What happened to Crest Release?

Loudly dragging my soap box to the middle of town..... stepping up on it.... Eh Hem!

Why aren't trainers teaching the Crest Release anymore??!?!?!

I'm not talking about the massive, exaggerated, hands to the crownpiece of the bridle that was overpopularized for a while in the late 90's.

--But I do think, perhaps, that is a big part of why I am just NOT seeing riders in the show ring being very proficient with a truly independent, FOLLOWING hand, arm, and body position over fences.

I wonder if so many trainers just DID NOT WANT that crazy rein-tossing nonsense in their program, so they just stopped teaching their students to rest their hands, press their knuckles, USE the neck as a reference point before, during, and after the jump.... like, at all. (?)

As I've mentioned, I have been extremely fortunate lately to be traveling quite a bit to judge horse shows with the UDJClub. In these shows I see riders from Eventing backgrounds, Jumper training programs, and Hunter/Equitation show ring systems of education. This is why I feel comfortable addressing the issue of the "Lost Crest Release" in a broader sense.

A. I know it's not just a "Texas" thing.

B. You can't tell me the Crest Release is "just a Hunter thing", because some of the best jumping positions and following hands/arms I see are from Eventing riders.

C. You can't tell me "only beginner riders need to do a Crest Release" because I'm NOT seeing the lower level riders exhibiting a decent hand/arm/body usage in their two-point/half-seat/jumping position.

D. You can't tell me "only advanced riders need to do a Crest Release" because without it, the beginner riders aren't advancing.

E. The Crest Release is not a NEW thing, either. And it's not just for kids! The riders who best show correct form and function are the -- let's just say -- "more mature" set, who I KNOW came from Old School training systems where they didn't forget to teach proper jumping position and body usage!

Here's the deal... and I'll DIE on this soapbox, I swear... when a horse jumps, the rider's sole job is to stay OUT OF THE WAY while the horse jumps over the stupid thing we just told it to. Therefore, the rider MUST follow the horse's head and neck with their hands and arms and body UNTIL THE HORSE'S HIND LEGS HIT THE GROUND.  This is important so that the horse can A.) DO THEIR JOB, and B.)(perhaps most importantly) NOT BE PUNISHED for doing it!

What I'm seeing over and over, in all parts of the country (Colorado, St Louis, Chicago, Houston, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and my North Dallas area) are riders who MAYBE put their hands forward as the horse leaves the ground, but there is no PLACEMENT of the hands, --no following of the hand as it is placed on the neck-- and then well before the horse has landed with their front legs, (much less completely finished the bascule of the jump with their hind end!), the rider's hands have left the neck and are already beginning to PULL on the horse's mouth. Mind you, not just "regaining contact" but literally pulling on the reins. AND --definitely worse-- have begun opening the hip angle and SITTING IN THE SADDLE.

Landing before the horse has fully regained their own balance and initiated the next canter stride.... sitting ON the horse's back while they are basically still in the air.

I have seen riders start the course with a correct rein length and proper contact with the horse's mouth, only to watch them place their hands directly beneath their body, just in front of the pommel,  and have their reins grow, and grow in length as the course continues due to the fact that the horse has not stopped moving their neck over every jump, and the reins get pulled from the riders' hands.

Meanwhile, their body position becomes less and less stable, with less and less overall control and organization.

OH, but Kathy, the rider's body has to be ready to help the horse balance as soon as they land!! Uh huh. But what if the rider's body is so OFF BALANCE they can't help the horse at all??

This would be my number one plea to trainers everywhere to PLEASE incorporate correct two-point, jumping position, (Yes, I prefer to make a distinction between the two.... more on that in a moment), and Crest Release. These fundamental mechanics of riding are DESIGNED to HELP THE RIDER HAVE BETTER BALANCE!!

I have watched countless riders, (beginner/novice adults in particular), become less and less stabilized, and less and less confident as they continue through their over fences rounds BECAUSE they are being thrown on the horse's neck after every single jump BECAUSE they are not staying-- Landing-- IN THEIR FEET. They are tapping the neck with their hands on take off, collapsing their body onto the horse's neck briefly in the air over the jump, and then they begin opening their upper body away from the neck --because there is NO balance in the rider's lower leg--and (worst of all) DROPPING THEIR SEAT INTO THE SADDLE while the horse's hind legs are still at the top of the bascule, and once the horse LANDS on their front legs, the rider is literally spanked in the bottom and is knocked forward onto the shoulder. This forces the rider to stand onto their toes and makes them grip with their knees and thighs, just to stay ON, as they round their back and pull on the reins for THEIR balance. It's a vicious cycle.

NO. What should happen is the rider is balanced into/onto their own legs and feet, with a flexible, adaptable hip angle that allows them to close over the neck during the bascule, and open away from the neck upon landing, WITH NO INTERFERENCE WITH THE HORSE'S BACK or MOUTH until the start of the first canter stride AFTER the jump.

There is very very little a rider can do in the air to influence the horse's balance upon landing. Other than turning in mid-air, the rider cannot encourage the horse to shorten their stride in mid air-- not without landing ON the jump.

Yes, Eventing riders and Hunt riders DO open their body angle considerably while negotiating terrain and changeable footing and tricky cross-country questions. The BIG fence jumper riders, too. But WATCH THEM.... they are not landing ON the horse's back. They are not landing IN the saddle.... they are landing on their stirrups! They are 100% concerned about their OWN balance in order to --THEN-- help the horse with theirs.

Think about it: There are three phases to jumping: Up. Over. Down.

Riders should be taught to close their hip angle for the up, while they place their hands just on either side of the horse's neck in front of their own body during the Up. This is TWO POINT.

During the Over phase, the hip angle closes more while the arm follows FORWARD ---- because that's what the horse's neck is doing!! It's stretching forward!! This is JUMPING POSITION.

*** Listen. If you EXACTLY follow the movement of the head and neck, you will NEVER interfere with your horse's jump.*** And that's all a TRUE Crest Release should be.

During the Down phase of the jump, the rider must be able to balance in THEIR FEET, with the hip angle still closed and the hand still on/beside the neck, UNTIL THE HORSE CANTERS AWAY from the jump. Resuming the TWO POINT. NOT the Full Seat.

In essence, the rider must learn to land in a "downhill ski" position. A ready-and-waiting outfield baseball player squat. A "booty in the air", "fluff your tail feathers", "avoid the low hanging branches", "aerodynamic", body position which gives the horse free range to catch THEIR balance, so that the rider can ALREADY BE in balance and can THEN affect the horse!

Yes, sure, you can open your upper body away from the neck, but you should NOT be landing IN. The. Saddle. You can be TOUCHING the saddle.... feeling it on the seat of your pants.... but if you are landing IN the saddle, you are interfering with your horse at the exact moment they need you to NOT be doing anything.

What I'm seeing more and more often, across many different divisions, fence heights, and age groups, is riders pulling on their horse's mouth and sitting on their horse's back while the horse is still finishing their arc over the jump.

Getting yanked in the face (however slightly), and smashed in the back (however lightly). And the rider is completely unbalanced and unprepared to then help their partner get to the next fence correctly.

Nervous adults get nervous-er when they are off balance. Standing on their toes, gripping with their knees, rounding their backs, with their hands in their laps..... terrified.... and no doubt rather uncomfortable with concussive spine issues and back muscle strain.

This makes the leg grip the horse's belly for balance.... and I think we can all agree that LEG means GO.... and the horse starts to get faster, and faster. And the reins are too long, so the rider can't control the speed, much less make a smooth turn to the next jump.

In using a proper two point (on the way TO the jump), jumping position (in the air OVER the jump), and crest release (FOLLOWING the head and neck Up, Over, Down), and then REGAINING the Two Point upon landing..... this is where success, smoothness, and confidence comes from.

WATCH the best in the sport(s). LOOK at their position in midair. Notice their leg position. Their hip angle. Isolate what their arms are doing during the 3 phases of the jump. It's SO COOL!

I always say in my lessons "YOU have to balance YOU". If I plucked you off the horse and put you in the gym, you would simply be doing a squat.

I had an opportunity, once, to teach the parents of a rider from Brazil who had come to TX to attend college. Her parents were both riders, so when they came to move the daughter into her dorm, they had a lesson at the barn where the daughter was boarding her Jumper.

They both spoke excellent English, of course, but the riding vocabulary was a bit unfamiliar to them. When it came time for Two-Point, and I described it, they said "OH! We call that SPORT POSITION." yyyyaaaasssssss!!! Sport Position! That's IT!!

So, in short, (ha ha... too late for that), Trainers: PLEASE teach your riders to PRESS their hands into the neck over the jump. Please teach them to STAY DOWN until the horse is done jumping. Please teach the importance of HEELS DOWN, and in using the STIRRUP as part of their balance. Please teach them to be KIND to their horse's mouths.

I have seen some of the most saintly, patient, long suffering horses jump round after round getting snatched in the teeth and slammed in the back EVERY jump. And I have watched some of those horses say "No More" and start refusing to jump. And I can't blame them.

NO.... I'm not saying throw away the reins with a giant loop and fling your body in front of the saddle. Please DON'T.

Riders who jump ahead of the saddle are also in trouble. Keeping the hip angle BACK (like in a squat, hello....) helps keep the rider's balance over the saddle, without sitting, and puts their bodies at less risk of falling off over the shoulder. As I'm fond of saying, "if you jump first, you may jump ALONE."

But if you EXACTLY FOLLOW the motion of the neck, with whatever rein length, with whatever level of contact you initially have with the bit, you WILL NOT INTERFERE with your horse.

I encourage beginner lesson program instructors (the most important people on the planet when it comes to the continuation of jumping sports!) to include the following phrases in your lessons. "Press your knuckles into the neck". "Stand on your feet". "Land on your feet, not your seat". "Follow the neck". "FIND the neck" (a personal favorite which reinforces using the horse's neck as a frame of reference for.... EVERYTHING). "Hold your two point". "Stay up". "Stay down". "Chin up, heels down." And we've ALL said "Grab mane". Why do you think that is?? Because it allows you to EXACTLY FOLLOW THE NECK without interfering with the horse's mouth, and keeps the body WITH the hand and arm.

Also there are three different types of "Releases".

The Short Release is just in front of the withers. LOTS of successful jumping can be done on a Short Release. The reins are never fully loosened, but the horse is also not restricted.

The Long Release is what we see most often in the Hunter ring. The hands are (at least) halfway up the neck, and the reins have a noted loop/slack in them. This "exaggeration" is to SHOW OFF the fact that your horse is, indeed, in self carriage!! This is the more advanced Crest Release. Not the first one that should be taught.

Riders who throw their hands up to the crown piece and then pop open upon landing are called "Duckers". Ducking MAKES horses faster.

The Automatic or Following Release. This is what naturally happens to riders who advance through correct Crest Release training. They begin to develop a "muscle memory" for where and what the horse's head and neck are going to do over a jump. The rider's hands no longer rest ON the neck, but they still EXACTLY FOLLOW the movement and do not interfere.

I don't know why the Crest Release has gone away, but even the vocabulary word has been left out of a LOT of training programs. Let's bring it back! For the good of the sport. For the good of the horse. Please?

Stepping down.