How important is flatwork for a show jumper?
BU: The flatwork in a grand prix horse, or any jumper for that matter, is essential. If you don’t have a horse who is responsive to your aids and moves up from your leg and balances from your hand, you’re not going to be able to navigate the courses today. They’re so technical and the material has become so light and so easy to knock down that these horses have to be so clever and so educated and so responsive to the rider. And we don’t train that over fences, we train that between the fences. Essentially everything that goes on between jumps is flatwork. The majority of the training I do would be on improving and strengthening the horse’s flatwork and making him more adjustable and more responsive to the rider. MH: Another thing you touched on quite a bit in the clinic today was rider position. Could you talk a little about that and how important it is, and how it could affect your ride either negatively or positively? BU: Well, when you think about it – a 1200 or 1000 pound horse and
