Western girl trying english riding?

Question

I have ridden western my whole life. I am going to be picking up an english saddle that I bought. (I'm not sure which direction I will be going with my horse, so I want to explore all options) I am a experienced horse person....but not a very experienced english rider. I have only tried it for fun. What are some different things you can do with it....such as dressage, jumping, etc.? How do you BEGIN to train for this? What are some things to get used to riding english? What are some good practicing exercises? Any other info will help. Thanks

Answer 1

You don't  have to hire a trainer to experiment with english riding!  I've been a western, trail rider for years but I do ride english sometimes just for a change. Recently my 14yr old daughter showed in 4H, she wanted to try everything so she went from western, to english, and eventually saddle seat.  Each one is a little different (and she could only get points in one seat) but they are all basically the same and I feel it's a good idea to be able to ride all the seats.  The first difference in english is the "two handed" riding, the basic beginning when training a young horse, direct rein, moving off the leg so as to use as little rein as possible and keep contact with the mouth, and a snaffle, usually eggbutt or D ring.  The stirrups sit a little higher in english riding, an inch or two above the ankle bone (western is at the ankle bone). And the canter is a little different.  In western the horse is taught to put their head inside to pick up the lead, many english horses are taught to put their head to the outside to pick up the lead.  Saddle seat was even more interesting.  My daughter has a TWH and she was being penalized for pacing insead of trotting. She is not penalized in the saddle seat classes and that's how she ended up in them.  She went back to the walking horse bit, necessary to have the correct bit for showing, but you use two hands, like in english. She needed a cutback english saddle, no pad under the saddle. The cues are the same for english but the seat if much farther back, almost like in western.  At the end of the season, many of the other kids were trying the different seats. Why not, it's a "learning" organization.  We weren't interested in ribbons ( although she won quite a few), she was just so thrilled to have her own horse and be riding in all the classes.  If you want more technical advice, buy or borrow  from the library a book called "Basic Horsemanship, English and Western" by Eleanor F. Prince and Gaydell M. Collier.  It's been an invaluable source of knowledge for me and for my family.  Good luck, and go for it!

Answer 2

OK.  I get that you don't want a trainer.  

Basic rules switching from Western pleasure (very head down) to basic english:

English is ridden with the horse's head slightly more elevated than a western traditional horse.  

Western is a more "On your pockets" style of riding.  English is more forward (not leaning forward) but more forward in the seat.  Instead of feeling the "sit bones" you will feel more inner thigh.

Your stirrups in english will be shorter but how much shorter will depend on the discipline you choose.  All purpose saddles are often more "up" in the back and will feel very different than western saddlery.  

English riding is usually dependent upon a snaffle type bit with no shank.  A good choice in my opinion is the full cheek snaffle with no twist or a slow twist, not to thin though.  

English riding is also 2 handed "direct" reining as opposed to the indirect style of neck reining.  

At the trot you will post to the outside diagonal.  Posting is finding the 2 beat rhythm of the trot and rising and falling with the outside shoulder of the horse.  {Posting is excellent for western riding as well as when done properly, it reduces the amount of "bounce" on the horse's back.  

Mostly remember to imagine a plumb line from your shoulder to your elbow to your hip to your heel.  

Hope that this helps.

Answer 3

Haha I have rode western my whole life and when I was 8 I asked my dad if I could try english so he let me and I hated it after 2 months....Stay with western.

Answer 4

Ya not going to like this, but if you are intersted to learn (more then just for fun like you have already) then you should get a trainer.  any joe off the street can give you tips, doesnt mean they're going to work or teach you more "serious" forms of english riding.  get 5 lessons and start from there.(at least 5)

Answer 5

If you just want to PUTT around in your new English All Purpose saddle to get the feel of it, then do the following:

Lift yourself out of the seat using your lower thighs, NOT your feet and calves. Keep your heels DOWN!  Do this at a WALK around your arena or working circle (If you don't have an arena.).  Stay up there until your thighs say "Noooooooo", then sit back down.  Look down at your feet, if you can see your toes, then get your legs behind you.  

Then pick up a sitting trot (jog) and with your shoulders back, back straight, heels down, do a couple of laps.  When you can do this without an issue, then come back to YA and I'll give you a few more excercises.

Answer 6

I started riding elglish last chrismas... i have ridden western my whole life too... it isnt much different other than two hand reining or w/e you wanna call it... the saddle will be alot different but i have gotten used to mind pretty fast... i am already jumping 4 feet on my Paint horse that had never ridden english too.... I would just loook at some books. thats wat i didnt and my friend who takes jumping lessons said i jump like a pro... FROM BOOOKS! haha

Answer 7

To begin with, get a trainer, even if it is just to help you decide which way you are going to start BEFORE you buy an English saddle, it makes a difference what you should buy.  I think that you are getting the cart before the horse, slow down, decide (with help) where you want to start and then get some expert help so that you start out correctly.

Answer 8

do a lot of balance and posture exercises. try to move with the horse really well..its not as hard as it seems. and once you get the hang of it start doing cavaletis(spelled wrong haha) then start on small fences and don't be afraid to challenge yourself im sure you'll get the hang of it really quick since you,ve been riding so long!!!

hope this helped :]

Answer 9

Depending on what disipline you rode in while going western I am sure you understand the necessity of a good trainer. Even things like basic dressage need to be done with a trainer since you have no experience with english. Its not fair to ask your horse to do things when you don't even know how to do them properly. Jumping on the other hand is dangerous to take on without a knowledgable person. It is not to be taken lightly.

Do you have a picture of the english saddle? We can tell you what it is designed for because each saddle is used to achieve different things. A dressage saddle will hurt your jumping while a jumping saddle can affect your dressage. An all-purpose saddle is the best start.

Things you can do with an english saddle:

hunter/jumper

dressage

show jumping

eventing

mounted games

polo/polocrosse

english pleasure

Again, to avoid hurting your horse and yourself, get a trainer. A good one will start you on the basics and work with you to achieve what you want. If you try without a trainer, there is very little chance of you getting things correct using trial and error. If you pursue the sport, eventually you will have to master the basics. Its best to start working on them right off so you dont have to do back and re-learn them

EDIT: There is no way to just go. That is how people get killed. If you don't want to learn it right why learn? No knowledgable person is going to give you tips because tips help with specific things. They do NOT teach you how to ride. If you don't want a trainer then, for your horses sake, don't try english. There is a lot more to it than point the horse at the jump and go. Sorry, it doesnt work like that. You say you are interested in continuing if you like it. What are you planning to do advanced walk trot? That is about as far as you will get learning on your own.

Basics are what keep your butt in the saddle. They keep you steady on the flat and over fences. They give you somthing to build on for more advanced things. You do not learn them on your own. Someone said something about book. Books are great learning tools but are not a substitute for a good trainer. I have NEVER seen anyone learn somthing from a book that did not have to be at least partially re-taught. Most of the time is causes more harm than good with beginner riders because they are not desgined to be the only learning tool.

You asked how to train and we told you. Terribly sorry you don't like the right answers.

Answer 10

Not all english saddles are the same.  Is this an all purpose dressage, all purpose jumping, regular dressage or regular jumping saddle?  A flat seat equitation saddle?  See where I'm going?  The forward seat on a jumping saddle is used with shorter stirrups than you use with a dressage saddle. For basic horsemanship, a forward seat saddle would be inappropriate. That type of saddle is used when you learn the seat necessary for jumping.  It's like Bobbi said....you are putting the cart before the horse.