Winning the Battle Against Perfection

    This rider's heels are shoved down and she has turned out her toes. To compensate for this weak base of support, she is clinging to her horse with her heels. She needs to relax her legs and sink her weight into her heels.
    This rider's insecurities have caused her to stay in the saddle over the fence. She needs to come up out of the saddle and slide her hands up her horse's neck for some semblance of a release. Getting off her horse's back and giving a release will enable the rider to flatten her back, bring her elbows in, and perhaps stop making faces. She needs to look up at her next fence—over a jump is not the time to contemplate what went wrong at her farrier appointment.
    This horse is making a huge effort over this moderately sized oxer. Her effort has left the spectators gasping for breath. The horse appears to be jumping with power rather than style. The look on this horse's face tells me she would rather make the decisions than leave such things to her incompetent rider.
    This pair's turnout is unremarkable. Their casual turnout is typical for schooling jumper classes. I prefer fitted saddle pads to the square saddle pads that everyone uses these days. The horse is clean and well-groomed, but lacks hoof polish. This pair's performance would improve significantly if the rider invested in some extra nails for her horse's shoes.

    This rider's foot has slipped almost completely out of her stirrup, ruining her base of support. Her lower leg position would be almost adequate if she put her entire foot properly in the stirrup, not just her outside toe. This would allow her to put her weight in her heel so she is able to close her hip angle slightly so there is at least some daylight between her buttocks and the saddle.
    It difficult to tell whether the rider is doing any sort of release or if she has just thrown away the reins completely. She needs to get her hands out of her lap and move them up her horse's neck in a crest release, which will help stabilize her upper body. She needs to bring her elbows in and to carry her hands evenly so that she looks like she is riding a horse, not square dancing. Her back is flat and her face shows intense concentration, but she is looking down and her eyes do not appear to be open.
    The timing of the photograph makes it difficult to judge the if the horse has any style. His inverted posture is most likely the result of his rider's failure to get out of the saddle over the fence.
    This pair needs to improve their turnout, even for schooling. Both horse's and rider's hair are wildly out of control--the horse is much in need of having its mane pulled and the rider is much in need of a hairnet. While I usually favor fitted saddle pads, this one I do not--a fitted saddle pad should be the same shape as the saddle. The rider needs to purchase appropriate boots and polish them. Sleeveless shirts are never appropriate, even if attempts are made to class it up with a collar.

    This rider has good leg angles. She has nicely closed her hip angle to follow her horse’s movement. This has prevented her from jumping ahead of her horse - a common flaw in the hunter arena. She does need to get more weight in to her heels to keep her from getting behind her horse’s motion.
    She is demonstrating the rarely used “complete release”, in which the rider gives the horse his head by dropping the reins entirely. For a rider of this level, I would recommend she use a crest release. By bringing her hands to her horse’s neck, she can use that extra support to prevent the backwards rotation of her body. Her back is slightly rounded. She needs to flatten her back and look up and at her next fence.
    The timing of this photo makes it difficult to critique this horse’s style over fences. He looks like a willing horse who is up for anything.
    This rider needs to change into appropriate schooling attire. Dirty chaps and tank tops have no place in a riding arena. Her horse’s hooves need to be polished. To liven up the jumps, try painting them. Draping worn out tarps over jumps is tasteless.

    This rider’s leg position could use some work. She does not have her weight in her heels and as a result is having to grip with her knees to stay on her horse. To compensate for her poor leg position, she has thrown her entire body forward. She needs to keep her seat near the saddle and bend at the hips.
    This rider is giving her horse a huge release. She has her knuckles pressed into his crest, which has caused her elbows to come out a bit. From the angle of the photograph there appears to be a straight line from the bit, through the hand, to the elbow. Her back is flat and her eyes are up. She is very focused on her next fence.
    This horse looks like a very capable jumper who would prefer a more capable rider. The look on his face indicates that he may be worried about getting elbowed in the jaw.
    The pair’s overall turnout is on par with the rider’s ability. The rider needs to class up her outfit by adding some sleeves to her shirt. The amount of skin she is showing is not appropriate, even for schooling at home. I do not favor fleece girths and square saddle pads. The too long stirrup leather needs a trim. This rider and her ground crew should realize that jumps are not coat racks and traffic cones have no place in a jumping arena.

Hillbilly Farms welcomes "Jumping Clinic" entries, but we only want to make fun of willing participants so please only send photos of yourself. And our critiquer has a considerable backlog of real work to do so if you've sent one in, please pop open a Corona and relax.

Jumping Clinic Archive