I don’t remember how the subject even came up.
Let me pause here to give brief mention to what an unusually contentious subject this can be. The topic of “seeing a distance” wades into equestrian dogma akin to the Republican versus Democrat hatred….. with riders and coaches behaving just as rabidly on both sides of the issue.
Many instructors believe & teach that you should NOT look for a distance, while others believe & teach that it’s a crucial must-have skill.
I have observed many a debate on the truth or fiction of whether you need to “see a distance” and its importance….. with no clear winner on any side………..
I fall firmly on the side of the argument….. that if you can’t get your horse somewhere in the vicinity where it’s comfortable for them to jump, you’re going to have problems as the jumps get bigger.
No.
A beginner novice rider shouldn’t be looking for a distance.
But if you’re galloping down to a serious 4 star question and you MISS, it may not end well for anyone involved.
Somewhere…. somehow….. between that humble baby novice start and a 4 mile course the FEI calls “the ultimate cross country test” you just might need to develop some skillz……… to get your horse where it needs to take off.
SO.
I had been complaining that I couldn’t even consistently get my horse to the same spot with a lousy ground pole………….. and no wonder I’m still BAD at this sport.
Sometime after this conversation my fabulous instructor discovered that I own a pair of spectacles.
You know………..
glasses.
Four eyes………
Those things that help you read road signs …..at night….. in the rain.
And he adamantly said I needed to wear them when I jump.
Huh?
Ok, seriously. I don’t wear them when I do surgery. And I’m REALLY good at surgery…….
I couldn’t imagine they would aid in my quest to become less bad at this sport…………..
but I decided I better accommodate the request.
I’m not sure if they helped my jumping, but I did scare the heck out of my fearless leader when I turned to the biggest jump on course…………….
and took my hands off the reins to push my eyewear back up.
Soooooooo…………..just in case they actually help. I decided I had better get some that stay on my face.
Here’s the new sportswear.
I can’t decide if I look more like Bad Eventer Giant Insect? …………..
or Bad Eventer Super Hero?
I love this! But did the glasses help?
ha awesome! honestly i definitely noticed a difference when i wore my glasses and didn't (mostly in that i was more comfortable when i could *see*), but hated the glasses on my face (esp in winter when they got foggy). contacts FTW!
on the distances front tho – i have a coach who says not to look for a distance (we go novice), but instead focus on getting the canter such that the horse is comfortable jumping from a variety of spots. but then he will turn around and tell me how he's 'always had a really good eye for distances' lol…
I'd go with superhero!
Have you tried contacts before?
Less than perfect vision can certainly affect depth perception, which would affect the ability to find a distance.
I can't ride without glasses. I've tried it on several horses and they all started stumbling around the arena as soon as I took off the glasses. The only exception is when it rains heavily.
I suppose it's because I become insecure as soon as I can no longer see further than halfway to my horse's ears and tense up or disturb the horse in some other way. As for the rain… I can't see clearly when it pours down anyway (glasses+rain=sh*t) so it doesn't make a difference if I wear glasses or not.
I sometimes wear contact lenses (usually when the weather is really bad), especially since I destroyed a pair of glasses last year when crashing head first into the gravel path with my horse.
On the other hand I have a friend who's eyesight is at least as bad as mine and she happily (and successfully) jumps 115 cm courses without glasses or contact lenses when she can't even see the numbers in front of the obstacles.
So I guess it depends… did the glasses help you?
Bwahahahahahahaha!!!
Definitely a superhero – channel you inner Andrew Nicholson
I also wear glasses for a bunch of corrections … severe astigmatism and I can't see distances worth a damn. I honestly can't drive without them, and even if I could perform surgery, there is no way I could do it sans glasses. But I don't ride in them. I ride dressage, so my biggest problem is seeing the letters. In theory, I should know exactly where each and every letter is, but during stressful moments I find myself going, "Oh crap, is that R or P??????? But since dressage is a fairly solitary endeavor and there is nothing to run into, I feel safe just squinting. LOL!
Just found your blog! Keep up the good work!