IX 

 JUMPING FENCES, DITCHES, AND WATER 



THE RIDER HIS MANAGEMENT OF HIS HORSE SPEED AT 



TIMBER AND WATER 



E have taken note of the schooling of the 

 horse in going over fences ; we must now 

 pay our attention to the rider, and to 

 the ways in which, by proper management, 

 he can help his mount. 



To begin with, a horse should be brought to his fences 

 well in hand, with hocks well under him; for nothing is 

 more certain than that the shorter the horse's stride when 

 nearing the fence, the more power he can make use of in 

 the spring. It is self-evident that if your horse is going at 

 a fence full speed in an extended gallop, he will not have 

 his hind legs under him long enough to use the contract 

 force of his muscles to their greatest advantage ; his momen- 

 tum will be too great. (See page 118.) 



"Fast at water, slow at timber," is the rule; but I 

 believe more horses go into than over water by too much 

 speed. Besides, a horse at full stride will only occasion- 

 ally reach the take-off bank just at the right spot. My 

 experience is that the injunction to be fast at water needs 



117 



