Basic Horseback Riding Lesson!

There are a few things that some people wish to do before they die. For some they want to climb Mount Everest, some want to see the ancient pyramids, and some just want to learn to ride a horse. Fortunately for me I was able to learn to ride a horse at a very young age and it’s something I have enjoyed my whole entire life. If you wish to learn to ride a horse I’ll give you just a couple of things that you should learn to do right at the start.

One of the first things that you should do when you learn to ride a horse is to learn how to lead one. That’s probably not what you had in mind but still, it’s kind of important. You shouldn’t be standing at the end of the lead rope trying to pull your horse along and you also shouldn’t be standing at their shoulder letting them lead you along. There’s no control in either of those methods. The best way to lead a horse is to stand with your shoulder pretty close to their throatlatch and about a foot over to the side of them. That way you have enough room between the two of you for comfort. With one hand right below the lead snap and the other holding the rest of the lead line, you will step forward with the horse hopefully following. If it doesn’t then you just simply push gently in the direction you want to go with the hand that has the snap. That will give you the most control over the horse.

Now that you know how to lead a horse your horseback riding lessons will flow smoother. When you learn to ride a horse you have to be in control and if you can lead one with control on the ground you have a better chance of being able to learn to ride a horse. Riding a horse works best when you know that you’re in control. If you think that you can’t ride a horse, you will never be able to learn proper horseback riding. They will know that you’re scared and take total advantage of you. That’s all there is to it. If you get scared just take some deep breaths and tell yourself that you’re the boss. Any time my mare and I have a "discussion" and she thinks that she’s the boss I calmly let her know that I’m the boss and that I’m always going to win. And I always do. You can’t get rough and be mean but you have to be firm. If you start beating and thumping on a horse, odds are it’s gonna scared and then you might get scared. Not a good thing.

You can learn to ride a horse by taking lessons but unless you are with a trainer that has a goal of teaching you something in particular, you might be able to get the same effects by watching a few videos or reading some horse training books. And a lot of those books you can purchase online for a reasonable cost. No sense making horse ownership any more expensive than it needs to be. If you learn to ride a horse, you are learning a skill that has been around for hundreds of years and obviously is still important to this day because people still do it. Mainly some will learn to ride a horse for pleasure, relaxation or just time by themselves. What’s you’re reason?

By: Clinton Lyons Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com Clinton Lyons has been raising foals and horses for over 35 years. He is a professional horse trainer and expert horseback riding instructor. Visit his website to learn more about horseback riding lessons guaranteed to improve your horse riding skills: www.horsetrainingranch.com

Horseback Riding

The site Introduction To Horseback Riding is dedicated to lovers of horses. It contains plenty of free information in newsletters, articles and contains loads of resources all about horses.

Threats and Safety Zones by Ron Meredith

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 24th, 2009 at 1:10 pm and is filed under horse safety, horseback riding, horse riding.

Horseback Riding Eases Back Pain And Boosts Confidence

Riding on horseback not only eases back pain, but also boosts the rider’s confidence and emotional well being, according to a new study.

Garden of Eagan: Horseback Riding

So yesterday was Angela’s first day of horseback riding. We had to wait for a day that was "warm". (cuz we call 22* warm!!!) in order to go. 

 Advice and Information to Assist Your Horse Riding Experience

Every year horse owners experience serious injuries or even tragic deaths while riding their cherished equine companions. One of the more significant causes of rider injury is a rider being tossed from a rearing horse… or worse, caught underneath a horse that reared so fiercely that it flipped over on top of the rider. While sometimes injury is extremely difficult to avoid due to the spontaneous and powerful nature of many rears, all too often the problem is actually made worse by inexperienced riders panicking and inadvertently increasing the chance of injury.

When an inexperienced rider is rudely jolted by a rearing horse he often panics and tightens his body. This is a natural reaction… when we perceive an impending and unavoidable blow, our body unconsciously stiffens and braces for the impact. When atop a rearing horse, a surprised rider will often recoil a bit and stiffen towards the hindquarters of the horse, which is a critical error because the rider drastically throws off what little balance he has, almost assuring that he will be tossed.

The second critical error inexperienced riders make is using the reins as a form of security. They feel their body being thrown backwards so they grip the reins for dear life and try to use them to "pull" themselves forward and back into the saddle. Again… this is a natural knee-jerk reaction, but it’s also a critical error.

When you yank the reins of a rearing horse you drastically increase the likelihood of the horse losing control entirely and flipping over or falling down… with a good chance of you being caught underneath. Keep in mind that when a horse rears, he is already off balance. When you yank the reins backwards sharply, you’ll only make it that much more difficult for the horse to resume his balance. In addition you’ll very likely harm his mouth and cause him immense pain, and the shock of the pain could very well make the horse "freak out" even more!

So we now know that the two natural reactions people often make while on a rearing horse will only serve to increase the chances of injury for both the horse and rider. If we are supposed to ignore natural bodily reflexes what should we do instead?

First, when you sense your horse’s front hooves leaving the ground make sure that you lean forwards, not backwards. This will increase both your balance as well as your horse’s, thereby lessening the chance of the horse actually falling over. You don’t want a horse that weighs around 1000 pounds landing on you.

Second, thrust your hands forward so that there is absolutely no direct rein pressure against the horse’s mouth. Do not pull back on the reins no matter how much your instincts shout to do so – I guarantee you’ll gain no security or balance from doing so. Let him have his mouth and only apply direct rein pressure after he has all four hooves back on the ground.

Finally, if you feel like you are losing control then it’s generally better to take the cautious way out and dismount rather than try and ride the rearing out. Consider wrapping your arms around the horse’s neck as you lean forward, then slide off his side as he rears. The moment you hit the ground you want to back up so that the horse doesn’t step on your feet when his front hooves land again. It’s best if you can keep hold of the reins as you perform this maneuver, but if you have to let them go entirely and get out of "Dodge" then do so. Your bodily safety is the most important consideration.

Hopefully you will never be surprised by a rearing horse, but it doesn’t hurt to practice quick dismounts in your spare time such that if you are ever faced with the situation you’ll better know how to handle it. In addition depending on your breed of horse you might consider jumping him a bit. While a jump has nowhere near the potency of a strong rear, it can teach your body how to respond when a horse’s front hooves leave the ground.

Copyright Jeffrey Rolo, 2007. All Rights Reserved.

By: Jeffrey Rolo

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com The above article covers two critical riding errors atop a rearing horse, but if you would like to learn more tips about controlling rearing horses be sure to check out our series How To Stop A Horse From Rearing over at the AlphaHorse community.

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TWO. The next step in buying a horse would to find a good trainer and take some riding lessons.

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