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Hey!

I take riding lessons, english style, and right now I would say that I'm pretty much an advanced beginner. One of the major things I have to work on is keeping the right form over jumps! I only do small ones but I'm always being "left behind" or my heels just won't stay down sad ....anyone have any suggestions?

thanks smile

While you're jumping, think of landing on you heels, as if the horse wasn't there and you were just going to land on the ground, your heels would be the first thing to hit. That really helped me. Of course, my trainer also got my shoulders back by telling me that my boobs were the first thing to go over the jump rofl We have interesting lessons...

As for balance, even more than riding without stirrups (although that is IMMENSELY helpful) work on a lunge line with no hands. Keep your stirrups, but take your reins away and hold your arms out to the side and stay in two-point at the trot. I was amazed, I had no idea how much I depended on my reins for balance, but I found I could hardly post with my hands out ot the side. Don't hold them straight out though, make sure you can still see your hands in your peripheral vision. Eventually you can work up to where you're jumping with no hands, which is a LOT harder than it sounds.

In the mean time, grabbing a bit of mane as you jump will help a little with being left behind.

i like the feeling of my horse moving up and down under me when we go with my ankles and knees as shocks so its not a problem for me, but just get used to practacing it. i always think heels down and deer in the head lights so that makes me put them down and shoot my chest out. but thinking about people mocking old style snobby english riders, nose up, hands forward, short stirrups, but in the air, this is actually what you're striving for! lol

Yeah, riding with stirrups really is the best way to learn balance, it's hard at first, but with practice it'll become easier, and you'll REALLY notice a change in your riding with stirrups.

What my trainer tells me to do is practice keeping your heels down by walking around in your boots on your heels. Do that for a while each day and it will basically come natural to you.

Equitation, for me, is really natural. It's just how I always am. ;D

Mmn, I used to have that problem forever. Which was why I couldn't jump 'safely' at a 'safe' height until recently. >___>; (But now that I can, I'm a good jumper now. Whoot.)

My advice is to do a few excersises strengthening the muscle that goes down to your heel. For instance, go on some stairs and support yourself by holding on to the sides of the railing. Only have your toes on the edge of the stairs, and stretch your heels down.

That's one of the things that I did. :3 :3

Beleive it or not but my trainer(after I came back from not riding for 2 months) made me practice the half seat at a walk to learn how to keep my heels down in that position. Try some stretches forward at the halfseat. You're heels will feel like they want to move up but your practicing and not jumping so it will be easy to get out of the habit.
Trust me I've had a few drop jumps and refusals, even some falls from my own mistakes.

When you're getting left behind, is it possible that you're just not getting up into your two point fast enough? That used to happen to me a lot.