Jumper Nation Clinic: Emily Beshear & Deep Purple Eventing

Jumper Nation Clinic continues with a new exercise to try at home.  Jumper Nation has teamed up with top, respected riders who we love for both their horsemanship and their creativity with exercises they use at home.  Each week, we’ll be bringing you a new grid or exercise to try at home.  You’ll be primed and ready for the show ring when we are able to get out there again!

This week’s featured grid is courtesy of Emily Beshear and Deep Purple Eventing.

Emily Beshear is a 5* event rider who also specializes in training and sales of sport horses for all disciplines.

Course designed by Nick Beshear. Diagram courtesy Emily Beshear.

This exercise consists of:

  • Bounces set 12′ apart, 45′ to a hogsback, followed by 45′ to another set of bounces
  • Two oxers set on a curve 60′ to the hogsback
  • A set of verticals on the side of the arena set 18′ apart
  • A line of 4 angled verticals across the middle of the arena set 35′, 60′, and 35′ apart
  • Single vertical in the middle of the ring with a line of verticals set 24′ apart
  • 60′ line of oxers

There are many ways this exercise can be put together:

  • It is always OK to start out with parts of the course and put things together as you go, or reduce the jumps to single rails on the ground
  • Jump the bounces to the hogsback, straight to the bounces
  • Jump the oxers to the hogsback on a curve
  • Ride the angled jumps straight across the arena (keeping your horse straight is very important!)
  • Jump the bounces, roll back to the oxer and ride the 60′ curve to the hogsback
  • Jump the 24′ line in the middle of the ring to the outermost angled jump
  • Jump the oxers at the top of the ring straight across (you will be jumping them on an angle)
  • Ride the bounces down to the single vertical in the middle of the ring, then turn left or right to jump one of the oxers in the 60′ line at the bottom of the ring
  • Have fun with this and play!  The goal is to get the horse focused and listening to you — your horse won’t be able to anticipate what’s coming up next.

Emily Beshear explains: “What I like most about having the different lines and sequences is how it makes the horses really tune into the riders’ aids and focus on where the rider is directing them to go since there are so many options.  All of the exercises can start with a straightforward version and can be made more challenging as the horse becomes confident in [its] balance.  And in all cases, there are beneficial ‘exit strategies’ — meaning, places where you can turn a bending line into a leg yield or a circle to help keep the flatwork correct in between the jumps.”

Emily offers the following additional suggestions:

  • Going from the oxer to hogsback to oxer on a curve helps to keep horses from getting flat when they have to push harder.
  • The line from the oxer to hogback to bounce helps to teach the horse to sit and balance after the bigger efforts.
  • All of the angled jumps across the middle of the arena help to show the riders whether they can have the horse truly straight between the aids off a short approach.
  • By building on each line gradually and adding more challenging turns with each session, the horses become very sharp and attentive.

Photo by Shannon Brinkman.

About Emily Beshear

Emily Beshear is a CCI 5* rider and winning Advanced level competitor.  She also is a USEA Level 4 certified instructor and has coached riders from local starter competitions all the way through top international events.  Emily operates Deep Purple Eventing at Brickland Farm, based in Somerset, VA, offering training, sales, and rehabilitation services for horses of all disciplines.  To learn more about Emily Beshear and Deep Purple Eventing, click here and be sure to “like” and follow on Facebook, and subscribe on YouTube.  #trainthehorsenottheevent