Gymnastics with Leo

I was motivated to do a little jumping with Leo this morning so I put together a gymnastic that was inspired by our clinic with Boyd Martin last year. Boyd had 4 fences set up with canter poles dictating the striding (which was tight). He talked about how he wanted Leo to take long, slow strides between the fences. Good footwork and relaxation was the key.

So my gymnastic today was:

• placing pole - cross rail - 2 strides - oxer - 2 strides - oxer
• The distance between the first 2 fences was 27 feet with canter poles at 9 and 18 ft respectively
• The distance between the second 2 fences was 30 feet with canter poles at 10 and 20 ft respectively.

First, I just had the cross rail set up with canter poles throughout the rest of the gymnastic. Then I added the second oxer and then the finally the third. From there, I raised the fences until the oxer out was 3'6".

Leo was fantastic. I was gushing afterwards. Our confidence is getting back to where it was before leaving PA and I feel like we're both having fun again. He didn't rush the gymnastic, even though we jumped it heading towards the barn. He landed from the gymnastic in balance, and cantered away very controlled and relaxed. I had to correct his lead once and then he got it the rest of the time. The jump heights were no problem. The oxers were both ascending. Next time I will need to square them up to make Leo work himself a little harder.

I would also like to add a fourth fence. There are a couple variations this could take:

1. 1 or 2 strides straight ahead to a skinny. Jane did this in a lesson with us once and it was extremely hard. It really tests your straightness through the exercise.
2. Bending 3 or 4 strides to a fence, either on the left or right. These related fence exercises are good for Leo because he's not always looking where you are.