4/5 yr old pony qualifiers... gone too far?

Rips

Rips

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May 23, 2004
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Looking for peoples views here...
At the show I went to today we stayed long enough to watch the 4/5 yr old pony qualifiers. Its a new class (maybe added only last year?) where instead of going up through heights in grades (like D/CD's and ABC's) young ponies (under 6) can jump 1m10 courses and qualify for the big shows. I guess its for the older pony riders who have young horses and not enough years left in ponies to bring theirs up through the grades.

There were about 30 in the class. They jumped the same track as the horses had jumped (striding and all) at a min height of 1m10, where some of the jumps were 1m15 - 1m20. Most 4yr olds. There was one clear round. Almost every other pony in the competition (at least 20 anyway) had refusals, many were eliminated. Ponys. 13h and 14.2's. While they all looked pretty ok, well schooled and good jumpers, the sheer amount of refusals was a clear indication that they were all being overfaced. Real dirty stops aswell, poles and the occasional 14yr old sent flying every few minutes :D Whats going on?!

I mean fair enough, 4/5 yr old HORSES competitions where they jump 1m10/1m20 tracks. they have a height advantage but how is this progressive in schooling up young ponies for a good jumping career - even aside from the physical issues...

The amount of tears was something else :rolleyes:
 
Oh they hold it in all the big venues - well they have been doing this year anyhow. Today we were in Milchem.
 
Jees, 4/5 yr old pony classes at 1m10 -1m15/20 thats just Crazy. Horses in 4/5 yr old comps, is kind of understandable, as you say they do have the hieght, and better strengh, then a smaller pony.
Why have they made it so big, surely, if they dropped it down to 90cm/1m, they'd get alot more clears. I get why they've done the calss, so like you said, the older riders 15yr olds, can get there ponies up through the grades quicker, but it still putting a mighty strain on these ponies at such a young age, which is probably going to cause later sourness of jumping, and physical problems.
Poor wee things, people will do it though, jsut to get the Grade A title uner there belt at such a young age!
 
i dont think 4/5 year old classes for ponies is worse than the same for horses to be honest.

but i do worry about the height, as after all horse 4-year-olds are only 1m, and five year olds are 1m10 (in the first round).
 
Why have they made it so big
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I guess because grade A 14.2 ponies jump that height and these ponies are trying to qualify into a final with them? Grade A's are usually at least 7yr old's though and have started at what though - 80cm? and moved up only if they were good enough.
 
I personally wouldn't jump a young pony at that height for many reasons.

What were they qualifying for?? Surely its their own 4/5yr old final like the horses??

Well the 4yr olds (horses) at hickstead were 1.20m last year - that wasn't even a qualifier as the 4yr old nationals are 1m!
 
I think they are qualifying to jump in the RDS in whatever pony height class they fit into. Don't quote me on that though!
 
I have a very differnt view on training young horses - having worked on the continent for a short time - where they achieve in 6 weeks what takes us 6 months - and the horses do not turn out any the worse, even in later life. They are often far more talented too - look at the major internation concentrations in all disciplines and the success of British v French/German horses.

Bearing in mind that most 14.2hh's will not have to put in much effort over 1m10 - my favourite point to reiterate is that ANY horse can jump 3' or 3'3'' - its the rider that cant - look at the length of the legs and the minimal amount they have to propel themselves into the air to clear that height.
 
I have a very differnt view on training young horses - having worked on the continent for a short time - where they achieve in 6 weeks what takes us 6 months - and the horses do not turn out any the worse, even in later life. They are often far more talented too - look at the major internation concentrations in all disciplines and the success of British v French/German horses.
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i agree. i have a horse who did the age classes starting at four and hes far more advanced than a rising 8 horse would be if they had not done the age classes. he doesnt seem any the worse off for doing it.

many, many more horses do age classes on the continent than seem to in the UK...
 
The problem with starting horses too young (before they've matured physically and mentally) is that you don't always see the damage that's been done until later in life.

Personally (and I'm not aiming for the Olympics nor will I make money out of competing so time for me doesn't = money) I'd rather spend 6 months bringing a horse on gradually and still be riding her into her 20's than doing 6 weeks intensive training and having to retire her at 12.

Yes, some horses will 'get away' with it, others won't be so lucky. Unfortunately it's a gamble, you don't know which horses will be damaged by it and which won't. It's not a gamble that I would be willing to take.

With regards to the jumping I agree with you BUT having a rider on their back could make all the difference between long term injury or not! How 'easy' it is for them isn't the point. You can damage a horse by doing flatwork too young, too soon.
 
Its not only that, but horse's aswell as ponies will get sour, and sick of jumping from such a young age, and doing such technical, and well thought out courses. they have to concentrate, and to ask all that of a baby is a lot, they may be physcailly mature in your eyes to handle such fences, but what about *up there* they need as much confidence, and concentration as possible, and its so much to ask of a baby whos just starting out, hence refusals, knock downs and jsut naughty ness.

If you were jumped form 4 years old, even started your jumping trianing from 3 years old, and were jumped and jumped and jumped, over and over again, how would you feel? these horses and ponies are going to get sick of it, and turn sour and jsut not want to jump.

Ive seen it sooo many times, so many people bring there horses, and they just dont want to jump, and they pull every trick in the book to get out of it. Its not just them being naughty for the hell of it, there just tired of it.

It would be so much easy to jsut 'play' about with them at 4/5 years old, get there ground work going really well, get a good technique over fences at home, and then start of small, at smaller fences, and have a good Grade A, who genuinly enjoys his job at 10/11 years old, rather then have a Bad Grade A at 6/7 who's been over faced, and doesn't enjoy his or hers job.

Just because you think there physically mature, dosen't mean there mentally ready to do it, there still only babies, which many people forget about.
 
If you were jumped form 4 years old, even started your jumping trianing from 3 years old, and were jumped and jumped and jumped, over and over again, how would you feel? these horses and ponies are going to get sick of it, and turn sour and jsut not want to jump.
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lol my horse loves jumping and has been competing since he was four. actually i dont know another horse who loves his jumping so much, and he hasn't gone sour, hes not knocked a pole or even touched one since ive had him. he genuinely enjoys it.

just because a horse has been competing since a young age does not mean he has been over jumped. thats based on how much hes jumped at home as well, and even horses who arent competed at that age can just be over jumped and over faced at home.
 
Thats what im saying, im not saying jsut ocmpetition horses, if the horses is continuiously jumped day after day eventually he will get sick of it!
Just ebcause your pony isn't sour of jumping yet, doesn't mean it doesn't happen. It was a generalisation, there the odd pony who live to jump, but if you over face them as much at competitions as you do at home, its a downaward spiral....
 
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