10/03/2026
I love this photo from the clinic with Bernie! One of the things he worked on with many of the riders, was to look at the top rail of your jump as you approach it.
Now if you're anything like me, I was taught to NEVER look at the jump, to always look PAST it. The first time I rode with Bernie I definitely was dubious of this new method he wanted me to try.
Like me, it was very hard for everyone to attempt, when looking past the jumps had been drilled into us so firmly throughout most of our riding careers, by multiple trainers!
So why did Bernie want us to look at the top rail? He began focusing on this when he watched riders from all levels have the same issue - distances!
Bernie puts it plainly. How can you find a distance if you're not looking at the thing you're trying to jump? I could confidently say that before I started looking at the top rail, I was able to find a distance about 60% of the time with a well trained horse. For the greenies, maybe 40%.
Since I've started using this method, my distances have improved immensley, and I watched as the other riders at our clinic started nailing distance after distance as well. It's something so simple, yet makes a huge impact!
There are three reasons I love this photo!
The first is because Bernie was teaching me how to look at the rider's eyes(The wonderful Joseph Jernagin, riding his personal horse Aspen!) as they approached the jump. You can see me focusing, looking hard to see where the rider was looking!
The second is you can see the hot pink binder we were using for the rider as a focal point, rested on top of the jump pole, to help them know where to look!
The third is that you can see from Aspen's form, that he got a great distance to the jump, making his job and Joseph's ride the best it can be!
This is just one of many important things myself and all the rider's learned at our clinic last weekend!
