Never posted before...thought I'd start now and introduce myself and my mare. We're in central Florida, and we're both new to eventing (only doing BN as of now...all unrecognized because I'm broke). Her name's Cricket and she's a 5 and a half year old TB/Trakehner cross (granddaughter to Babamist...I was excited to find that out).

I've been lurking for a little while, and it seems there are some really knowledgeable people on here, so i'd love it if you would critique both of us and maybe offer some advice. I definitely need more help than she does. Don't hold back!









Thanks.

Welcome to CR. Cute mare.

Welcome!

Your mare is very cute!

Welcome to CR Your mare is so cute!

Not really good at critiquing, but I would suggest releasing more over the jump.

very nice mare! she looks agressive-but shorten your rien a couple of inches and try to relax your elbows more over the fence....

good luck!

thanks! one of my worst bad habits is getting tense over the fences...i'm definitely working on it.
(on a totally unrelated note, did you used to be twitchi on hl? i recognize your aim sn)

Hey and welcome, your mares adorable!!! :)

hahaha......creepy.

Very cute! She seems to like jumping!

I think that's a problem most have encountered.

Try some breathing exercises to keep yourself calmer. I know when I started jumping, I'd always be nervous and out of breathe the entire time, especially over courses. Finally it dawned that I'd be holding my breath down the lines.

Oh honey I hold my breath around the entire jumper course, its really hard to break that kind of habit.

Thanks! I'll definitely try that. My trainer is constantly telling me to "breeeathe" in the calmest voice she can manage. I still hold my breath and get tense. Once, I held it through an course and proceeded to throw up afterwards. It was pretty embarrassing.

My trainer would make anyone who held their breath sing through the whole course. Kinda hard to hold your breath while singing...

ETA: It can also help with rhythm issues.

Lovely, lovely horse and rider!

thanks everyone for your super nice (& helpful) comments!

Not a ton to add, just definately try to relax. The way I relax (because the world would most likely burst into tears (or laughter) if I ever sang while riding) is I TALK to my horse. I most likely sound like Im babbaling, but I pretend the horse is a bit nervous and I talk in as calm a voice as possible the whooole time Im jumping, riding a green horse or anything. It helps to get into this habit as long as you talk quietly and dont babble thru a dressage test LOL

Otherwise your horse is adorable. A little more release would help her stretch over the fence, and most likely help you relax as well!

Good Luck and Welcome!

Welcome to CR, crimes It's a ball of fun if you stick it out a bit..

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thanks! one of my worst bad habits is getting tense over the fences...i'm definitely working on it.
(on a totally unrelated note, did you used to be twitchi on hl? i recognize your aim sn)
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hahaha......creepy.
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ha, i used to play horseland. I was Jayla and I can't remember my #. I was a welsh breeder and had some padfoot and noel lines, yeah ancienttt.

anyways..cute mare. Just release more..even grab mane and go..it helped me.

Welcome!!!

^^ oops, haha.