Course designers use liverpools to test scope, confidence, and rideability rather than pure height/width ability. Practically, a liverpool is used as a "trap" element — the element underneath makes the horse look down and can cause it to back off or misjudge the vertical.
One of the best ways to instill confidence at water trays, is to make liverpools part of routine training at home. There are three ways a liverpool can be placed under a vertical and each can ride a bit differently. It’s important to be comfortable with each setup.
To properly place a liverpool under a vertical is is important to understand a vertical’s “vertical plane”. A vertical plane is an imaginary flat surface that stands straight up and down, running at a 90-degree right angle to the ground. Imagine there is an invisible line from the top rail of a vertical dropping straight to the footing below.
Liverpools may be placed in front or behind obstacles but the maximum spread of the obstacle, including the liverpool, cannot exceed two meters (or about 6 and a half feet).
The easiest placement is to center a liverpool directly under the vertical so half of the liverpool is in front of the vertical plane, and half of the liverpool is behind it. It doesn’t add any practical width to the vertical and is less distracting for both horse and rider.
The second placement, is when the liverpool is in front of the vertical. Make sure to place the back edge of the liverpool against the vertical plane so the water tray is flush with that imaginary line. This placement can really bring both horse and rider’s gaze down toward the water. Riders will need to keep their eyes up to avoid staring at the liverpool in front which will make finding a good distance more difficult.
When the liverpool is in back of the vertical, make sure the front of the water tray is flush with the vertical plane. The spread shouldn’t add difficulty as it’s naturally within the horse’s arch over the jump, but it may cause careful horses to jump with extra scope. A strong canter always helps and it can’t hurt to stay extra tall in your jump position to be ready for a bigger jump.
Remember, a liverpool must be aligned with the vertical plane. And, the total width cannot be more than 2 meters.
We hope you found this video helpful!
If you don’t have a liverpool or water tray at home to school with, please visit ShowReadyJumps.com. We several types available in a range of prices which include free shipping.
Have a great ride!