One of the most decorated hunter riders of all time, John French shares an exercise he uses to direct a horse's lead in a line and practice inside turns for handy rounds, equitation classes or hunter derbies. French works with Kent Farrington at KPF farm to produce some of the top hunter horses in the United States. French also shares why he chooses to practice over Dalman Jump Co. jumps.
What you need
The basis of this hunter and equitation exercise is an in-and-out. To build the in-and-out you will need two vertical jumps– standards, poles and filler included in these jumps. As you progress through the exercise you will also add a few other jumps to make a hunter course. So, it's best to have a full course of hunter jumps!
Setting up the exercise and the overall goal
The overall goal of French’s jumping exercise is to encourage the horse to land on the correct lead.
Start with an in-and-out combination set at about 21 feet. It's short and encourages the horse to shorten and get back on its hocks inside the in-and-out. From there, it's very easy to ask the horse, by maneuvering its haunches either left or right, to land on the lead you are asking for.
Wherever the haunches go is what lead the horse is most likely to land on. Throughout the exercise. You think of changing the horses bend and steering the horse haunches and hind end.
He does the combination and turns a few strides after the jump before adding in jumps to the exercise. The goal is to get the horse to really follow the rider's aids with an opening rein and outside leg to encourage them to keep haunches to the inside. Watch the full jumping demonstration here.
French primarily uses this exercise for equitation horses, but says it's also great for hunter horses because when you are doing the handy round or a hunter derby it's nice to have your horse able to land on both leads.
Why John French uses Dalman Jump Co. Jumps
“I love these jumps because they are very attractive looking, and they stay attractive looking.” He also likes the ease of use the aluminum frame standards provide– their light weight makes them easy to move and change up the course.
Build your own hunter schooling course like John French’s with DJC jumps today!