There are several key components of riding that have become my training mantra: rhythm, balance, control. They work together, and you need all three. The horse’s reaction off your leg, and whether they’re listening to your body commands, is as important in the jumping phases as it is in your flatwork. If we can get the horse to be balanced behind and be able to ‘reach under’ with the hindquarters, they will learn to carry the weight behind.

Power and propulsion

By creating power and propulsion from the hindleg, and riding in a good rhythm, with balance, you should feel like you have an elastic ball of energy underneath you, ready and waiting for your next signal.

Sharp, strong horses can feel as if they are ‘towing’ the rider along; a heaviness in the hand can mean the rider resorts to over-bitting, and often feels like they’re using the reins to support or carry the horse. But creating more power from the hindleg helps the horse come off the forehand, and carry its own weight behind. This engagement is lightening the shoulders, and also the feel with the bit. This makes it easier for the horse to be ridden in balance.

Control to a fence

(Image shows Beth-Coxon-Gilliatt and Rieperbahn). Rhythm and balance give you control to a fence. In practical terms, this means creating a good rhythm, and then balancing it with transitions and half halts, encouraging the horse to carry its own weight behind. If a horse feels heavy in your hand and is leaning on the contact, it isn’t balanced. But if you’re trying to achieve all of this on your approach to a fence, it is too late! It’s achieved in your training.

Personally with my horses, I have found that if you develop the horse as a whole and go back to the basics with the training, focussing on aspects like rhythm and engagement, you create more developed horses that have the elasticity and strength to carry themselves. It’s also a case of keeping your expectations real in terms of where they are in their development and training, and keeping everything simple. This capability from a physical point of view means they are more likely to cooperate and perform to the best of their abilities, rather then, as many strong or ‘sharp’ horses are described as, fighting the rider for control.

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