Menu
Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum won bronze at the Olympics in Rio in 2016 together with the German spring national team. And she knows firsthand that many of us are not born with the coveted long legs. We just need to learn to work with the length of the legs that we have. So even though being a tall person is often considered an advantage in equestrian sports – Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum is a living example that shorter legs can be just as fine. Find inspiration in her experience here.
Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum, who herself is pretty petit at 160 cm, is one of the best riders in jumping despite her height. She has learned to get the most out of her height with a few simple but effective strategies that you can use in your own riding. Here she talks about three things she herself is working on.
You may also like to read: 4 Exercises to Avoid Hitting Poles
The first thing Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum points out is that the horse really needs to be responsive to the rider's helpers.
“The basic concept is that the horse must respond to the shin. I have realized that my horses need to respond perfectly to the shin every time, because I do not have the same strength as for example Daniel Deusser, Christian Ahlmann or Ludger or Marcus Beerbaum to ride them. My horses must react quickly and accurately in relation to my helpers.”
“Because I do not have the same strength in the upper body or in the legs as the boys to get a horse back in the hand. I'm just trying to get a horse to function optimally between the jumps”
With responsiveness to helpers, it's also about momentum, as Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum explains.
“After many years with horses, I have realized that the horse must be in front of me and without hesitation move forward. Without considering it for a second. When I do a half halt, the horse must return immediately, otherwise I will have problems on the track. The basic thing is that they move forward and then I try to slow them down."
But moving forward is not enough. They have to continue to move forward.
“One of my colleagues once said: I like that you always ride the horses forward between the jumps. I actually did not even know that it was so noticable. But it's just that if they do not respond immediately, I cannot ride them properly. I have to train them to do that and it really is a cornerstone of my riding,” Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum explains.
“The horse must keep its forward motion until I ask it to slow down. It is very important, because I am not strong enough to keep a constant incentive myself”
Advertisement
Another thing Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum points out is that short riders need to have really short stirrups to achieve the necessary balance.
“Because I'm so short, I use as much of my legs as possible. So I have not been willing to shorten my hangers as much as my trainer would like. I was simply afraid of not having enough support in the saddle. Now I shorten the stirrups just before I compete," Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum says.
"Usually I go up four to five holes before going on the course. I do not think that the height of the rider is crucial if you have a good balance. But for a small person, it is crucial that the stirrups are short, because it helps to provide balance. It's something I've experienced over the years. And yes, I wish I had those long legs, but I just do not have that!”
If you are a short rider, then the art is to find out how you can compensate for it. In the case of Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum, it is the horse's responsiveness to the helpers, its propulsion and the short stirrups that make the difference.
Born in the United States in 1969 but is now a German citizen.
Married to German show jumper Markus Beerbaum, who is the brother of the Olympic winner Ludger Beerbaum.
Won bronze at the Olympics in Rio in 2016 together with the German jumping team.
This article was originally published on Malgrétout.dk
