Do you find it difficult to connect or compete with your horse? Are you concerned that your riding abilities and horsemanship may be the cause of this issue? Do you wonder if you will ever become skilled enough to help your horse reach its maximum potential? Don’t worry! It is common for every equestrian, regardless of their expertise level, to face challenges.
We have selected a few of the best individuals who can share what makes them great, what they have learned, and what keeps them motivated to improve. Following this introduction, you will find their wisdom and experience. We hope that these tips and tricks will be helpful in building confidence, improving horsemanship, and enhancing the bond with your horse. Now, let us introduce our experts and present their horse riding tips.
Amber Russell — Russell Equine, LLC
Since I was a young girl, horses have been a crucial presence in my life, providing healing, inspiration, and strength both during my childhood and as an adult.
During the day, I engage in professional activities such as starting colts, training horses, and showing Gypsy Vanners. At night, I work as a registered NICU nurse.
Competitive Experience: Achieving national titles in GVHS-rated shows for ranch riding, trail, English pleasure, and freestyle.
Amber Russell believes that providing a horse with a good education is one of the most valuable gifts one can bestow upon them.
Good Horse Riders Do This
- Take care of yourself. It is so important to be well-nourished mentally, emotionally, and physically. Horses need you to be present during your time with them.
- Leave worries at the door. Training horses takes patience, precision, and focus. It is essential to leave any troubles or negative emotions outside the arena and give your horse your best each ride.
- Put yourself in your horse’s mindset. Learn horse psychology, body language, behavior in a herd, flight response, motivation, and how your energy affects theirs. Horses are often misunderstood, and we expect so much from them. When your horse spooks, refuses, tenses up, or doesn’t respond the way you hoped—stop. Put yourself in their mindset and seek to understand.
- Seek education regularly. It is so important to continue lessons with professionals more experienced than you. The exercises and expertise they can share are invaluable. Continually progressing is the key to success in training and competing.
- Put horse health and wellness first. Training issues often arise when horses have an underlying health issue. I like to make sure teeth are floated, the saddle is properly fitted, bit is appropriate and fitted, farrier care is correct, diet is nutritious and balanced, ulcers are treated and prevented, stress is reduced, and soundness issues are resolved before pushing a horse past the resistance they show in training. A horse that is well-cared for can then give their best.
Christoph Schork — Global Endurance Training Center
At the age of three, I began my riding journey on parades with cold-blooded horses. Due to the absence of a child saddle, reaching the stirrups was a challenge for me, but I managed to stay on the horse without falling off. This experience intensified my interest in riding. I subsequently explored various disciplines, starting with dressage, followed by trail rides and jumping, until eventually delving into endurance riding.
In terms of professional experience, I train and prepare horses and riders via Global Endurance Training Center, conduct clinics, and deliver comprehensive hoof care services.
Competitive Experience: Participates in endurance races on a global scale. Has taken part in Tevis (known as one of the most challenging endurance rides worldwide) on 15 occasions, achieving top ten finishes five times, including a 2nd place position in 2022. This resulted in winning the Haggin Cup, which recognizes excellence in horsemanship and sportsmanship.
Have the mentality to use the horse you currently have instead of longing for a different horse, as advised by Christoph Schork.
Good Horse Riders Do This
- Live in the moment; do not let your mind wander, but continuously engage with your horse’s mind.
- Constantly strive to work on your seat.
- Improve your balance.
- Rehearse your successes as well as your failures.
- Be humble, don’t brag.
- Know that success and failure are sometimes only a hair apart.
- Understand even the best horses can have an off day.
- Pay attention to the smallest details.
- Keep your horses happy and ensure they enjoy their sport and partnership with their human.
What is a Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced Horseback Rider?
If you are not familiar with horseback riding, you might observe that individuals are categorized into three levels of experience: Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced. These terms are commonly employed to indicate the extent of a rider’s experience.
Beginner Riders
A person who is still acquiring the fundamental skills of riding and taking care of horses is known as a beginner rider. They can also be referred to as a “novice.” Until they become proficient in ensuring their own safety in different circumstances, beginners require increased supervision when riding and handling horses.
It is advisable for novice riders to have someone accompany them during their rides in order to prevent accidents, provide answers to their queries, and assist in their learning process.
- Beginner riders may need help tacking up or grooming their horse.
- Beginner riders are mostly comfortable at a walk and trot. beginner riders who can ride a horse at a canter are considered advanced beginner horseback riders.
- Riders are still beginners if they struggle to stay balanced during gait transitions or struggle to sit up straight in the saddle.
- They are also more likely to reach for the saddle and panic if something goes wrong instead of correcting the horse. This is a natural instinct until the rider becomes more comfortable on horseback and learns how to handle different situations.
Intermediate Riders
An intermediate rider is an individual with considerable experience, both in terms of riding and horse-related activities. Although these riders still have much to learn, they have progressed beyond the fundamental skills.
- Intermediate riders are typically focused on specific disciplines. For example, jumping horses, competing in speed events, or entering horse shows.
- They do not need to be supervised all of the time but still benefit from taking lessons often and regularly.
- They are comfortable riding horses of varying degrees of difficulty.
- Intermediate riders are comfortable at all gaits, and can control a horse at a gallop.
- They are still challenged by some horses but, because of their growing skill, they tend to enjoy the challenge rather than feel overwhelmed by being put on a hot horse.
- Intermediate riders are also comfortable riding at all gaits and in different environments.
Intermediate riders are in the process of developing their skills and knowledge, but they are making good progress towards becoming proficient riders on horses, skilled contenders in horse shoes, and possibly aspiring equine experts.
Advanced Riders
Typically, riders who are considered advanced are riders who are very confident.
- They are able to ride a variety of horses well with very little instruction.
- They can use their knowledge and experience to teach other riders. Some even turn that ability into their own professional horse business.
- They are also able to train horses themselves.
- Advanced riders will usually compete at a higher level, possibly as professional riders.
Even advanced riders should remain willing to learn from others, as no one ever reaches a point where they are done with their equine education. There will always be more knowledge to gain.
Instead of opting for regular weekly lessons, advanced riders and professional riders often choose to attend clinics or travel to ride with specific trainers whom they aspire to learn from. They might opt for occasional lessons or dedicate a whole weekend to a clinic.
How to Know if you are an Advanced, Intermediate, or Beginner Rider
Having a grasp of the general consensus on what classifies someone as a beginner, intermediate, or advanced rider within the equestrian community is beneficial. However, there isn’t a specific set of criteria that can be checked off to determine your riding level. Generally, it is determined by your personal perception of your skill level and the evaluation of your trainer. Additionally, your riding goals are taken into account when considering your proficiency. For instance, if your aim is to become proficient in the fundamentals and ride for enjoyment, being an advanced rider will appear dissimilar to an individual aspiring to be a show jumper at an Olympic level.
It is possible to be an advanced rider in one discipline while being a beginner in another. For instance, if you have been involved in dressage for a long time and later decide to pursue barrel racing, you will have to begin by grasping the fundamentals of the new discipline. Progress in each discipline varies depending on the individual and their aspirations.
