Lower leg slipping forward in posting trot

[jillaroo]

Hi Heather,
When I'm in 2-point position my heel is right under my hip, and when we are at walk and sitting trot I can keep my heel under my hip if I pay attention to what I'm doing but the minute we go into a posting trot it all goes pear-shaped and my lower leg creeps forward. My heels are still down and I am not in a chair seat, but my heels are definitely not under my hips. When my instructor reminds me of this (I'm sure she's getting as sick of this as I am!) I try to pull my heels back but this makes me feel a bit unbalanced. Any suggestions on how I might best remedy this problem - any exercises that could help? Am I using my legs incorrectly to rise to the trot? I think the position of the stirrup bars on my saddle is OK because in 2-point I'm fine and at walk I can keep my heels in place, especially if I've just come down from 2-point. It just feels so uncomfortable when I try to get them back into the right position at trot and I just cannot, for the life of me, keep them there!

[Heather]

HI Jill-

I can almost guarantee that it is the saddle you are riding on that is at fault- not you!-with the stirrup bars typically too far forward. This will pull you lower leg forward as tyou rise, instead of pernitting you to rise and sit over the centre of balance, as if your hips were moving back and forth in an arc. If the bars are too far forward they will pul your leg forward with it, and you will then have to hoick your butt up and down off the saddle, instead of allowing the horse's movement to propel you without effort on your part- see my reply to the post on Seatbone Savers for a fuller explanation.

Is there any chance that you could get a photo of you side on, in rising trot and email to me?


Heather

[jillaroo]

Hi Heather,
Thanks so much for your reply.
Oooooo noooooo! On the one hand I'm relieved to hear that it's the saddle and not me necessarily but on the other hand this is a real bugger! I'd be thrilled if I could send you a photo and see what you think! Thanks a lot! I'll have a go at getting my hubby to photograph me this weekend. You describe having to hoik my backside out of the saddle rather than being lifted in an arc by the horse's movement - this is EXACTLY how it is! I'd rather trot or canter in 2-point for lap after lap of the arena rather than post the trot and I really didn't think posting should be so much work.
Thanks again Heather - I really appreciate your advice.

[jillaroo]

Hi again Heather, Just read your post on the Seatbone Saver! Ahha! So all may not be lost and if it is my saddle that is at fault there is a solution that won't require me to ditch my saddle - that's beaut! Incidentally, my saddle is a Crosby Excel H, 2 yrs old - do you know offhand if they are guilty of having the stirrup bars too far forward?

[Heather]

'Fraid so Jill- they all have the bars too far forward without exception, except my saddles which have the bars specially made to be much longer, also Wintec and Bates Isabelle saddles, but then I designed for them and gave them most of my design features, which they then incorporated into their saddles, and promptly turned round and ditched my project with them, for which I wasn't paid a penny nor had any credit. Hence, I hot footed it to Thorowgood, who have been a pleasuer to work with- the new TG models with Seatbone Saver top built in and my stirrup bar placement and other design features will be on the market very shortly.

My leather saddles will be for sale in the US from next year.

The Seatbone Saver will help a lot though. Also, has your saddle got barsr that are put on straight, or do they slant upwards? If the latter, this does help the leather to hang back at a better angle. I am going to try to get some little rubb wedges made to push on to the stirrup bar, whic will allow leathers on saddles with the bars too far forward and also on straight, to tip the leather backwards and make it easire for the rider- these will cost perhaps a dollar or two!


Heather

[floppy]

heather -have you made a saddle for icelandics yet?:) or do you have one already?