How do you develop a strategy for a jump-off?

Developing a strategy for a jump-off requires integrating knowledge of your horse's specific strengths and limitations, the specific challenges of the jump-off course, the times you need to beat, and the general principle that the fastest clear round wins — and translating this integration into a specific plan that you execute under the time pressure and competitive excitement of the jump-off itself. The foundation of jump-off strategy is knowing your horse: a horse that turns quickly and easily can take tighter turns than one that needs a longer arc to maintain balance; a horse that has a big, scopey stride can gallop longer between fences than one with a shorter stride that needs more strides to cover the same distance; and a horse that tends to be distracted or spooky in tight situations needs a more conservative track that maintains its focus than one that remains focused at any pace. The course walk for the jump-off focuses on identifying where time can be saved without unacceptably increasing the risk of a fault — the tight rollback turn that cuts three seconds but that risks the horse not being balanced enough to jump the fence cleanly, versus the slightly wider turn that costs a second but that gives the horse a better approach. Knowing the times you need to beat — by watching previous jump-off rounds from the warm-up area or by asking ring side — allows calibration of the risk you need to take: if the fastest round is very fast, significant risk may be necessary; if the leading time is relatively slow, a careful, efficient round may be sufficient to win. The plan made during the course walk must be executable under the pressure of competition, which means that the most effective jump-off plan is the fastest track you can ride confidently and correctly rather than the theoretically fastest track that exceeds your comfortable execution ability.