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Connecting Your Seat to Your Horse’s Hind Legs

Riders of all disciplines agree that one of the basic tenets of horsemanship is that the horse must work from the back to the front. So, it’s a basic part of every rider’s education to learn to feel what is going on behind and beneath them. As George Morris says, “The back end is where the telephone is connected. If you call, that’s where the horse has to answer from.”

This basic exercise is a variation on a common jumping exercise: to feel which foreleg goes over the pole first, then to adjust the stride so the left or right foreleg crosses first. Hunter/jumper coaches use this to help riders judge their distance to a ‘fence’ and adjust stride length accordingly.

In this exercise, ask riders to feel which hind leg steps over the pole first, starting at a walk and progressing to trot. If riders have trouble with the exercise, have someone lead their horse while they rest their hands behind them on their horse’s haunches.

Once riders begin to connect to their horse’s hind legs, it can help with a myriad of challenges, from finding the right posting diagonal to evening out the rhythm and loading of the hind legs.

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