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C.R.O.S.S. - Christian Rider's Online Spiritual Sanctuary :: Main Horse Boards :: Hunters, Jumpers and Eq. :: Fixing Modern H/J Technique

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Topic: Fixing Modern H/J Technique (Read 164 times)

shadowsrider
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Fixing Modern H/J Technique
« Thread Started on Aug 29, 2007, 12:15pm »

A good friend of mine who is a foxhunter, receives the Hunter and Sport Horse magazine. This was recently an article in that magazine. Here is some excerpts from it:

Quote:

Fixing Modern H/J Technique

Gerry Castleman is a trainer, rider and old-time horseman based in Bastrop, Texas. His slow Texas drawl is deceptive . . . there’s nothing lazy about Gerry, known for years as a puissance specialist. He set the Texas High Jump Record on Dear Brutus in 1968 at seven-foot! He then returned in 1969, breaking his own State High Jump Record on the same horse at seven-foot-six, a new World Indoor High Jump Record, and tied the Madison Square Garden Puissance World Record of 1970 at that San Antonio show. Over the years, Gerry has coached a tremendous number of riders--always insisting that his jumper rider equitate over their fences.

Photos Reveal The Problem
"I look through magazines today and I don't like what I see in the photographs," Gerry warns. "You can see that the rider's hips are over the pommel of the saddle, and the rider's leg has been forced back. And these are equitation pictures . . . terrible equitation pictures! It's as if we're telling trainers, riders and parents, 'This is how we're supposed to ride.' A bad position in the saddle has almost become acceptable . . . .

"I want to see a leg that looks like it's glued to the horse's side, the rider's hips pushed way back in the saddle, and the hands following the movement of the horse's mouth. My hat's off to our horses. I don't know how they jump--and do it well--when we ride badly. What does it do to the horse's balance when the rider's shoulders go forward and down, the the rider's foot and stirrup swing back? What does this do to your horse's effort to jump a nice fence? For example, I suppose you could jump over a few small jumps on your own two feet, with your own natural balance, with nothing interfering. But what if you had a child sitting on your shoulders? That kid could do something different over every jump you tried to jump! That kid could lean to the right, then forward, then to the left, then backward, and it would disturb your balance. It would make your job difficult and nerve-wracking. I don't know about you, but I'd tell that kid to sit still so I didn't trip and fall, and hurt us both.

The Lower Leg
"Ninety-nine percent of riders squeeze or kick their horses off the ground, then relax their lower legs in the air. Then, right on top of the fence, the leg is forced back when the hips go forward. And then riders swing their legs forward of the girth to land. That's a problem. The foundation of riding is the lower leg; you work you way up from there. Your lower leg control will make all the instruction easier.

"I can make the ride to the fence, over the fence and after the fence very simple and much safer. Ten or 12 feet in front of the fence, you should slowly, gradually tighten your leg from calf to ankle (this will give a horse more confidence to do his job and creates a strong grip, should the horse stop or duck out). As soon you're aware that your horse is rising off the ground, con-tinue holding our leg against the horse. Hold that tight leg position all the way over the fence and for one stride after.

"Try it. Warm up over a fence you're comfortable with. Squeeze your horse off the ground, then consciously think about holding your lower leg against the horse over the jump. You'll know if you're doing it right--you'll feel it. At least, if you're concentrating very hard on your lower leg and it slips back, you'll be aware of the weakness.

Hands
"Almost every rider attempts to use a crest release these days, which has riders running their hands up their horses' necks and leaning on their hands. This is contrary to the horse's natural balance. The crest release may help you hold your position . . . but it's an incorrect position. You're out over the horse's neck with your hips forward over the pommel, with your elbows pointing straight down because your shoulders are too far forward and your center of balance is no longer over the stirrups. And you probably have to push off the horse's neck as he lands to get back into your saddle.
"What should your hands be doing? You begin by pushing your hips all the way back as the horse rises off the ground; then your hands follow your horse's mouth forward as he arcs over the jump. When you are properly balanced over your stirrups with a tight leg, it will become much easier to control your hand movement. Hips, then hands. Your hands follow the horse's mouth as he drops his nose downward. Your hands should never stop moving, but continue to follow the horse's mouth. Only when her body position is secure will the rider be able to follow the horse's mouth properly . . . ."
[Excerpt From July/August 2007]

This is the second such type of article I've seen in regards to this subject.....In addition to GM's newest book, "Because Every Round Counts"

I dearly hope that h/j will soon be getting away from that awful laying-all-over-the-horses'-neck type of jumping style and get back to REAL balanced, jumping!

« Last Edit: Aug 29, 2007, 12:17pm by shadowsrider »

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Chocomare
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Re: Fixing Modern H/J Technique
« Reply #1 on Aug 29, 2007, 8:05pm »

Amen sister. I know that Gerry is considered a "weirdo" by some out there but he makes sense! Good, basic, solic equitation proven by a quiet leg and a balanced upper body.

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