Galop 7In the saddle
Contents
- 01WelcomeOverview
- 02Limb conformationKnowledge
- 03Identification, the passportKnowledge
- 04Travelling horsesKnowledge
- 05RationingKnowledge
- 06Feed labelsKnowledge
- 07Lunging training aidsOn foot
- 08Long-reining, flexionOn foot
- 09Polo bandagesCaring for the horse
- 10The double bridleCaring for the horse
- 11Shoulder-inKnowledge
- 12StraightnessKnowledge
- 13FlatworkIn the saddle
- 14Dressage optionIn the saddle
- 15Show-jumping optionIn the saddle
- 16Cross-country optionIn the saddle
- 17RevisionRevision
Show-jumping option: towards the Club 1 round
In the show-jumping option, you ride a Club 1 show-jumping or Hunter round fluently. What makes the difference at this level: adapting the stride to the distances, keeping your balance through related fences and changing lead without breaking the canter.
In the exam programme
- Be steady and supple through varied grids of about 1.10 m.Show jumping
- Be steady and adapt your balance through sequences of fences.Show jumping
- Canter in an even cadence, with suitable speed and balance, through 100 cm fences.Show jumping
- Adapt the stride length to the sequence and the track.Show jumping
- Steer on an exact track through a sequence of fences.Show jumping
- Change lead in the movement on the curve.Show jumping
- Ride 100 cm courses with varied distances and combinations.Show jumping
The programme sets the benchmarks: grids of about 1.10 m, related fences and courses of about 1 m, with varied distances and combinations. The heights of Club classes themselves are set by the season’s FFE rules: check them before you enter.
Steady and supple
Through a grid — a line of fences at short, set distances — your first job is not to get in the way: legs still beneath you, heels down, knees soft, upper body following the horse’s bascule without getting ahead of it, hands following the neck. Between fences, adapt your balance: sit up a little to rebalance a horse that is lengthening, stay forward on a horse that is short of power. It is this suppleness — a position that goes with the horse instead of being thrown about by it — that the examiners watch for.
The course canter
- Rhythm: an even canter that does not change its beat on the approach.
- Speed: suited to the course and the horse, enough energy to clear 1 m without rushing.
- Balance: the horse carries itself; before each fence, a half-halt rebalances it without slowing it down.
- Line: smooth turns that present each fence straight and in its middle, with a long enough approach.
Adapting the stride: related distances and counting strides
Between two fences on a line, the stride plan is the number of strides you intend to ride. You decide it when you walk the course, by pacing the distance: about four of your steps to one canter stride, plus two steps for landing and two for take-off. On the course, you lengthen or shorten the strides to keep to that plan.
| Strides between two fences | Approximate distance |
|---|---|
| 1, in a combination | About 7 to 7.50 m |
| 2, in a combination | About 10.50 to 11 m |
| 4, on a line | About 17.50 m |
| 5, on a line | About 21 m |
If the distance rides long for your horse, move up from the moment you land; if it rides short, rebalance and shorten early, to arrive at a good take-off point. The decision is made on landing: made halfway down the line, it always comes too late.
Changing lead on the curve
When the track changes direction, you change lead in the movement, without coming back to trot: this is the flying change, which happens during the moment of suspension in the canter.
- PrepareAt the end of the turn, a half-halt to rebalance, then straighten the horse for one stride.
- Swap the aidsNew slight flexion, new outside leg sliding back, new inside leg at the girth, weight shifting onto the new inside seat bone — in one movement, in time with the canter.
- Let it throughThe hands give slightly in the new direction, the eyes move on to the next fence.
- CheckFront and hind legs must change together. If the horse stays disunited, the forelegs on one lead and the hind legs on the other, come back to trot for a few strides and strike off on the correct lead.
Tip
You can prepare the change as early as the fence before: by looking in the new direction and opening the rein slightly on that side in the air, you help the horse land on the correct lead.
Safety
Never turn tight on a horse that is disunited, or on the wrong lead without your asking: its balance is precarious and a slip is never far away.
In Hunter, a jumping class judged on style, the round is not decided against the clock: judges mark the style — even rhythm, fluency, accurate approaches and distances, quality of riding. A missed change or a broken distance shows there as much as a pole on the ground.