bored and looking for a little insight! english --> western

[caradino]

i've been riding hunters/eq/dressage for the past 12 years, and am taking my first western lesson tomorrow! i've sat on western horses before, but never really learned much about riding them. the bf is a novice western rider, and i'm super excited to have a lesson with him and journey into his part of the horse world, as well as add another discipline to my repertoire. any tips for a hunter princess on how to look at home on a western horse?

[dainty do]

Hmmm. Pretend you are riding dressage? Apparently an olympic dressage rider, Anky, is competing quite successfully at Western reining and really enjoys it. There is a video of her somewhere on the dressage thread.

[Trakehner]

Exactly...ride as if you're riding dressage. They both have the same seat angles etc. (which can annoy the DQ's when they hear this). Anky G. is having fun and pretty good success with her new western riding.

You can post when you ride western.

You can "plow rein" too, not every western horses neck reins.

You can wear a helmet when riding western.

Got chaps?

Don't forget to have fun!

[fordtraktor]

Some of this depends on what kind of western horse you are riding -- WP or reining? Barrel or cutting? Each kind will respond to different signals.

For the average western horse, you will be using a LOT less leg. Do not even squeeze unless you want the horse to respond.

Same for hand. Steady contact is not a good thing in a curb bit. A well-trained western horse will stop if you lift your hand an tiny bit with loopy reins. To set a head, you "bump" gently, but immediately release back to loopy reins.

Your seat is incredibly important. Direction comes from your seat, only a little from your hand. Sit up straight.

Western horses are generally MUCH more sensitive than hunters. A well-trained western horse is great fun to ride. A good one is like riding a Ferrari. Sometimes it can be difficult for hunter riders not to interfere, though.

Riding western is NOT like riding dressage, particularly w/r/t contact. The principles are similar though -- self-carriage, working back to front, lightness.

In competition, you will generally not be posting or riding with two hands (unless your horse is young and still in a snaffle/bosal). In practice, sure, do whatever your coach says.

[Jealoushe]

Riding western is NOT like riding dressage! All riding has similarities, but WP and dressage require completely different hand, leg, and seat positions and pressures.

Sit up straight, hold your hand still (one if you are riding in a pelham, 2 if you are riding in a snaffle). They usually like quite a straight leg look, off the horses side. It's all about little movement up there...

[caradino]

thanks guys. :)

the only thing that really stuck with me from the few times i've sat on friends' western horses is how far away from the horse's back those saddles made me feel! a very strange sensation, indeed.

i have WATCHED a lot of western riding, and can agree that the angles are the same as for dressage. i'll try to remember that.

fordtraktor, thank you! i think it will be hard for me to resist micro-managing the horse!

i'm excited. my cowboy boots (that i wear all the time because they just look SO DARN COOL) will finally see a stirrup.

oh.. one more weird question.. don't you guys have any issues with riding in jeans and no chaps?! i see western riders schooling like this alllll the time and it seems insanely uncomfortable! or does the shape of the saddle just prevent any kind of rubbing?

[fordtraktor]

Yep, no real need for chaps on a well-fitting western saddle -- the fenders are wide, and thus the "stirrup leather rub" doesn't happen.

[twofatponies]

I ride in jeans all the time (english and western) and don't get rubs. Don't know why. Maybe it is the shape of the saddle? I don't think I'd do sitting trot on a warmblood in jeans, though!

[caradino]

Yep, no real need for chaps on a well-fitting western saddle -- the fenders are wide, and thus the "stirrup leather rub" doesn't happen.

i learned something new today! haha

[MSP]

Odds are the OP is not having WP lessons. Most likely it is balance seat riding in a western saddle.

You will probably find it like dressage but in a western saddle. Legs are longer than HJ more like dressage. Probably the first thing you will notice is you have no horse in front of you; that is no neck and head. That is a strange sensation but you get used to it.

Adding:

I ride western in my jeans and English in tights/half chaps and use the same pair of Arait paddock boots for both.

[BuddyRoo]

If you're taking a "lesson" from your novice "Western" riding BF, then just do me a favor....go with the flow and don't ask him to relate all the principles. ;)

Seriously..I grew up riding Western...roping, penning, then WP and the like. Both of my horses went Western til I swapped disciplines after the death of my roping horse. There's not some kind of special "gene" needed to swap.


"Western riding lessons" (professionally) are FAR less common than English. And frankly, a lot of it (when you're not super competitive) comes down to just staying on. LOL

I'm not making fun, I'm just saying that a "lesson" from you novice BF is not likely to be an education. You probably understand a lot more about how stuff works at this point than he does--and most likely, he's doing the kick-pull-pony stuff.

A well trained "Western" horse works off the seat an leg every bit as well as decent dressage or H/J horse. But most of your standard backyard Western horses get ridden all hands.

Again, not knocking anyone...but I grew up riding much that way.

Good riding is good riding and I would say that if you know how to ride dressage and are comfortable more upright (as opposed to a very forward seat) you'll be fine.

[caradino]

If you're taking a "lesson" from your novice "Western" riding BF, then just do me a favor....go with the flow and don't ask him to relate all the principles. ;)

Seriously..I grew up riding Western...roping, penning, then WP and the like. Both of my horses went Western til I swapped disciplines after the death of my roping horse. There's not some kind of special "gene" needed to swap.


"Western riding lessons" (professionally) are FAR less common than English. And frankly, a lot of it (when you're not super competitive) comes down to just staying on. LOL

I'm not making fun, I'm just saying that a "lesson" from you novice BF is not likely to be an education. You probably understand a lot more about how stuff works at this point than he does--and most likely, he's doing the kick-pull-pony stuff.

A well trained "Western" horse works off the seat an leg every bit as well as decent dressage or H/J horse. But most of your standard backyard Western horses get ridden all hands.

Again, not knocking anyone...but I grew up riding much that way.

Good riding is good riding and I would say that if you know how to ride dressage and are comfortable more upright (as opposed to a very forward seat) you'll be fine.

ohhh no we are having a lesson together with his trainer! she actually shows WP and reiners and all that. sorry if anyone else was confused by that! goodness he's WELL AWARE i know a lot more than him and has never tried to 'teach' me anything vaguely horse-related. which is why i posed the inquiry here, instead of asking poor clueless bf, who wouldn't know how to answer.

[bort84]

We (meaning my grandmother was the trainer and I was the assistant, haha) used to have a couple of western pleasure horses in training (we did mostly saddleseat at the time but I have since included dressage into the repertoire). Anyway, my grandmother has trained quite a few arabian WP horses and a couple of arabian reining champs. Not exactly the same as a real reining horse person, but enough for comparing the basics.

My only advice for the basics is just to think tall, sit like you would in dressage, but you're going to use a lot more of your seat and upper leg to do the talking. Your lower leg will mostly be for delicate suggestions and will be slightly away from the horse the rest of the time (not exactly actively held away but not hugging like in dressage and h/j). So think long leg, drop your weight into your seat and heel, don't brace in the stirrup. Also, as was said previously, you probably will not be using much in the way of hands (micro managing, I like that - haha).

Beyond the basics though, I'm sure a reining trainer will have many many interesting things to teach. It's something I've always wanted to work on. It's like the dressage of the western world, haha.

How fun! I wonder if reining lessons would get my bf to ride with me... hmm, this could be a GREAT idea!

[fordtraktor]

LOL, glad OP is going to an actual western trainer. Most western competitors I know take lessons just like hunter riders. Just because western isn't your choice of sport doesn't mean it isn't hard and doesn't take practice. It requires a lot more than just staying on. I bet Anky has had significant instruction in reining.

I have never heard of "balance seat in a western saddle," whatever that is.

You try to make a horse stay in perfect balance going from a gallop to a collected canter in one stride without using your reins at all -- then tell me that riding western "just requires you to stay on."

[MSP]

"balance seat"

http://www.lanternlanefarm.com/lessons.htm

http://www.freewebs.com/providenceridingacademy/


Sorry I thought everyone knew what that was, must be my age.