Learning how to ride is a very rewarding experience, but it can often be a bit confusing as to which type of riding is most suited to your goals with regards to what you want to do with your horse. Talking to experienced riders is one option, but you need to understand that most riders have one riding style, either English or western, and they tend to prefer their style over the other one. You’ll find that whichever style you choose, you’ll have to comit a good amount of time to learning the basics, and even more if you want to be a competitive rider.

If you are going to compete, knowing what you want to do in the competition is essential before choosing a riding style. If you want to dress formally and compete in dressage, hunter seat, English equitation, saddle seat, competitive jumping, eventing or cross country jumping events you will only have the option of using the English riding style. But if you like a less formal style including wearing jeans and cowboy shirts and riding the trails or competing in western pleasure events or working cow horse events then the western style is your best choice. You can ride for pleasure on the trails with either style of riding.

Both the events and the riding styles are different with English and Western riding. Western riding tends to be more casual with the rider somewhat relaxed on the back of the horse, longer stirrups with less posting during riding and more firmly affixed to the back of the horse to maintain balance. Western riding also has the reins held in one hand, leaving the other hand free for using a rope. English riding has shorter stirrups with riders more erect to slightly forward sitting, posting in motion to the horse and typically holding the reins in both hands. Some English riding will require double reins, one set to direct the motion of the horse and one set to control the head position. English riding also has several different styles including hunt seat, dressage, saddleseat, and endurance. Each of these disciplines has their own style of tack - a dressage saddle, jumping saddle, all purpose saddle, and so on.

Once you make a decision on which style you prefer, make sure you are wearing proper safety equipment, including a riding helmet. This is just a good habit to develop, especially for young and novice riders. When you select a style you can always decide to learn the other style at a later date, after all your horse can certainly learn another style, but learning both at the same time is overwhelming and can lead to confusion.

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