The seated position, the seat and balance in the stirrups

Galop 3 asks you to sit to the trot and the canter, to stay steady in balance on your stirrups, and to quit and retake your stirrups on the move. It all rests on a good position.

In the exam programme

Describe the seated rider’s position and explain the seat.Specific part
Sit the trot and the canter while keeping a good position.Specific part
Be steady in balance on the stirrups at the trot.Specific part
Keep your balance on the stirrups at walk and canter.Specific part
Quit and retake the stirrups at trot and canter.Specific part

The position is how the rider sits on a horse in motion: not a frozen pose, but a position that goes with the gait all the time. There are two: seated, with your weight in the saddle, and in balance, with your weight in the stirrups.

The seated position

Ear
Shoulder
Hip
Heel
Elbow
Hand
Horse’s mouth

Fig. 3.18The seated rider and the two lines

The seat: sitting square in the deepest part of the saddle, on both seat bones — the pointed bones at the bottom of the pelvis — with a supple pelvis and lower back.
The upper body: upright, tall without stiffness; head up, eyes on where you are going; shoulders open.
The arms and hands: elbows hanging by your sides, arms half bent; wrists in line with the forearms, hands facing each other, thumbs on top, above the withers. Elbow, hand and the horse’s mouth are in a straight line.
The lower body: thighs flat against the saddle, legs hanging naturally, calves in contact without gripping, knees supple, heels lower than the toes.

Remember

Seen from the side, the ear, shoulder, hip and heel are on one vertical line. If your heels slide forward or your upper body tips back, the line breaks — and your balance with it.

The seat

The seat is the way you sit and spread your weight in the saddle to absorb, follow and control the horse’s movement. A rider with a good seat stays in place without tensing up, does not get in the horse’s way and feels what is going on underneath. The seat then becomes an aid: by growing taller, or by following the movement more or less, the rider asks the horse to slow down, speed up or turn, before even using the legs or the hands.

In sitting trot as in sitting canter, let your pelvis follow the horse’s back — it rolls from back to front at canter, it soaks up the bounce at trot — without leaning or hanging on to the reins. Start with a few strides of a quiet trot, then build up the time little by little.

Balance in the stirrups

In balance — the forward seat, or jumping position — your weight is in both stirrups, your seat just above the saddle, your upper body tilted slightly forward, your back flat. The stirrups are under the balls of your feet, heels down; ankles, knees and hips are bent and supple, like springs; your knees touch the saddle without gripping; your hands stay forward, one on each side of the neck. At Galop 3, this balance must be steady at trot and held at walk and canter.

Tip

To test how steady you are, stay in balance at trot down a whole long side, then on a circle. If you drop back into the saddle or have to catch yourself on the reins, sink more of your weight into your heels and open the angle of your hips a little more.

Quitting and retaking the stirrups at trot and canter

Quit your stirrupsTake your feet out of the stirrups while keeping the gait and the line; let your legs hang down, in contact with the horse.
Stay in placeSit deep in the saddle, grow tall, and keep your legs in contact without letting them swing out or holding on to the reins.
Retake themWithout looking, feel for the stirrup with the tip of your toe; a swinging stirrup settles as soon as your leg comes back into contact. Put your foot in up to the ball and take up your position again.

Common mistake

Dropping your head to look for the stirrup: your upper body tips forward, and the horse speeds up or leaves its line. Your eyes stay on the track; it is your foot that does the looking.

Ekidemy

The Galops^®, from the first step to Galop 7