Requirements
When a woman has attained some degree of proficiency in the saddle, she will probably desire to perfect herself in riding by learning to leap. Her equestrian education cannot be considered complete without this, but she should not attempt it until she has learned thoroughly how to ride correctly on the road. A secure seat, light hands, a cool head, quick perception, judgment, and courage form a combination which will enable her in a short time to acquire skill in jumping. Few women possess all these qualities, but an effort should be made to obtain as many of them as possible before trying to jump.
In the Ring
The first lessons should be on a horse which has been well trained to this work and requires no assistance from his rider. He should inspire confidence, and jump easily and surely rather than brilliantly. I think it is well to begin in a school over bars, as there the rider is not under the necessity of choosing a good take-off or landing, and is thus free to give undivided attention to herself.
Approaching Jump
Three feet is high enough to put the bars at the start; or they may be even lower should the rider feel timid. As she approaches the jump she must sit firmly in the middle of the saddle (not hanging either to the right or to the left, thereby upsetting the horse's balance), and she must look straight at the obstacle, with her head up and her body thrown a trifle back. The reins should at first be held in both hands, for several reasons. It lessens the chances of sitting crooked, and it prevents throwing up the right arm as the horse jumps—a common and unsightly practice, calculated to frighten him and distract his attention from his work, and to jerk his mouth, while it has no redeeming features. In addition to this, when the horse lands, the reins are not so liable to slip through two hands as through one.
Approaching the jump, the horse should break into a moderate canter, and the only rule his rider will be likely to remember at the first trial will be to "lean back as he jumps and give him his head." As she becomes accustomed to the action, her attention must be called to details. While nearing the jump, she must keep her hands low, and just feel her horse's mouth with the snaffle without interfering with it or shifting her hold on the reins. Quiet, steady hands are indispensable to success.
TAKING OFF