To date, however, the impact of a variety of other factors that may influence jumping results, including rider posture, remain unexamined.

Clayton explored the importance of the horse's angular momentum, as it might be a factor in improving a rider's trunk movements. Elements of those studies have included characteristics of gait, limb positions, movement of the Center of Gravity (CoG) at jump takeoff and landing, , and reaction forces at takeoff. The biomechanics of horse jumping have been researched over the past 15 years, with previous studies focusing on linear kinematics. This information is relevant to rider and horse safety and to improve jump training and performance. We concluded that a horse adapts to faulty rider position by changing the angle of its neck relative to trunk. Changes in the angles between the horses’ neck and body segments appeared to compensate for the riders’ movements, enabling the horses to maintain balance throughout the jump sequences. The program compared the horses’ movements with and without riders, with the most significant differences seen in the angles between the horses’ necks and bodies. The rider was modeled as a single-segment trunk with the knee joint fixed to a point on the horse’s side, and with the hip and knee free to flex. A simulation software program analyzed reference points on the riders’ and horses’ bodies (body position) during the jumps. Eleven horses were video-recorded performing six jumps each (three with and three without rider) for a total of 66 jumps. This descriptive study uses a biomechanical simulation to illustrate the effect of rider’s body position on a horse’s motion during the flight phase of a horse jump.

Equestrian simulator