amount of reach. Because he has a shorter stride behind than he does in front, he will tend to dwell in the air on the short (rear) side, which is easiest for him to accomplish if he also hollows his back. In addition, dwelling in the air with the hindquarters tends to pitch the rider forward, which is particularly annoying to the horse that is heavy on the forehand. It can rapidly take on a snowball effect where neither horse nor rider will be happy.
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Horse #3 His rear triangle is shorter on the femur side than it is on the ilium side which changes the ellipse of the hind leg and shortens the forward aspect of the stride. Since his stifle is just at the bottom of the sheath, he is not built to have a long rear stride or much scope in the first place. Although his stifle placement might be similar to that of Horse #2, he will have a shorter rear stride and less scope because of the shorter femur. He would likely get rails behind at the two foot level. His humerus is almost the same length as that of Horse #1 and Horse #2, but it shows less rise from elbow to point of shoulder than on either of those horses. He would have little knee action, but almost the same reach as either of the previous horses. However, the discrepancy between his strides (very short behind and long in front), means he will never use that reach. He is very rough to ride beyond a walk or a jog and tends to hollow his back, especially at a canter.
Horse #4 His rear triangle is equal on the ilium and femur sides and his stifle is well below sheath level, giving him a very long stride behind and grand prix scope over fences. His humerus is short and has a steep rise, making
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his front stride short and quick with a fair amount of knee action. Because his front stride was shorter than his rear stride, he dwelled in the air on the front end, which was not a detriment to his career. Even though he was a mismatch, it all came
together because he was strong enough in the loin (excellent LS placement) and light enough on the forehand that he could suspend his forequarters with ease while his hind legs went through their full range of motion. That is what made him one of the world’s best showjumpers, even if his gallop looked a bit unorthodox across the flat.
About Judy: Judy has researched equine conformation for 30 years and has written three books on the subject (the most recent, an e-book). She travels worldwide giving conformation clinics for all disciplines. Judy also analyzes individual horses based on photos and gives breeding consultations. Learn more at
www.jwequine.com.
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