Thoroughbred Logic, Presented by Kentucky Performance Products: Nixing the Stop
This week’s article focuses on keeping your horse moving forward “over or through” the fences. Read on for more.
Welcome to the next installment of Thoroughbred Logic. In this weekly series, Anthropologist and trainer Aubrey Graham, of Kivu Sport Horses, offers insight and training experience when it comes to working with Thoroughbreds (although much will apply to all breeds). This week ride along as Aubrey shares her logic on keeping your horse moving forward “over or through” the fences.
In the world of eventing, the concept of “over or through” has long had its place. With each successful fence, riders are able to build their horse’s confidence and courage and, in so doing, strengthen their partnership. I probably ascribe to ‘over or through’ a bit too much in my own life, but with horses, especially green beans, sometimes there is more to it than just ‘keep kicking’. There are nuances that help them get to that literal other side with increased understanding of the question, increased confidence — and sometimes, therefore, increased grace, agility, and courage. I find the first few jump schools can set the tone for a career and either craft horses who start to hunt the flags and fences, or those who look for ways to throw on the brakes or wiggle out of them.
One of my all-time favorite dragons, Rhodie (Western Ridge) hunting the Training level flags at Poplar Place Farm in 2023. Photo by Cora Williamson Photography.
Note: There are a million and one ways to train horses to jump. Many folks prefer to start horses on the ground, free jumping or in round pens — others start them under saddle, some in arenas, some out over logs on the trails and on cross country. We all have to work with what we have available, so in the winter up north, my horses get the joy of learning to jump in a modest, but very functional indoor. Until I bring a log inside (it’s on the docket for the next week or so), XC fences will have to wait. There aren’t necessarily right and wrong ways to do any of this, so long as the horse gains confidence and is willing to go give it a try again, kick on and keep at it.
Nixing the Stop
Many horses will stop at fences during their first schools. Let me start by saying that I do not think this determines their future. Sometimes, building a confident jumper takes a ton of time, effort, and consistency, not just abundant confidence and natural skill. Equally importantly, sometimes stops don’t show up until further along in their training or after hard knock, an iffy landing, or increased body soreness. Early on though, the stops c0mmonly arise when they weren’t quite expecting what came up in front of them. ‘We’re circling we’re circling, we’re circling… oh sh*t what’s that?!’ as you point them at a jump and their goldfish bowl mindset suddenly implodes.
Legs (Pederson’s Courage) popping over some of his first fences at Kivu back in Georgia. Photo by Cora Williamson Photography.
With the green beans, I’ll aim to nix the stop before it happens by introducing jumps as ground poles and slowly build them up. Walk over them first, trot the poles, then build the fence one standard at a time into an X. Going incrementally augments their confidence and helps lay a foundation for them to gallop down to the big fences out on XC with ears up, ready for whatever is next. With barrels, I’ll leave a gap for them to walk through, then close it bit-by-bit until they are hopping over it without thinking. Their forward motion never really gets nixed. Make the tube with your legs, steer straight with wide hands, stay upright and pilot them confidently over the fence. It might not be pretty, but any effort is a good effort. Always reward the try.
Grab mane and stay with them on the backside too. Photo of Leni (Chooselov) showing off her athleticism at home in Lansing, NY. Photo by Lily Drew.
Sometimes, no matter how much one builds the fence from the ground up and aims to provide a quiet, confident ride, a horse will still stop. There’s an entire taxonomy of stops — is the “ease-up-early,” where as soon as the fence comes into view, the horse sucks behind the leg and slowly starts to down shift. There’s the “Nope!” about one to two strides out where the rider has put their aids on and ridden forward but the horse simply says, “nopelope not so sure about this.” And then there is the jarring “anti take off” where the feet almost come off the ground but as a rider goes forward with the horse, they pull the plug on their jumping effort and shove their feet back to the ground leaving the rider to test their leg/ore strength and gravity.
OK, regardless of which type of stop, we nonetheless have a stop. That’s fine.
And that is probably the hardest thing for a rider to manage about this. It’s fine. Often they’ll go to their crop, or spin the horse around and rush them back at the fence faster. But these are smart creatures, and going at higher speed at an object they didn’t trust in the first place doesn’t usually give them additional confidence. Momentum might work in a rider’s favor, but that is not likely to build a brave, flag-hunting horse.
Uno (Hold Em Paul) was one of my favorite to teach to jump and he has turned into quite the flag-hunting rock star. Photo by Alanah Giltmier.
Instead, slow down. Let them stand and look at the fence for a moment. Then without turning them from the fence, back up gently. Keep backing up with their face pointing to the fence until there’s enough distance to kick on and trot the fence. *Obviously be careful here. A horse who had the ability to stop may also have the ability to rear, so make sure to back with caution and kindness. Then trot the fence and grab mane for the usually less-than-graceful tossing themselves to the other side. Reward thoroughly once they come to a walk or halt on the backside. Rinse and repeat.
A note on trotting: When riding a horse that stops, the trot is your friend. The canter places both front legs closer to each other as they go forward, making a hard stop by planting the front feet together far easier than the single-leg-forward trot. And while I, like so many, hate hate hate trotting fences, it is the best for being able to keep leg on and to get to the other side.
Bowing Snowman working on his trot balance to fences. Photo by Lily Drew.
Now, if you have backed the horse and they have stopped again, make sure you’re not getting forward heading to take off, thereby letting the leg off and shifting their balance. Let them stand (you don’t want them to fly backwards either… that doesn’t help for points on cross country or in stadium). Back again on your cue, allow them to look, take a breath, and trot over it. If you need to have ground help break the fence down lower, go for it. Add encouragement, sit tall, leg on and get going.
If the brakes are coming on earlier, it’s time to keep them moving through that area on one hand and have a good look at the fence on the other. For the former, I’ll ask them to trot figure eights near the fence, keeping their feet in motion and bending through their body while allowing them to look at the fence without approaching. The turns past the jump are one way to encourage them rely on you a bit more and not take over so early. It also isn’t an approach, so they’re not being trained to duck out the side.
Needles Highway showing off his moves over the skinny barrels. Photo by Allen Graham.
For the latter, they need to perhaps see the fence better. Importantly, this should be done from the side. I never point a horse head on at a jump unless I intend for them to get to the other side. Instead, I’ll walk them parallel to the fence to look. Their eyes are positioned on the sides of their heads so that such an approach gives them the best view of actually what this thing is they have to get over. Walk around it left, walk around it right. If there’s still push back, leg yield them to it as you walk past. Take a breath, reduce the stress, and then once they have also exhaled, pick your line and come back to the jump at a walk or trot (depending on height and experience of the horse).
If they’re quite green and don’t seem to understand the concept of ‘over or through’ in the slightest, there are a few other tools: other horses, other people, and boots literally on the ground. If there’s a non-kicky horse to follow, I’ll let them put their nose in their tail and follow along as the lead horse pops over the little fence or ditch. But otherwise, I’ll get leading help from an on-ground assistant or hop off and lead them over myself.
Neil (Lute’s Angel) in an evolution of getting more confident. Photo by Sarah Hepler.
Having someone at their head is a comfortable space for a Thoroughbred. Their track life is riddled with reassurance from grooms, trainers, and handlers standing nearby. So when a horse is at a loss for confidence, bringing a leader back to their head to offer a gentle forward persuasion is rarely a bad idea. When they can’t quite figure out that the jump is actually a plane they can break, watching another horse or human step across it before them seems to usually do the trick.
Neil figuring it out… Photo by Sarah Hepler.
And then importantly, my last bit of advice about stopping the stop is to end on a good note — and perhaps end early. A rider might have planned an elaborate jump school, but having to school a stop will ask us to rethink, retool, and often call it a day on the best possible note. Once their confidence is up over the fence, especially if they are green, sure go jump one or two easier things, but don’t keep adding. Not that day. Let them take the win and come back to kick on the next time.
Neil figuring it out enough he now jumps the four-foot standards and out of the frame. Photo by Lily Drew.
So kick on folks, and find the best way for you and your horse to confidently get over or through.
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