Follow the Jump Without Throwing Yourself Forward

A balanced jumping position lets you follow the horse over a fence without pulling on the reins for support. Your seat lightens out of the saddle, your hips fold, and your knees and ankles stay flexible while your lower leg remains steady against the horse.

The key is to let the horse’s movement close your hip angle—not throw your shoulders towards its neck. FEI guidance on the jumping fold makes this distinction: as the horse rises beneath you, your position adapts to that movement.

Off-horse practice can help you rehearse components of this control. It cannot teach take-off timing or replace mounted instruction; practise position changes with a qualified instructor on a suitable horse, wearing a properly fitted riding helmet.

How your position changes through the jump

A jumping position is a movement, not a pose to hold from approach to landing. The two-point position—with your seat clear of the saddle—is a useful foundation, but the amount of fold changes during the jump.

Approach: stay balanced, not already folded

Follow your instructor’s guidance on whether to approach in a seated or light seat. In either case, keep your eyes on the line ahead, your lower leg steady and your joints available to move. Do not pinch with your knees or use the reins to hold yourself up.

The British Horse Society’s jumping lesson plans emphasise lower-leg security, balance through the leg rather than the reins, and absorbing movement through the hips, knees and ankles.

Take-off and flight: fold and release

As the horse lifts, allow the angle between your thigh and trunk to close. Keep your seat clear without standing tall or diving forward. A small fence generally needs less fold than a larger jumping effort; copying an exaggerated photograph is not the goal. This follows the FEI’s explanation of how the horse creates the fold.

Your hands must also allow the horse’s head and neck to move. A crest release means moving your hands forward onto the top of the neck, allowing that movement and providing support for the rider. A long crest release creates slack in the reins; a short crest release retains light contact while the hands follow the neck. Your instructor should choose and teach the appropriate release for your balance and the task. Practical Horseman’s release guide explains these differences and stresses that the arms should move independently without throwing the rider’s body forward.

Landing: recover your position and ride away

Let your joints absorb the landing, then reopen your hip angle and rebalance to continue along the planned line. Avoid staying collapsed over the neck or pulling yourself upright with the reins. The BHS lesson plans specifically address upper-body collapse after a fence and the need to rebalance and ride forward.

Common faults: what to check first

• Lower leg swings backwards: ask your instructor to check whether you throw your shoulders forward or grip with your knees. Do not assume the answer is simply stronger legs.
• You get left behind: review the timing of the fold and release before trying to lean further forward on the approach.
• You collapse on landing: check whether your lower-leg support remains secure and whether you can reopen your hips without relying on the reins.
• Position deteriorates later in a lesson: note when it happens and allow a rest. Ask your instructor to review technique and stirrup length as well as fatigue.

These checks draw on the balance, timing and fatigue issues described in the FEI jumping-position guidance and BHS teaching plans. A fault is a coaching observation, not a diagnosis of a weak muscle.

Prepare between rides, then check the transfer

Use the three off-horse drills in the two-point position guide for the physical foundation: a hip hinge to practise folding without rounding, a shallow squat hold for controlled leg support, and a bird dog to practise moving limbs without twisting your trunk. These rehearse components of the task, not the jump itself.

Keep the distinction clear: the floor-based hinge is a deliberate movement, while over a fence you must respond to the horse’s movement. Likewise, bird dog does not teach rein contact or the timing of a release.

At your next lesson, ask your instructor to watch one priority: lower-leg stability, fold timing or recovery after landing. If video is available, compare the approach, take-off and landing—not just the airborne photograph. Keep the jumping task within your established ability while checking the change; a steadier position is the target, not a bigger fence.