Spring has finally arrived here in Massachusetts, and with it (finally!) some great warmer weather for riding! After a very cold winter, it’s so nice to get outside to ride. This is also the time of year where I start to organize my riding goals for the year with Nemo. This year, my big goals for Nemo are to develop and improve his jumping skills and also to try Eventing. I always love to learn, and this spring I’ve had the opportunity to participate in a jumping clinic to help work on both Nemo and my skills. It was so much fun and helpful, and I can’t wait to practice the skills we worked on.

As I got to the barn, I quickly brought Nemo out from his paddock and into the barn, excitedly thinking of what we’d work on for the day. I tacked him up, and headed to the indoor, where a jump set was set up. As we warmed up, I worked on lengthening and shortening his trot and canter strides and making sure he was truly tuned into me. Nemo can be a little “looky” around new obstacles, particularly jump blocks, so I made sure to circles these a few times to let him know they weren’t scary, and he was going to have fun jumping over them.

We then chatted about horse and rider histories, goals, and what we’d like to work on. Nemo loves to jump but needs mileage and experience with different obstacles. I grew up riding hunter/jumper and dressage, and Nemo is a bit different than the horses I used to jump. Being a short-backed Morgan, we both find it difficult to find the right distance for him, so I was looking forward to learning about how to do this best. He also gets very strong when jumping, and I’d like to have a bit more of an assertive presence when it comes to downward transitions.

We started by working on my second goal, with an exercise I really enjoyed. We trotted down over a trot pole line and focused on a downward transition to a halt between the two poles. Then, we recollected and continued forward to the second trot poll. This built into two small verticals with a halt between them at the canter. I really focused on sitting deep and thinking ahead of time to get control of Nemo’s shoulders and get the downward transition. Then, I focused on quieting my body and softly asking for the canter to the second jump. This is something that we will be continuing to work on as well, and I’m excited to have a fun exercise for him.

We then added a small course to fences to really practice riding the flatwork between the jumps. This is something that’s really challenging for Nemo and me, as he tends to get rolling, quick, and does need a reminder to stay rhythmic at the canter. As a rider, I need to focus on supporting him at the base of the jump with my lower leg, and working to keep his canter powerful, but not too quick. I also learned that I tend to nitpick a little bit a stride out from the fence, and that over-half halt causes Nemo to shrink his body up and jump with his shoulders rather than his full body. This is particularly challenging with oxers. We had a few learning experiences, and ended on a great note, finding our stride, and a happy medium between me correcting Nemo, and softly letting him go.

As I cooled him out and untacked him, being sure to give my best buddy lots of cookies and neck scratches, I thought about what a great ride we’d had. We both went away with things to work on, helpful ideas and answers to aspects of jumping we struggle with, and homework to work on. I brought Nemo out to the field to let him nibble on some grass for a bit and thought about what a great day it was. I’m so excited for the next clinic, and continuing Nemo’s learning journey toward eventing!