Have you tried JumpCross?

By Rebecca Gibson

General news

09 May 2010 16:07

JumpCross is a relatively new equestrian discipline that combines the accuracy of show jumping with the thrill of riding across natural terrain.
 
The knock down fences are not as intimidating as solid fences yet they demand respect as they will fall down easily if not jumped cleanly – this means the sport is great for nervous or inexperienced horse and rider combinations. Equally though, JumpCross will help the more advanced horse and rider teams develop better rhythm, balance and accuracy.
 
At a competitive JumpCross event riders compete against the clock. The winner is the rider who completes the course in the quickest time, but racing round is not an option as knock-downs and refusals are heavily penalised with time faults.
 
Extra drama is added by the joker fences – these are trickier options that the rider can choose to jump or avoid. Jumping the joker cleanly deducts 40 seconds from your time, but knock it down and you’ll pick up double penalties.
 
If you’re thinking JumpCross might be for you, make sure you don’t miss the June issue of Your Horse Magazine, on sale May 20th.  Here one lucky reader is taken round the course at JumpCross headquarters by top eventer Jeanette Brakewell. To see what tips Jeanette has for riding the perfect round, pick up your copy now.
 
You can also see YH writer Rebecca and her horse Egis riding round the JumpCross course in the video below.