The rider career of Gaston Mercier

Career of Gaston Mercier

Invited in 1976 with the very first race of endurance with horse at Rodez (France), (" For this race, very different riders was participating, that resembled an epopee … "), Gaston Mercier is filled with enthusiasm quickly for this kind of trail.

Between 1980 and 1990, Gaston Mercier will gain many races of endurance by horse ("160 km de Florac", …) with MAO IV, gray Hongre, with which he will become champion of France in 1988 and double champion of Europe in 1987 and 1989.

" I lived, at this time, with hundred percent for the endurance, informing me of all and disputing sometimes, but always glad to see the discipline taking importance"

In 1990, Gaston Mercier gains the "160 km of Florac" for the last time, before devoting myself to his other passion, the saddles and leather.

Advices of Gaston Mercier

Right from the start of his riding career (and this in a discipline where everything still remained to be invented), Gaston always put his ideas into practice in the preparation of his equipment and the physical and mental training of his horses. His first saddle was an updated and improved version of an age-old design.

The principle of this was to shift the weight of the rider back from the usual position on the 9th vertebra to the 12th and 13th, which is the strongest point and mainstay of the backbone.

"I thought it would be a good idea to make a saddle to set the rider much further back on the horse. This gives lightness to its forehand and makes it easy for the rider to balance over the legs to achieve more athletic fatigue-free horsemanship".

"One of my main concerns was to get the rider closer to the horse, to fit the horse as much as possible, and that couldn't be done with the saddles in use at the time, whether they were ceremonial or working saddles".

"To get the right stability and best sensations on horseback, the seat has to be properly positioned and the legs perfectly hung".

"These things I just mentioned are the ingredients of a truly versatile saddle which can work on the flat, in endurance competitions and in the long slow haul of trekking where young horses gain their experience and stamina".

"The upshot should be that the rider is nicely relaxed, and therefore the horse is too, because if there is byword in endurance it is surely relaxation; to keep up the effort for as long as possible, it has to be made in a state of relaxation� and that's not to be confused with slumping".

This special concept means special care must go into fitting the saddle properly.
It must be set behind the withers with the front portion of the panels tucked snugly into the hollow of the shoulders. This helps to clear the withers better and stabilise the saddle so that the girths don't need to be so tight.

Notice how the cantle is raised quite high to prevent the panels from pressing down on the horse's back all the time.
When the saddle is in the right place, the girth will naturally find its right anatomical position.
Remember the front legs are flexed forward to prevent pinching and also, that when it is girthed in the right position, a saddle rarely needs a hunting breastplate or crupper.

Set neither too long nor too short, the leg is bent slightly into a Z shape to help the joints work more easily.
Seated or raised, the position in the saddle never affects the horse's balance, though it is of course advisable to alternate the two positions.
Every horse is different and Gaston Mercier offers 3 sizes of tree and three clearances for the withers to cater for most horses used in sport.
With the saddle used without a cloth, we can see here the marks of the panel pressure points on the back and the hollow of the shoulders.

Gaston now heads a team of twelve and has a range of 13 outdoor saddles for long-distance, trekking or endurance. His endurance saddles have won 3 world championships in the last five years.
Opening shortly to the public at the Mas de Vinaigre, not far from the Millau Viaduct, will be a new workshop, exhibition and sales centre and a centre of more than 30 hectares for trials and training. A gallop trail, outdoor ring, lunge ring, stalls, marked trails … and inauguration planned for spring 2008.

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