Nr 5 - Junior Equitation

Missy Roades
Missy Roades: USHJA ‘R’ gecertificeerde jury , trainer en coach in Hunters en Equitation, 53 jaar oud en woonachtig in Ravenel South Carolina.

1st place: I like this photo very much. This rider has very correct lines in all of her angles. She could put a bit more weight in her heels and then her seat wouldn’t be quite so far out of the saddle. I love how she is looking up and ahead for a turn, yet not twisting which is much better for the pony’s balance on the landing. Cute pony that looks very happy to be doing this job.

2nd place: This rider has beautifully correct angles with just a couple of little details that keep it from being perfect. Her stirrup is not quite angled perpendicular to the girth [That the stirrup comes straight out from the girth]. In other words her toe has turned out too far, your toe may turn out up to 40 degrees from the horse but after this point you loose correct leg contact with the horse. [Here the judge is pointing out that you can look at the angle of the stirrup to the girth to recognize the correct foot angle]. It is a minor detail but it is also the foundation of a good position for jumping bigger jumps. Also, she needs to put her thumb on top of the reins. Again, a minor detail but it would secure her grip on the reins which allows for a following hand. Absolutely beautiful pony, and happy to be jumping.

3rd place: Here we have a rider that is attempting to jump for her horse, instead of letting the horse jump up to her. Jumping ahead of the motion upsets the balance of the horse in the air over the jump and on landing. This rider needs to let her weight drop in to her ankle so that her heels are lower than her toe; then her hip angle can softly follow the arc of the horse’s jump. Both of those things would allow her to follow with her hands a bit more. Her release is a bit short for the size of this jump. Overall a very nice jumping pony with a great expression!

4th place: While this young rider has the beginnings of a great foundation for equitation, in this photo he has been caught behind the motion. His heels are down but you can see that he is actually already starting to fall back a bit as the horse is in mid jump. This means he is restricting the horse with his hands instead of being able to give a nice crest release. Some no stirrups work would tighten his leg and help his ability to improve his timing at the jumps. This is a good jumping horse that would benefit from a longer release and a tighter rider.