From: Judy
Hello Jessica. Thanks so much for your information and service. I get your newsletter on my home business computer and getting your emails is always a high point and a great excuse for a break! My husband and I are in our 40s and fairly new riders, about 2.5 years. We took lessons (Western) to get started and I still do occasionally to improve my balance and build my confidence. I'm sorry to report I don't have a "natural" seat - I have to concentrate on sitting deep, soft eyes, relaxing legs, etc. We are fortunate to own 2 great trail horses: both QH mares, one 23 and the other 13, both neck-rein and follow leg aids, and both are dead broke as far as cars, 4-wheelers, wildlife, etc. As I say, we're very lucky. My husband uses a western roping saddle and I use a Tucker endurance saddle (I like the light weight and closer feel). Both saddles are high quality, have been evaluated for fit on our horses, and are fine. I have checked your archives and also looked at the AERC and NATRC sites but haven't found the answer to my particular question: maybe it's too basic. Here goes: I want to know HOW we should be riding for various terrain on the trails. I suspect we'd be doing our horses a favor to change position at certain times, as for going up or down a steep incline, crossing over logs, etc. Should we change position at all or just sit through everything? Our horses seem to go well under any circumstances but if we could help by leaning forward, leaning backward, standing in the stirrups, etc., to ease the burden on their backs, we'd be happy to. (This really hit home to me recently when my mare essentially bounded up a long, steep incline - bless her heart, I wanted to help her out!) As with motorcycles, I'm not sure the rider's instincts for "helping out" by leaning, etc., are always right. Or am I overthinking this whole thing?! Thanks for your response, Judy
There are times to sit, and times to get your seat up and off your horse's back. If your trails are fairly flat, you'll be sitting most of the time. If your trails are hilly, you will probably spend a good bit of your time in a half-seat (two-point position). Either way, it's good to know what will make life easier for your horse.
On the flat at walk and jog: You can sit, but remember that "sitting" on horseback isn't like sitting in a chair, it's much more like standing on the ground, legs apart, knees bent. Spend at least a few minutes in your two-point position while you're warming up, and do this again at intervals during any ride. It will help you develop a good leg and improve your balance on horseback. Even when you are riding a slow, easy-to-sit jog, spend some time in a half-seat.
On the flat at trot: You could sit - but your horse would be much happier if you didn't. Posting to the trot is a useful skill. Don't worry about changing your posting diagonal every time your trail bends or twists, but DO make it a point to change diagonals reasonably often, so that you aren't spending more time posting on one than on the other. If you always post on the same diagonal, you and your horse will both develop unevenly.
On the flat at canter: Again, you could sit, but your horse would probably be happier if you spent at least half of your canter-time in a half-seat. And again, spending time in a half-seat is a wonderful way to develop your leg and balance.
As you ride, whether you are "sitting" the walk or jog or canter, rising to the trot, or staying slightly out of your saddle in a half-seat, from time to time, ask yourself where you would land if your horse disappeared in a puff of smoke. If the answer is "on my feet with my knees bent", then you're doing fine. If the answer is either "oops, on my face in the mud," or "oops, on my back in the mud", then you need to spend more time in a balanced half-seat to learn to stay OVER, not in front of or behind, your feet.
Up and down hills: The horse is a rear-engined animal that uses its head and neck to help itself balance. If you keep this in mind, you won't make many mistakes on hills. Give the horse its head, as much as you possibly can, so that it can balance itself while it's climbing and descending. Don't try to make any big movements or any significant changes to your own position DURING an ascent or descent. To free the horse's back and let its hindquarters (the engine) work effectively, you'll do best to stay very slightly out of your saddle and balanced over your feet no matter whether you're going uphill or downhill. Take your hills straight! Coming down at an angle can cause a horse to fall. To stay balanced coming down a slope, a horse needs to keep its hindquarters directly behind the rest of its body, not off at an angle. When you're coming down a hill and you are MOST tempted to choke up on the reins and look down, don't - instead, let the horse have a little MORE rein, and keep looking UP. It will help both of you stay balanced.
Going uphill, don't hesitate to get into a half-seat, give the horse a long rein, and let the horse do the work. Sitting and kicking just makes the horse's job harder. Horses can canter up hills more easily than they can walk or trot, so keep that in mind. If your horse offers a canter up a steep hill, don't panic and assume that he's running away - he may just not have the strength required to trot uphill.
When you get to a log or a ditch or a trickle of water: The way you sit will tell your horse whether you are expecting to walk over the obstacle or jump over it. You'll need to make up your mind before you reach it. Horses can walk over surprisingly large and wide items. If you feel the horse gathering itself for a jump, grab a double handful of mane, about halfway up the horse's neck, and use the same balanced-over-the-feet, weight-in-the-heels, crotch-barely-off-the-saddle position that you would use going up or downhill. Hold the mane tightly, LOOK UP, and leave the reins loose enough so that the horse can make the jumping effort without getting hurt by the bit - or by the rider slamming into his back as he lands. Most savvy trail horses will walk over anything they CAN walk over, and save the jumping for occasions that actually require it - a really BIG treetrunk blocking the entire path, for instance.
It sounds as though your instincts are already telling you what you need to know: Stay balanced and stay out of the horse's way so that it can do its job.
By the way, don't worry about not being a "natural". The best riders I know are not the naturally-talented ones - they are the ones to whom everything came hard. Riders who have to work for every tiny skill may take longer to get to the same place as naturally gifted riders, but they learn patience and perseverance while they're getting there, and once they learn something, they OWN it.
Happy trails to you!
Jessica
Jessica Jahiel's HORSE-SENSE is a free, subscriber-supported electronic Q&A email newsletter which deals with all aspects of horses, their management, riding, and training. For more information, please visit www.horse-sense.org
Please visit Jessica Jahiel: Holistic Horsemanship® [www.jessicajahiel.com] for more information on Jessica Jahiel's clinics, video lessons, phone consultations, books, articles, columns, and expert witness and litigation consultant services.