When galloping some folks tend to get too far forward and perch with their butts not in the saddle. What do you think about this?

Perching at the gallop is one of the most common position faults in western riding and it creates a cascade of problems that most riders don't even connect back to their seat. When you come up out of the saddle and tip forward, you shift your weight onto the horse's front end, which is exactly where you don't want it. A horse carrying a rider's weight on his forehand is going to be harder to rate, harder to stop, and harder to collect — and he'll tell you so by getting heavier in your hand and faster with his feet. The rider thinks the horse is running off. The horse is just responding to the weight that's pushing him forward. From a safety standpoint, perching puts you in a genuinely precarious position. When your seat is out of the saddle and your weight is forward, you've lost your base of support. Any unexpected move by the horse — a stumble, a spook, a sudden stop — and you have nowhere to go but over the front. Riders who sit deep and centered survive things that launch perching riders into the dirt. The fix starts with awareness and deliberate practice. At a slow lope, consciously push your seat bones down into the saddle and roll your pelvis slightly under you. Feel the difference between sitting on your pockets versus perching on your thighs. Then work to maintain that position as the speed increases. Ride without stirrups periodically — it forces your seat down and your position correct in ways that nothing else replicates as efficiently.