping around the arena then approaching the warm-up fence with long, bold strides. If an equitation course contains a tight turn, a fence to be jumped at an angle, or some other test that is difficult, then simulate it in your warm-up. (Difficult tests should be practiced over fences set no higher than the normal height for the class, since a higher fence will encourage the horse to stop.)
If your horse tends to spook at colorful or unusual objects in a ring, you can prepare by placing a wool cooler or towel over a vertical fence to make the animal hesitant to approach it in practice. If the horse tries to slow down or stop at the fence, punish it with the stick so that it knows it must go forward. Once you have cleared the obstacle, take the cooler or towel away and jump the fence again. In this way, the horse will not end the practice being anxious, but will clearly get the message that it must go forward.
When you have finished schooling , you should feel completely prepared to rider the course ahead. The schooling area is not a place for you to try new tests which you haven't taken the time to practice at home. Instead, it should be used as a last-minute preparation, to ready youself and your horse to perform well in the upcoming class.
Make sure you have enough time to think about the course before you enter the ring. Mount early enough that you can school and still have one or two horses waiting ahead of you when you get to the in-gate. If there is a delay and you cannot compete soon after warming up, take the horse to an area where you can gallop just before you go in, so that it won't be dull from waiting.