A Showjumping Lesson with Michelle Strapp

This article is from January 2019 Horse Deals magazine.

The question one has to ask oneself is; how well do I want to ride? That does seem somewhat of a stupid question, as we will all answer, we want to ride very well. But how many of us are prepared to work at the only sport that involves sitting on another living, thinking animal? Given that, it is interesting that tennis players, footballers and bike riders all have on going coaches that espouse correct technique and a work ethic, but ask a rider to drop their stirrups in a lesson and they won’t come back for another. Riding, or improving our riding is a process of continuous, active learning.

When we were asked to supply a jumping lesson for the January issue, we had no hesitation in suggesting Michelle Strapp. In her successful riding career, Michelle produced all her own horses from youngsters to Olympic level. Her early influence was George Sanna with George Morris having a great influence during her riding and now coaching career. You may go to Michelle for a jumping lesson and not even step over a pole, as the problems we have jumping do not often stem from the jump itself, but rather from the basic training of the horse and rider. Oh, but we don’t want to go to the Olympics, we just want to have fun on the weekends, so we want to jump jumps in our lesson. Some seem content to jump around with one or two down every weekend, with the odd clear round seemingly making it all worth while. But would they not be happier to jump more clear rounds and win more ribbons? Yes, but not if it means riding without stirrups. Competitive riding is a difficult sport and just as in tennis we need to know how to hold the racquet. A successful riding career is based on correct basics. Also good control of the horse equals safer riding.

We arrived at Michelle’s Beaconsfield property in time to sit in on a lesson she was giving pupil of three years, Jo. Jo never rode as a child, but started to do some trail riding in her teens. Jo’s daughter was in the Victorian Young Rider Jumping Squad and when she gave up, Jo got going. She was riding her talented Warmblood/Thoroughbred mare Fern, that can be quite hot. “The horse is very sensitive and not ideal for a beginner jumping rider” says Michelle, “but Jo is very patient and her position is good which allows us to proceed and work on her classical style that is an effective style and one that leads to success.”

As the lesson progressed, there was a great deal of instruction about FEEL. “Feel is essential in good riding” continues Michelle, “and I think you can teach it. Until you can feel what the horse is doing, you can’t control it. If you have no feel, your aids don’t have any influence over the horse, or don’t make any sense to it. If you don’t know what your horse is doing, how do you know how much leg or hand to apply etc. If you teach what the horse’s body is doing, you are teaching feel. So yes you can teach feel and the rider who is going to learn feel, is receptive, tolerant and patient to the teaching and especially with an older rider, it takes time.

“Feel is not only knowing what the horse’s body is doing, it is knowing what its mind is doing as well. With other sports, like tennis, you don’t pick up the racquet and it takes off with you and drags you all over the court. Some people too, react badly to their horse if it is behaving badly, or giving them a hard time and then the whole thing falls apart. You must learn to read a horse’s brain and work out what you can and cannot do today. Jo, although quite green as a jumping rider, is beginning to understand that and her mare is not always easy, but she has the patience to work it out. Don’t let it become a physical fight. Back off, start again and reward her when she does what you want. A pat after a good exercise is a release of pressure which is the reward.

“A really good, sophisticated rider can feel every footfall, every step, every twitch of the ear and they react according to that, but when you are learning, you don’t even think about what the horse is doing. But riding is a total feel sport. Whatever the level of rider I teach, I get them to feel the footfall i.e. the 1, 2, 3, 4 of the walk, to get them to feel what the horse is doing underneath them.

“The riders position is a means to an end, rather than an end in itself, but the means are so intimately involved with the results. The rider’s position is directly related to their capability to act. There is not one correct position, but rather a series of correct positions related to the varying circumstances of riding and help rather than hinder the administration of effective aids. A secure and stable position is so important too, because your hands are such a major player in this game and if you are sitting on a wobbly chair and go to pick up a glass of champagne, you are liable to spill it. If you are more stable in your position, you can balance your hands and they can act independently.

“Establishing feel and an independent seat is an on going process and sound teaching will very much accelerate the rider’s development. During a lesson a lot of people look at me anxiously when I say, drop your stirrups and I know people don’t want to come to me because of that. However, even though I think everyone should spend time riding without stirrups, I am happy if they go home and ride for two minutes a week without stirrups. They are not in pain and they are not going to hate it. Then the next week, they can ride for three minutes etc. That’s what I get them to do if they are new clients.

“Riding well is not easy. Another thing I have learnt is that to correct a rider that has a crooked position might involve correcting the horse that is crooked. It is difficult to sit straight on a chair that has one leg shorter than the other three. I want the rider to sit straight, but we have to work on the horse to be straighter also, otherwise trying to force your body into straightness on a crooked horse creates stiffness and tension in the rider. If the horse is going well the rider can more easily maintain a good position and if the rider has an effective, independent and correct position, they can more easily influence the horse’s way of going.”

Story: Anna Sharpley, Photos: Julie Wilson
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