Part
Pippa and friend
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When PONY met
Pippa! D
id you read part one of our interview with top eventer and author Pippa Funnell, last month? Read on to discover Pippa’s ideas and advice on confidence, remembering a jumping course, goal-setting and much more!
PONY: Do you have any tips on how to gain confidence when riding?
Pippa: “The mind plays tricks on you. For example, say you walk a cross country course and you don’t like the look of a ditch. When you’re away from the course, the ditch grows bigger, deeper and wider in your mind, making you more and more nervous. When that happens to me, instead of remembering the one or two times when I jumped a ditch badly, I remember the hundred times I jumped a ditch well or perfectly! Always make sure you are confident at a level before going up to the next one. If you suffer a setback in confidence, it’s better to go down a level to gain your confidence again.”
PONY: Have you experienced any disappointments over the years?
Pippa: “You have to have big aims – but they don’t always come off. I set my sights on competing at the London Olympic Games, but had a disastrous season with the horses with minor injury setbacks. You need to learn how to cope with the ups and downs of competing. Everyone has to deal with disappointments – but you learn to cope with them!”
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At an event – very smart!
PONY: On who do you rely to keep the Pippa Funnell show on the road?
Pippa with hubby William!
Pippa: We have two good farriers, and an equine physiotherapist comes every Monday and spends half-a-day going through the top competition horses. She also carries out a pre-season check, and checks them again before and after an event. Then there’s Jenny in the office – looking after the logistics of running an operation this size, and making sure all the paperwork is up to scratch. I couldn’t compete without my sponsors. Toggi has been with me for years – since the mid 90s! I use Devoncoux saddles and tack, ride in SSG gloves and Sergio Grasso boots and, of course, we have our own Funnell Range of rugs. For the horses’ feeds, we work closely with Allen and Page.
Remembering a jumping course “How do I remember a jumping course? Actually, I went to a show a while ago on a young horse, and as I jumped the last fence, they rang the bell – I’d missed out two fences! So my advice is to follow the numbers on the jumps!”
Pippa’s top tips
Schooling at home
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The thrill of competition
Worried about a cross country jump? “If a certain cross country fence makes you nervous, try not to over-ride as you approach it – that is a natural reaction. Never try to use speed when you are nervous as horses can sense that. Sit up and let the jump come to you.”
How to achieve your own goals and ambitions “It’s hard work! But remember to ask for advice. People are more approachable than you think. There are plenty of books and people out there, and it’s important to get advice.”
Stickability is key!
Working at home Feeling stuck
“Sometimes we beat ourselves up if progress is slow – but when riding yo u often go two steps forw ard, three steps ba ck, rather than progre ssing steadily. It’s a long process and it does n’t happen overnig ht. Learn from your m istakes. Things ha ve to go wrong for you to improve.”
Go to ponymag.com to see our interview with Pippa at her home, and to buy any of Pippa’s brilliant books, Tilly’s Pony Tails! 5
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Nerves, nerves, nerves... Q: Why does your stomach churn before a ride? A: Because you are excited and nervous about the ride ahead. You may not know which pony you are going to be given, or what you are going to be asked to do – so it’s perfectly normal to feel like that. You may worry that your instructor is going to ask you a question you can’t answer and you’ll look stupid. Everyone else on your lesson is scared that will happen to them – but no-one is going to admit it!
What’s going on? Your body doesn’t know why you feel nervous so it imagines something really bad out there – perhaps a lion is approaching, or you may have to jump off a cliff to escape danger! So it pumps adrenalin around your body to heighten all your senses, ready to take on the challenge, or run away like a maniac. No wonder you’re feeling a bit sick! And because you don’t run away, that feeling stays with you. We don’t have a magic wand which we can wave to make those nerves go away, BUT we do have a few ideas on N er v e s how you can manage those kic e k rid horrible nerves. You’r
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● The next time you are waiting for your lesson... don’t expect NOT to feel nervous. ● We expect too much from ourselves. We expect to be able to ride brilliantly when we don’t have much experience. That’s unrealistic. ● We expect to be able to do all the things our heroes do, without a shred of nerves, or wondering, “What if?” Even top riders feel nerves. If they get nervous, and they’re at the top of their game, why shouldn’t you? ● Think! Without some feelings of nerves, where would the excitement be? Surely that’s a big part of riding?
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Riding is unique!
When we learn to ride we not only have to learn technique, but also how to ride lots of different ponies. That’s a huge ask! No other sport involves another living, thinking animal. Riding is unique – and much more difficult than any other sport because every horse and pony you ride needs riding in a different way. Very few riders can get on with ever y single horse they ride, but that does n’t mean they stop trying!
DYK?
Our top riding teams usually comprise some very experienced team members, and one or two younger, less experienced ones. The selectors know that the younger ones will be nervous, and they need the experience of top-class competition to get used to, and overcome, those nerves – helped by their more experienced team mates!
Take off the pressure
Next time you feel nervous tell yourself: ● I ride because I love it! ● I ride because I choose to ● I ride because I want to ● I don’t have to ride ● No-one is making me ride ● I can stop riding if I choose to Don’t set the bar too high. Tell yourself: ● My aim for this lesson is to enjoy it! ● My aim for this lesson is to do everything as well as I can ● My aim for this lesson is to do better than last week NOT ● This lesson, I’m going to jump a really high jump ● This lesson, I’m going to ride better than anyone else ● This lesson, I will make no mistakes AT ALL! Do you see how you’re giving yourself easily-achievable goals, rather than reaching for the stars, and setting yourself up to fail – which will knock your confidence even more?
Everyone wants to be happy when they ride!
s s i m t ’ n o D . . . h t n o m next when we look at riding different ponies, and turning your confidence around!
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