The other day I ran to Walmart to grab some lunch, because I forgot mine. But while I was there, I wandered over to the clearance section. And there was some Christmas stuff still left, at 90% off. And even though I am over Christmas, I really can’t pass up a good deal.
While I was working my way through the left over decorations and wrapping paper, I saw some large Christmas tress stands. And my brain started working. I thought about how cool it would be to use these as jump standard bases.But then I put them down, because I was like, naaa, maybe some other time.
Well after putting it back, going back to work, and then thinking about it all night I decided that this would be a really good project to share with you.
Improvising Horse Jumps
So all morning I have been stewing about these Christmas tree stands, and hoping that they still had some by the time 12:30 came around. I have to say it was really difficult to concentrate on my work while I was wondering if there were any of these stands left. I hadn’t really paid attention to how many were there, but I was sure that someone would have snatched them up after I had decided against buying any.
But as I made my way back to Walmart for the second day in a row, and rushed to the clearance section of the store, thankfully, no one had come up with the same idea I had. And there were plenty of Christmas tress stands left for me!
I wonder what people thought when they saw me wheeling around my treasure? But the reason this is such a great idea is that these Christmas tree stands are going to make epic bases for my jump standards!
How To DIY Jump Standard Bases
And now I will show you how I did it. How to Make Jump Standards With Christmas Tree Stands. Ok, this is really easy. First, I had to figure out how to get the sticky labels off of the stands. This was the most difficult part of making my bases.
I tried peeling them off carefully. This didn’t go very well. Then I thought about scrubbing off the adhesive while I was running the bases under water in my kitchen. Again, not good.
Then my husband had the genius idea to heat up the labels with the hair dryer. And we have a winner! This was the best way to remove the sticky labels.
Then I found some different colored spray paint, and got to work painting the bases.
You could leave them plain, but I wanted to paint mine and I had the paint, so I did.And while the stands were drying, I cut down my landscaping timbers to the size I wanted my standards to be, which is 4 ft. I don’t have a vehicle big enough to get some landscaping timbers right now. So I upcycled some of my older “jump rails” that were landscaping timbers to be my now jump standards. This way I just had to cut the timber in half, very easy.
Then I marked off holes of where I wanted to drill for my jump cups. For mine I made the holes every 4”. Then I sanded the holes, and all that was left to do was put them into the Christmas tree stands.And for less than $2.00, I was able to make a pair of jump standards! How crazy easy is that??!?!?
Affordable DIY Jump Standard Bases
And another benefit of having the standards built like this is how much space it saves when putting the jumps into my jump closet. Traditional standards and schooling standards take up a lot of room. But with these I simply disconnect the base from the upright, and I can stack the bases in one corner….And the uprights in another corner.This may seriously change the way I make my own jumps in the future. I mean being able to stack and store 8 jumps with these bases takes up less space than a single pair of jump standards!
Now if you are worried if the standard will be too lightweight to support your jump, just add some arena sand to fill the base. And when you want to move the jump, dump out the sand and move your standards easily. Because these Christmas tree stands are made to hold a tree up to 7 feet tall. So sticking a 4 or 5 foot 4×4 , or landscaping timber into the center of the base is very stable.
This is a fantastic and affordable option for you to have your own jumps.So if you have a Walmart close by, you owe it to yourself to stop by and see if they have any of these Christmas tree stands. You can try your hand at jump building and save a bunch of money in the process!
Happy jump building!
Andi Fox
Hi Lisa – this is an excellent idea, and as I am not much at woodworking (and at 64 really don’t plan to learn a new skill – along with my tendency to get cut every time I handle a sharp object!) I immediately LOVED your idea.
Question, what do you do about the stand filling up with water after a rainy period? I was thinking I could drill a few tiny holes in the bottom, but not enough to lose the ring sand I will have added for weight.
Also, the Oct 2018 article was the first I have read, and I’m looking for the follow up about cedar landscaping for jump rails – what is that about?
Thanks so much, really clever ideas!
Andi Fox
afox2332@gmail.com
Lisa
Hi Andi 🙂
Where I live, there isn’t a lot of rain. But I plan on filling my Christmas tree bases with sand. The sand will give some weight to the bases, as well as keep the water out. But that is a good idea to drill a few holes for the water to escape 🙂