Green horses are going to refuse jumps. It's part of the learning process, as they develop skills like how to read questions & how to organize their feet. Eventually they learn to do both of these things at the same time, but they don't start out that way.
Case in point: about a month ago, I took Echo next door for his second official jump lesson (the first one was back in April) with Trainer Neighbour (TN). He was growing much more confident with my single "jumps" in schooling, with far less drunken approaches & less hesitation at the base.
We'd mastered a whopping 18"
I had just started introducing canter poles to our rides the week before. I wanted him to see some different colors & shapes, as well as work through some more simple gymnastics, which are more challenging for me to do alone since my ground person is, uh, me.
Echo, being all legs & distraction, is still very green in terms of figuring out where & in what order the limbs should go to create a jumping effort. I try my best to get him very balanced on approaches, stay in the middle of him, & let him sort out the rest on his own. He is an unfailingly earnest trier & really wants to please, making my job of directing him to the right answer much easier.
Easier, but also often hilarious. For example, as we began working the lesson gymnastic, he had definitely retained the lesson about "poles are for trotting over." A little too well.
Exceptional pole trotting
We paused that & worked over a few canter poles to get
him thinking about bringing his hinds together underneath him &
pushing over an obstacle in a true jumping motion. As I mentioned, he'd
only done canter poles a couple times, the week prior, so it took a few
tries over these larger ones, but he finally figured it out:
Figuring out takeoff - uh, ignore my leaning, sigh
We went back to the gymnastic to try & translate that motion to the jumps. TN suggested we try some extra trot poles in front of the first jump to see if we could encourage him to step closer to the base. She also added an empty flower box to make it look a little more like an actual obstacle. I suspected this might be a bigger complexity jump than he could process all at once, but we'd give it a shot.
My suspicion was correct. Echo's little brain (much of which he had apparently left at home that day anyway) went, "Oooo, look at all the new things, waiiiiit, I must inspect!!!" He was sucking back hard by the time we go to the first trot pole & despite my squeezing, he came to halt in front of the fence.
In years past, I might have gotten upset. I might have grabbed a crop or, at the least, considered it a failure. But I have learned a lot about nuances in training since then.
If a green horse has what I call an honest stop, that is, they don't understand the question or they truly don't feel comfortable in their ability to complete the task, I'm ok with that. They're not trying to get out of work or communicate pain or simply be contrary, they're just trying to figure it out.
What's more, I would rather be on a horse that stops when he's unsure than one who hurls himself thoughtlessly into anything. I think both of us are safer in the first scenario - a little self-preservation is an important thing. The nuance lies in what the horse tells me & how he responds to what comes next.
I also want Echo to enjoy jumping as a positive experience. I don't want him to jump something just because he's afraid I might hurt him if he doesn't. I want 100% of his focus on doing his job safely & well, instead of having 50% distracted by fear or anxiety. I'm sure I'll need that extra focus at some point when I need to rely on his footwork & balance to get us out of trouble.
Soft, relaxed, focused
This doesn't mean I'll never give him a solid kick or a pop with a stick. It just means I'll only apply those things if I am certain that I have asked a question well within his confidence & experience levels. In this particular lesson, this particular stop clearly said to me that he wasn't completely sure of what he needed to do, but he was thinking hard about the question. He was trying to learn & I absolutely don't want to punish him for that.
After a brief examination (& some giggling at his adorable baby-ness) of things, I just calmly circled him around to try again. He was still hesitant, but with encouragement, gave it a shot. The third time, the light bulb was beginning to glow. Here's the series of attempts. Giggling commentary included.
He was also beginning to figure out how to make a jump jumpy. The canter pole translation was happening & it was getting significantly easier for me to follow his motion as it became more predictable.
Less trotty, moar jumpy
And through it all, Echo was trying & learning, all while his ears stayed pricked & his attitude positive. This is what I want for his foundation, along with a clear understanding in him on exactly how it all works. I want him to learn how to jump over things, not how to demolish them with this legs in an uncomfortable scramble (although I'm sure we'll inadvertently practice this too).
In a fit of delusional optimism on Sunday, I decided to use some of my hoarded scrap lumber to build a set of proper jump standards. This would be an upgrade from my previous scrap standards, which have now disintegrated since I never got around to sealing them & I gave up on them after Encore got hurt.
Said optimism was obviously misguided, since I am taking Echo to the vet tomorrow. He displayed a very sore stifle last night with some odd characters. I am hoping it's just a "young, growing horse" thing or some other mild sprain, but I want it checked out right away since I am EXTREMELY gun-shy on stifles after Encore. Not like I need another vet bill, but the alternative is giving myself 47 ulcers over the weekend, sigh.
Anyway. Buildy thingies. Also excellent for distracting the Monstrous Voices Of Overthinking.
Quick How-To Guide For Simple Standard Construction
These actually cost me $0 to build. I had an eight-foot 4" x 6" left over from another project, my pile of "scraps salvaged from house construction dumpster" five years ago, plenty of paint from painting ground poles, & I always have a tub of deck screws around. It didn't take me long, about 2-3 hrs including sanding & a quick coat of paint on the bases.
Standard Preface from the Safety Nazi: Tools are awesome, but don't mess around. Wear your safety glasses, close-toed shoes, ear protection when necessary, & pay attention. Horsewomen are badasses, but work smarter, not harder. You can do most anything you set your mind to, but make sure you have been properly instructed, know your equipment, & always plan ahead.
My materials list:
8-foot 4" x 6", cut in half to make two 4' standards(I don't need anything taller & shorter = lighter)
Eight 12" (or somewhere in the vicinity, some of mine are a little longer) long boards for feet; you can use a 1" x 6" or mine are leftover deck planking boards
Tools I used: Circular saw, drill, impact driver (I won't lie, I use this for everything), 1/2" speed cutting bit (for pin holes, you could also use a spade bit), tape measure, pencil
All my junk & my sophisticated work table, don't know why photo is dark
I started by cutting the 4x6 in half. Yes, most standards are made with 4x4's but as long as you have a 4" face to fit a standard jump cup, it doesn't matter. I think the extra 2" on the long side may be a stability bonus in the end. I purposefully didn't make the cut exactly straight so that water will drain off instead of sitting there & rotting the wood from the top.
Then start attaching your legs. Attach the first one flush with the bottom of your post & work around, attaching legs in a pinwheel fashion. I put 4 screws on legs on the wide face, 3 screws on the narrow face, since it was a tight fit.
Attaching my mismatched legs (just like my actual legs)
Screwing tips (yeah, maybe I just wanted to type that): (1) set your screws about 1" in from the edge of your board to prevent cracking. (2) Drilling a pilot hole will help with the same, I did this extra step because my leg scraps were dry & old & it successfully avoided splitting them.
Pilot holes in the first foot
Measure out your pin hole centers. I started at 18" from the ground & proceeded in 3" intervals up to three feet. I did check how the cups would sit & confirmed that the top of the poles would be even with the pin hole centers, so that would be a true jump height. Measure a second point from the edge of the post however far back your cups extend (mine are 1 and 5/8"), which will give you a target to center your big drill bit on.
I'll drill where the lines cross
Drill your pin holes. Some types of cups demand straighter holes than others. I'm trying out the Dapple Equine one-piece cups (I technically did spend money to purchase these, but as they are not part of the standard itself, I'm still calling them free standards), which allow for some slop. So I eyeballed it & the ones that weren't quite straight were easy to shave a little extra off of. Drilling treated posts requires power & a sharp bit - have a spare battery handy if using a cordless drill/driver. I love these SpeedBor bits, they chew a big hole efficiently & don't require crazy torque like a ship auger does.
Drill w/ SpeedBor & completed holes
That's basically it, you now have functional standards. I knocked the edges & rough bits off with a sander to hopefully reduce my splinters when I grab them. I threw an initial trademark UAPJ (Ugly-Ass Paint Job) on the bases since the sun was setting & I wanted an extra coat there.
The finest UAPJ work
They now have two more coats on the posts themselves & I plan on putting another coat on the bases on Saturday.
Just waiting for that mythical creature, Sound Horse
I haven't gotten a chance to even set them up yet. If you have any spare good luck to send our way, I could definitely use it. I'm trying hard to hope that Dr. Bob will give us not-completely-terrible news tomorrow & I can use my pretty new standards soon...
Can it really have been 10 years?? As I broke Solo's favourite candy canes into his 20th birthday breakfast last Sunday, I couldn't quite believe in a DECADE.
A DECADE - that's encompassed what feels like several lifetimes. Maybe that's why I fantasize about naps, ha. While our official 10-year anniversary isn't until Memorial Day weekend, I can't help but feel like we've checked a major milestone.
I don't know Solo's actual birthday. All I had was the Coggins in the envelope with the bill of sale, taken in January of 2006, describing a 9-yr-old gelding.
When I met him that May, he was advertised as 10, so I decided to give him my own birthday, sitting neatly in the middle & a date I might even remember.
Given the electric phenomenon of our initial encounter, I suppose I should have known that unimaginable adventures lay ahead of us. But, well, I was an exuberant 27...and they were unimaginable!
Solo may have been the first horse who was ever my own, but I have had the privilege (some more pleasant than others...) of working with countless others, as far back as my memory can reach.
Yet, he remains astonishingly unique, truly his own sphere of being, capable of becoming what BFF once accurately described as "a force of nature," ALWAYS on his own terms.
The greatest gift of my life, that chestnut face is also the sole remaining bridge to the person I was & the person I loved before the loss whose story is still trapped inside.
Fall '10: We've found our stride...literally. Photo purchased from Brant Gamma.
Many of you know I'm a painfully practical biologist, not prone to anthropomorphize.
However, I also know that "different" is not the same as "lesser;" I have seen animals defy our limitations too many times.
And Solo's ability to look into my core, to lend me his strength, his joie de vivre, to become so intently still when things fall apart & promise me, on a level of communication I can't explain, that he will wait with me & it will be ok...that horse continues to save my life.
And we can pause together in the loblolly's shade, watch the heron stalk unwary fish, & relive a thousand memories in every touch. And if we're lucky, share many more new ones.
From a 2010 indulgence of my inner 12-yr-old, an illustration of...us:
Song by Templeton Thompson, a very talented & kind singer/songwriter/horsewoman I had the pleasure of meeting at an Equine Affaire in Raleigh.
Seriously – a thing!!! Ok, the word “jump” may be a tad strong:
If it looks like a jump & jumps like a jump...
But creativity is a Team Flying Solo credo, so two barrels my neighbour wasn’t using & old seine poles from work we’d replaced = all manner of jump-like constructs.
It simultaneously seems like years ago & last week that we were arcing around 3’3” courses under David O.’s sharp eyes, but yesterday…yesterday, a whoop of triumph escaped my fool’s grin as Encore neatly popped over a single crossrail that I’d optimistically call 2’6”.
Because it WAS a triumph! Doubly so, because this post is a post! I know many of you have been thinking, “Hey, didn’t there used to be, like, stories on this blog?”
Yep. I’m trying to figure out where they went, too.
Every Day For The Win!
From its birth, We Are Flying Solo has been about embracing & celebrating what defines horsemanship, no matter what the discipline/breed/age: Baby Steps. And they absolutely still count even if you are walking in impressions you’ve made before!
I’ve worked very hard to accomplish the proud label of “Slowest Rehab Ever,” between Encore’s healing stifles (yeah, pretty sure those were wayyyyy faster than me) & my own bewildered feeling of being shaken up inside a dark paper bag for the past year. I was beginning to wonder if it was Over.
Despite a rocky moment, where Encore refused the fence twice (90% rider mental hesitation & cursed spot of doubt), the third time was the charm (out, out damned spot! *literature nerd moment of awesome*). And so were the two after that.
So when I dropped my stirrups & leaned down to wrap my arms around that generous horse’s neck, my murmur of, “Thank you, buddy!” consisted of everything in my heart. Gifts so often arise as moments. Moments shaped like hope.
N3DE Julia Burke jogs Davignio for the Ground Jury before proceeding to Phase D: XC!
N3DE Ann Bower & Prosecco (also "Best Turned Out" for their division jogs!) clear the XC Frame
...is because this. Donkey Hode (who won Best Conditioned over all divisions!), currently in 2nd place in the N3DE explains it all, walking back to the barn with an equine smile.
In a fit of delusional optimism on Sunday, I decided to use some of my hoarded scrap lumber to build a set of proper jump standards. This would be an upgrade from 
Seriously – a thing!!! Ok, the word “jump” may be a tad strong:
