If you are thinking of making a transition from English to western riding, I have a few tips to help make that switch in riding disciplines a bit easier. The first 20 years of my riding career I spent mostly in an English saddle, and the last 20 years I have spent mainly in a western saddle. I have competed in many events within the two styles, and hopefully these tips will help you to make the transition as well.
Adjust to the Seat
When I bought my first western saddle, it felt substantial compared to a smaller English saddle. After years of training in a western saddle, my first piece of advice is to go ahead and sit down in it.
When riding English, I always sat properly on my seat bones, heels down, shoulders back, elbows by my sides, thumbs closed on the top of my reins, all with very tall posture. I had a light seat that was deep when needed, but I never sat in the back of the saddle to achieve that.
In western training, you will use most of the saddle, including the back part. To find a deep seat, take a deep breath and, on the exhale, roll your belly button toward the sky and sit on the pockets of your pants.
When you are riding western, you need to be able to use the saddle differently to encourage the horse to use his body correctly. Consider the back end of the horse as the engine. To make that engine move powerfully, you need to drive it with your seat. The change in my seat is always the first indication to the horse that a cue is coming.
Consider Your Leg Position
As you work toward more advanced maneuvers on your horse, it’s important to train your muscle memory correctly from the beginning. When sitting in an English saddle, you’re encouraged to drop your weight into your heels to maintain proper leg position.
But if you do that in a western saddle, your legs will always be tight on your horse’s sides, which you don’t want. You need to keep your legs relaxed and not really on the horse unless you mean it as a cue.
When sitting in a western saddle, your feet should be a bit more relaxed in the stirrups as well. Think about relaxing the weight of your body downward and through your heels. Keep the weight heavy in your heels, but don’t focus on pushing them down.
Stopping May Be Different
Another important point in the differences between the two riding disciplines is that your feet are going to play a part in stopping when riding western. When going into a stop, the first thing that is going to change is your seat. Melt down into your deep seat in the back of the saddle, pushing your feet slightly forward to anchor yourself, and then pick up on the reins to finalize the stop.
Stops on a western horse can be very dramatic, with the horse really dropping his haunches. By sitting deeply in the saddle and pressing your feet slightly forward, you are less likely to pop forward out of the tack.
A New Kind of Reins
One of the biggest differences when I changed from English to western was the way in which I used the reins. It also had a big impact on my core horse-training values, giving the horse the responsibility to do a maneuver with limited help from me. When I focused on that, I became a better educator for my horse.
When I rode English, there was always some form of contact on the bit, my fingers were always closed on the reins, and I was always ready to guide the horse through an exercise, whether he needed it or not.
This contrasts with my western horses, where I pick up the reins, make contact to give a cue, and then release the pressure and have the horse carry on doing what I have asked. My expectations are for the horse to take the responsibility of performing a maneuver with limited help from my reins.
My fingers are not always closed on the reins; often, the reins are held only lightly in my fingers. There are specific ways to ride one-handed, but most of my training is done with two hands on the reins.
My goal is to perform exercises on a loose rein, and this is achieved by using less and less rein pressure as the horse advances in his training. This requires me to use my seat and leg cues first, giving the horse a chance to respond before I go to rein cues.
Key Takeaway
Whether I ride in an English saddle or western saddle, I’m always conscious of my horsemanship and my job as an educator of the horse I’m riding. I pick the tack that best suits the job at hand, and I incorporate good horsemanship practices into my training.
It doesn’t matter if the horse is wearing an English or western saddle (or bareback)—the main goal no matter the riding discipline is to focus on being a better communicator and teacher for your horse.
This article about changing riding disciplines from English to western appeared in the March 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!
