Robert Smith's Young Showjumper

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Robert Smith grew up in the shadow of his father, Harvey. Like many other children of successful parents, from an early age he was expected to win every competition he entered. He did not receive any special advantages in his junior years, but worked his way up through the grades to take his place among the top-ranking international showjumpers of today. In this book, Robert tells of how he was "made to ride" at the age of three, and how from his days in junior classes onwards the sport of showjumping gradually took over his life. He now has behind him a wealth of experience of training young horses for showjumping competitions, and here he shares his knowledge by describing the qualities to look for in a young horse. He stresses that perfect conformation is not vital in a good showjumper, but a suitable temperament, and the ability really to enjoy jumping, is essential. He places great emphasis on the importance of groundwork and establishing good basic control before introducing a horse to gridwork and a variety of different fences. He explains how every rider must learn to anticipate what a horse is going to do - every horse is an individual, and there can be no set rules in training. A feeding and fitness programme, up to competition level, is also included.