Establishing a Base of Support

It is never as easy to ride a moving horse than just to "sit there and let him do all the work."  In fact, if riders were to actually let their horse do just as he will and simply sit for the ride, they'd probably quickly end up at a lazy stroll as the horse grazed through the pasture-- horses don't generally "work" without a little motivation or prompting.  In order to keep a horse happily working, a rider must be balanced and communicate with him through subtle cues (too strong and the horse will resist, too weak and he may ignore).  In order to keep their balance and possess a delicate line of communication with their horse, riders must achieve an independent seat and strong base of support.  An independent seat means that the rider can stay on a moving horse without hanging onto either his mouth through the reins, his mane, the saddle, or vice gripping him with his legs.  A strong base of support is made from the rider's body from his knees to his waist--his lower legs stay still and wrap around the horse while his knees, thighs, hips, and lower back subtly move to absorb shock and keep his balance.  This begins with correct practice in the saddle, a well-trained and forgiving horse, training exercises, and perseverance.

The first step is correct practice.  You may have heard the wise coach's adage that only "perfect practice makes perfect."  Indeed, a rider must constantly think about improving his position and quieting his body, while still giving to the natural motion of the horse.  In a recent article in Practical Horseman, William Fox-Pitt was quoted as telling riders, "Still shoulders equal stiff shoulders equal stiff hands."  On the other side of the coin, if a rider's hands, legs, and seat are anything but "quiet," he must remember that they are "active:" that his jouncing seat, poking leg, or jiggling hands are sending a message to his horse, even though he doesn't intend to send that message.  A well-trained and forgiving horse can take this unintentional abuse with a grain of salt as the rider learns, but a more spirited, sensitive horse will expect the rider to have already done their homework before getting on.

That said, a well-trained and forgiving horse is just the ticket needed for a riders who is on his way to establishing an independent seat and strong base of support.  A horse who is immune to accidental rein pressure (or who can reliably go along without constant contact), who lazily sighs at the bump-bump-bump of a weak leg unintentionally bouncing on his side, and who keeps a good, even-keel humor despite a rider leaning, jiggling, wiggling, and plopping on his back-- this is a wonderful horse for an unbalanced rider to ride.  He is even a wonderful horse for a very good rider to ride, as he might take extra (strength training) effort to leg him over or encourage into a faster gait.  This is the horse that will teach a young rider how to "make" him stay on the rail, will work as the ultimate "Thigh Master" for an older rider who needs to improve muscle tone, and will also train every rider to "ask" for a trot or canter and to sit back during downward transitions.  Now that we've gathered the resources of a focused mindset on riding correctly and a good school horse, we can move on to the exercises that will strengthen our base of support and give us an independent seat.

These exercises are what may be considered the "basics" of riding, but are fantastic skills to go back and polish at any level.  If this is your first time with any of these exercises, don't try and tackle them all in one day.  Take your time to get them right.

-First, sit at the walk with, and without, stirrups.

-Next, try to post at the walk with, and without, stirrups-- as you do, do not push off your stirrups to get out of the saddle!  The exercise is less like standing up from a chair and more like raising up to a tall kneeling position from sitting on your feet.

Let me explain: 

Kneel on the floor, with your bottom seated on your feet.  Using just your upper leg, raise your bottom a few inches. Slowly sit back down on your feet.  The idea is to take your lower leg out of the posting equation.  In the saddle, your lower leg is supposed to be still and keeping an even contact with the horse's side-- it has nothing to do with your posting.  You need to post from the knee up.  That said-- don't dig your knees into the horse's back and push off of them!  Keep the feeling of just using your upper leg while remembering that the lower leg stays still, the heel stays down, and your weight stays down around the horse-- not pinching and balancing on your knees.

-Now try a seated trot.  Keep your legs down and still, but flexible so that in the "down" motion of your horse's trot, your bottom comes down with him rather than staying up in the air as his back dips lower, and then comes popping up beneath you to propel you further into space.  Jack le Goff once said, "Good riders don't bounce," meaning that their bottoms followed the horse's back through both the "ups" and "downs" of the trot.  If you don't follow the horse's back "down," his back will meet you in the wrong moment and bounce you back "up" with the feeling of a paddle to your backside.

-Sit the trot without stirrups.  This makes it harder to sit in the middle, since you were probably balancing side-to-side on your stirrups without realizing it.

-Post the trot with stirrups.  Remember how it felt at the walk.  Think of your stirrups as "training wheels:" only there if you fall over, not for standing upon.  Think of your knees as hinges, not as vice grips.  Your lower leg is wrapped around the horse like Saran Wrap and your balance is in the middle of the saddle, so pinching with your knee is not at all necessary.

-Trot in two-point position (the "up" phase of a posting trot).  Don't stand on your stirrups.  Don't duck your upper body onto your horse.  Post and stay in "up."

-Post the trot without stirrups.  "Look, Ma!  No training wheels!"

-Post with just one stirrup-- What's your other leg doing?!  You have to teach them to stay the same with or without stirrups.

-Switch and post with just one stirrup on the other side.  Yes, that one is just as unruly.

-Pick up your irons and post every other stride (this is a new one that I recently learned in a lesson with Krissy Fox at Fox Den Farm).  Instead of the "up-down-up-down" rhythm you're now so acquainted with, post with an "up-up-down-up-up-down" rhythm.  I'll bet you thought you knew everything, didn't you?  Get ready for this exercise to show you that you don't (as it surely showed me)!

By now, if you can do all of these exercises consistently without falling apart (or falling off, God forbid), I think it's pretty safe to say that you've earned your independent seat and strong base of support.  If you are still working on flawlessly executing these exercises, this is where you must use the fourth item on the supply list for an independent seat and strong base of support: perseverance.  As I mentioned earlier, many coaches use the time-honored adage: "Perfect Practice Makes Perfect." As a ballerina, I've also gained a familiarity with the adage, "Don't Merely Practice Until You Get it Right; Practice Until You Can't Get it Wrong."  The only way a rider can ever hope to become better in the saddle is to keep practicing while in the saddle.  If you are struggling with an exercise, persevere over your frustration and problems until you get it right, and then keep going until you can't get it wrong.

The end result of all of this focusing one's mindset, riding stubborn and "lazy" school horses (who are honestly some of the best horses in the world), exercising, and persevering will be that the rider can become accomplished: a rider who can make very subtle signals with his hand, seat, and leg aids (and judicious signals with whip, spurs, and voice later on).  This rider won't make many "accidental" signals and will able to coordinate his aids in a way that will carry him onto even greater accomplishments.