9/08/07 - Jump lesson

I accidentally posted this on on the dog blog:
We had an outside jump lesson today which went really well.
The big thing I have to keep in mind is to **ride** Mercury.
I get lazy or nervous or distracted, and I forget to tell him what to do, and then something falls apart.
Other than that, it's pretty easy:
Sit before the fence
Keep my legs down and closed
Hands forward; don't jerk back too soon
Ride defensively (knees closed, lean back, don't throw reins away)
Half halt before the fence
Keep his impulsion going
Trot after the fence
I think that's pretty much jumping 101.