_
How to Ride a Horse
Riding horses is an exhilarating experience. The feel of being one with an animal and moving with them is a tremendous rush. Horseback riding also gives the rider an extreme feeling of peacefulness and has a way of taking you back to a quieter more relaxed time.
Unfortunately, the vision of you galloping along, one with your horse is not practical for your first ride. Like any other sport horseback riding requires practice and dedication to be good at it. But all is not lost; you can still enjoy the feelings with little or no experience.
The first thing you should do is find a suitable place to ride. Getting on your friends backyard horse, may not be the wisest choice. Horses have many different levels of training, so you want to ensure that the horse you ride for the first time has been well trained for beginner riders and conditioned to ignore outside distractions. Your best bet is to take riding lessons at a professional stable or to go trail riding at a reputable trail riding stable. The horses found at these stables should be well conditioned to provide you with a safe and enjoyable first ride.
For beginner riders, riding in western tack will give you a feeling of more security. A western saddle has a knob on the front called a horn, which is ideal to help you keep your balance by holding on to it. A western trained horse allows steering with one hand and as well the saddle allows you to sit deeper and you don’t have to rely quite so much on balance to stay on. For the purposes of this article we’ll assume western equipment is used.
The first time you approach a horse to ride it, you may feel intimidated due to the large size of the animal. Horses come in many different sizes, and their personality is not based on how big or small they are. Some of the biggest horses can be the gentlest as well as some the smallest horses can be the worst to ride. As the saying goes, you can’t judge a book by its cover and you can’t judge a horse by its size or color. Keep in mind that the horse you are getting on, is used to beginner riders so will act appropriately. Don’t worry about the horse sensing that you’re scared because a beginners riding horse will be quite accustomed to this.
A properly trained horse however, will be respectful of you and he will not move into your personal space. Your horse should stand quietly beside you while waiting for you to mount. His eye should be inquisitive and not scared. His ears should move back and forth listening to everything around him.
Prior to mounting the horse, the girth (belly band) should be checked for tightness. Remember that it is you that is going to ride the horse so you should ensure the saddle will not slip to the side. When you go to mount the horse, you should take a hold of your reins and then place your left foot into the stirrup on the left side of the horse. You need to reach up with your hand and hold the horn of the saddle then stand on your left foot and swing your right leg over top of the horse. Place your right foot into the stirrup on the right side. Your stirrups should then be adjusted so that you can stand up in the stirrups and clear the seat of the saddle. They should not be made too short however, as this will place undue stress on your knees and pitch your center of balance forward. Your heels should be pushed lower than your toes to help your legs balance properly.
Proper steering of a horse is complicated and takes a good deal of practice, however, a well trained beginner horse will ignore many mistakes. Essentially, steering consists of pulling your hand with the reins to the right to go right and to the left if you want to go left. The all important stop or slow down command is to pull your hand back towards your body. How much should you pull? The rule of thumb is, if it isn’t working pull more. In other words, if you are trying to stop your horse and he isn’t stopping, pull harder until he does stop. Once your horse has stopped though, you need to stop pulling. If you continue pulling after he has stopped, then he will start to back up.
To ask your horse to move forward, you should tap him in the sides with both heels. As before, if he doesn’t move, apply more pressure. This is a signal for him to move forward and you should not worry about hurting the horse doing this. We are approximately 10% of a horse’s body weight so to put that into perspective, if you were holding a baby and that baby kicked you, it would not hurt unless they kicked in a sensitive area like your eyes.
When the horse is walking you should just relax and try to feel the horse’s movement beneath you. Allow your body to move side by side in the same motion as the horse. Your hand with the reins should be low to the horse’s neck to allow him the freedom to move forward. Remember that at any time you can stop him by simply pulling back on the reins.
The next speed up is a trot or a jog and this gait is very easy for beginners to do. You would ask your horse to speed up by again tapping his sides. The trot is a steady one-two motion that allows a beginner rider to stay balanced easily. Depending on the speed and the individual horse’s gait, you may find it very easy to sit the trot. If the horses is moving faster or has a naturally bouncier trot, you may find it more comfortable to stand up in your stirrups. The easiest way to do this is to pull yourself with your hand on the horn and try to put all of your weight on your feet. This allows the bouncing motion to happen beneath you so your back side isn’t bouncing on the saddle. With experience you can learn to post so that you are in complete rhythm with the horse. Remember at any time you can pull back on the reins and your horse will slow down or stop.
A canter or the faster gallop is a different rhythm than the trot. This gait has a side to side motion that can create problems for the beginner rider. It is advisable to become proficient at the trot and able to post comfortably before you attempt the canter. This ensures that you have developed the balance and rhythm with the horse so you are able to move with the horse and not finding yourself get pitched to the side.
As with all sports, horseback riding takes some dedication and practice to truly feel comfortable in all situations. Like all sports the health benefits For the occasional rider, going to a reputable stable that offers trail riding is an ideal way to enjoy the thrill and beauty of horses in an environment that is designed for beginner horseback riders. Happy Trails!
How to Ride a Horse
Riding horses is an exhilarating experience. The feel of being one with an animal and moving with them is a tremendous rush. Horseback riding also gives the rider an extreme feeling of peacefulness and has a way of taking you back to a quieter more relaxed time.
Unfortunately, the vision of you galloping along, one with your horse is not practical for your first ride. Like any other sport horseback riding requires practice and dedication to be good at it. But all is not lost; you can still enjoy the feelings with little or no experience.
The first thing you should do is find a suitable place to ride. Getting on your friends backyard horse, may not be the wisest choice. Horses have many different levels of training, so you want to ensure that the horse you ride for the first time has been well trained for beginner riders and conditioned to ignore outside distractions. Your best bet is to take riding lessons at a professional stable or to go trail riding at a reputable trail riding stable. The horses found at these stables should be well conditioned to provide you with a safe and enjoyable first ride.
For beginner riders, riding in western tack will give you a feeling of more security. A western saddle has a knob on the front called a horn, which is ideal to help you keep your balance by holding on to it. A western trained horse allows steering with one hand and as well the saddle allows you to sit deeper and you don’t have to rely quite so much on balance to stay on. For the purposes of this article we’ll assume western equipment is used.
The first time you approach a horse to ride it, you may feel intimidated due to the large size of the animal. Horses come in many different sizes, and their personality is not based on how big or small they are. Some of the biggest horses can be the gentlest as well as some the smallest horses can be the worst to ride. As the saying goes, you can’t judge a book by its cover and you can’t judge a horse by its size or color. Keep in mind that the horse you are getting on, is used to beginner riders so will act appropriately. Don’t worry about the horse sensing that you’re scared because a beginners riding horse will be quite accustomed to this.
A properly trained horse however, will be respectful of you and he will not move into your personal space. Your horse should stand quietly beside you while waiting for you to mount. His eye should be inquisitive and not scared. His ears should move back and forth listening to everything around him.
Prior to mounting the horse, the girth (belly band) should be checked for tightness. Remember that it is you that is going to ride the horse so you should ensure the saddle will not slip to the side. When you go to mount the horse, you should take a hold of your reins and then place your left foot into the stirrup on the left side of the horse. You need to reach up with your hand and hold the horn of the saddle then stand on your left foot and swing your right leg over top of the horse. Place your right foot into the stirrup on the right side. Your stirrups should then be adjusted so that you can stand up in the stirrups and clear the seat of the saddle. They should not be made too short however, as this will place undue stress on your knees and pitch your center of balance forward. Your heels should be pushed lower than your toes to help your legs balance properly.
Proper steering of a horse is complicated and takes a good deal of practice, however, a well trained beginner horse will ignore many mistakes. Essentially, steering consists of pulling your hand with the reins to the right to go right and to the left if you want to go left. The all important stop or slow down command is to pull your hand back towards your body. How much should you pull? The rule of thumb is, if it isn’t working pull more. In other words, if you are trying to stop your horse and he isn’t stopping, pull harder until he does stop. Once your horse has stopped though, you need to stop pulling. If you continue pulling after he has stopped, then he will start to back up.
To ask your horse to move forward, you should tap him in the sides with both heels. As before, if he doesn’t move, apply more pressure. This is a signal for him to move forward and you should not worry about hurting the horse doing this. We are approximately 10% of a horse’s body weight so to put that into perspective, if you were holding a baby and that baby kicked you, it would not hurt unless they kicked in a sensitive area like your eyes.
When the horse is walking you should just relax and try to feel the horse’s movement beneath you. Allow your body to move side by side in the same motion as the horse. Your hand with the reins should be low to the horse’s neck to allow him the freedom to move forward. Remember that at any time you can stop him by simply pulling back on the reins.
The next speed up is a trot or a jog and this gait is very easy for beginners to do. You would ask your horse to speed up by again tapping his sides. The trot is a steady one-two motion that allows a beginner rider to stay balanced easily. Depending on the speed and the individual horse’s gait, you may find it very easy to sit the trot. If the horses is moving faster or has a naturally bouncier trot, you may find it more comfortable to stand up in your stirrups. The easiest way to do this is to pull yourself with your hand on the horn and try to put all of your weight on your feet. This allows the bouncing motion to happen beneath you so your back side isn’t bouncing on the saddle. With experience you can learn to post so that you are in complete rhythm with the horse. Remember at any time you can pull back on the reins and your horse will slow down or stop.
A canter or the faster gallop is a different rhythm than the trot. This gait has a side to side motion that can create problems for the beginner rider. It is advisable to become proficient at the trot and able to post comfortably before you attempt the canter. This ensures that you have developed the balance and rhythm with the horse so you are able to move with the horse and not finding yourself get pitched to the side.
As with all sports, horseback riding takes some dedication and practice to truly feel comfortable in all situations. Like all sports the health benefits For the occasional rider, going to a reputable stable that offers trail riding is an ideal way to enjoy the thrill and beauty of horses in an environment that is designed for beginner horseback riders. Happy Trails!
