Wednesday 17 May 2017

Measurable Progress

I normally make a point of not measuring the jumps. Big = scary, small = easy, actual measurements of "big" and "small" probably vary widely on a daily basis. That's really all we need to know.

Bridget the pony and Cedar the poodle 'helping' set jumps last weekend,.

Curiosity got the better of me this morning and so I went out and measured the jumps from our lesson that I thought looked do-able, but big. The result? Belly button height! Most surprisingly, one of the fences I wasn't overly concerned about was actually taller that the one I was worried about. Weird.


I'm short, so belly button height actually equals exactly 1m, or 3'3". So, that not only means Bridget has more hops than I give her credit for, it also means that when I've been saying I've been jumping 2'6" courses as the current upper end of my comfort zone, I actually meant 3'. When I said we haven't been progressing, well, I lied. No wonder the course at the show a few weeks ago seemed so small and friendly LOL

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9 comments

  1. That is so cool! Your trainer sounds amazingly tricky, in a good way :)

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    1. So tricky! I always seem to be paired with a lesson mate jumping higher than my comfort zone, so peer pressure, plus she always leaves one or two of the 'big girl' jumps up so ours look tiny in comparison.

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  2. Progress is sneaky like that?

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    1. More like Trainer EC is sneaky like that ha ha...left to my own devices I would be jumping teeny things forever, I think

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  3. Good for you! ...Oh crap, so PONY is not a real excuse then?

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    1. Apparently even "backwards thinking overweight drafty pony" is not a legit excuse. Darn it, it seemed so real.

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  4. ha that's always a nice discovery! i'm kinda at the opposite end of the spectrum right now - instead of my eye adjusting up, it's adjusted WAY down from lack of practice over the past year. 18" looks like 2'. 2'3 looks like 2'6. 2'9 looks goddamn giant. here's hoping i'll slide over to your end of the spectrum sooner rather than later - it's a much better place to be!

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    1. It will happen! The problem with babies it that jumping 18" can turn into anything...a 3' leap, a sideways acrobatic, a 'can't even pick up my feet' stumble. I think it's legit harder to ride a baby around a tiny course than a more experienced horse around something substantial. Charlie looks amazing, and I bet with more miles things will start to feel easy peasy :)

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  5. That is awesome!! I am SLOWLY starting to get back to that point... ahh how I wish that 3'3" looked "not too big" again! But we are steadily, easily schooling 2'6 now with the odd 2'9+ fence thrown in and doing it confidently, so I have hope!

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