rider's position

Should one ride seated or using the forward seat? This is another often- repeated question. This is what I would answer if I were a horse: «I prefer to be ridden by a rider with a forward seat because in this position he can absorb (cushion) my movements with his hips-knee-ankle joints. Balanced and with low hands!... That’s even better. I can fully use my back and my neck; it is ideal for nice round jumps and working correctly».
Of course the forward seat requires the rider not being positioned too far forward or too far back, to avoid preventing his horse’s shoulders and back from moving freely. Unfortunately, too few riders manage to comply with all these conditions, usually due to unsuitable physical conditions: too heavy, too much swaying, too tall, too rigid… This is why I always advise my pupils to vary their seat between the seated position and a forward position. While the truth lies in the middle, one must however be able to ride in the two extreme ways: very close to the horse or very high over the saddle. There is an entire range of possibilities the rider must be capable of exploiting, between a work out course jumped in an indoor school, where one prefers a seated position, and outdoor equitation such as
eventing or riding a derby class, where the forward seat is more suitable.

To work on the position of the feet, move your toes exaggeratedly forward and backwards without stirrups, at a halt.
Do this a number of times as if your feet were the balance wheel of a clock.

First part: Flat work

Michel begins with a rider’s position check-up to improve the rider’s ability to follow his horse movements. Pierre has to unblock his legs and keep his hands steady in order to reach a constant contact.
He also has to pay attention to his path. For that, Michel asks him to perform a circle in an imaginary corridor. The simple fact of having a precise path enables Pierre to get a better connection with Quatmandou.
Pierre will then look to get his horse on the bit. The goal is the reach a position that would be less closed in, less forced up. For that, Michel encourages him to test his feelings and his horse reactions in the opposite position….i.e. very open. By working in the 2 extreme positions, Pierre and his horse will find a comfortable in-between position.
The training on the flat work continues with some transitions at different gaits, still staying on a precise path. This work goes toward the goal of this session which is to be able to accelerate or slow down while keeping a responsive horse.
The canter work is done on a large oval shape allowing Pierre to work on a succession of straight lines and turns to simulate the conditions of a course. All this work has to be done still observing a precise cadence.



Second part: jumping

The training continues with some ground poles along the 2 diagonal-lines of the indoor arena. In the approach of each pole, Pierre has to imagine he’s coming toward a huge fence. In order to not impair his body movements, Pierre has to keep breathing, especially while approaching fences.
Then, Michel sets-up a vertical on one of the diagonals. Very fast, he realises that Quatmanda has a tendency  to lose his pushing power, particularly when the take-off stride is not at the ideal spot. So, Michel arranges a set-up that will solve this issue.
Pierre has a tendency to assist his horse by preventing him to do the fault. On the contrary he has to make his horse aware of his responsibilities by letting him find the solution to jump correctly. It implies that the rider
The session moves on with some lines and combinations of fences. Pierre has to memorise the feeling of a good quality canter on the ground poles and has  to try  to maintain it at all time on the course.
 

This set-up will enable horses that twist themselves or drift to the right or left, to use their potential on the jump.

Since the rider has a target to aim at after the fence, he will automatically stay symmetrical in his position. This way, he’ll be able to maintain a straight path between fences with no interventions that would possibly disturb the horse.

On this video, we can see that after going several times, Charles jumps right at the middle of the jumps still respecting the path asked by his rider