by Lindsay Humphrey
Horseback riding provides a unique blend of physical, mental, and emotional benefits. Riding lessons shouldn’t be reserved for beginners or learning a specific discipline. They should be the drumbeat of any horse owner’s life to continuously pursue higher levels of horsemanship.
Taking a lesson at any age can be intimidating, no doubt about it, but the benefits far outweigh the nerves in the long run. With more than 200,000 horses in Oklahoma, many of them owned by elite professionals in every discipline under the sun, there’s no shortage of knowledge and experience in the state.
I asked some questions about riding lessons.
Christy Buchanan
General manager, Cadence Equestrian Center, Edmond
Why are riding lessons important at any age?
Riding lessons are similar to any other sport; that’s how you learn the correct way to do things to be more effective with your horse. Lessons are also important for safety because a good lesson program should include teaching people both ground and riding skills. Riding lessons are not only good for physical fitness but are also a great way to build confidence, develop or enhance motor skills, and teach compassion for animals.
What does a typical lesson program look like at Cadence Equestrian?
Our riding lessons include both horsemanship and riding, which is what we refer to as unmounted and mounted skills. We want the rider to learn skills on the ground and in the saddle. You’re not learning to be a well-rounded equestrian if you’re not learning the horsemanship side too.
We have a leveling program that we base on age and experience so we can place students in the right class for their skill level. Everyone starts out by learning basic horsemanship skills and body position and then moves up to the next level through our program.
We are specifically a hunter-jumper facility, but riders in our lesson program will be well prepared and able to break off into any other specific discipline if that’s what they’re interested in.
At what age should someone begin riding lessons?
Ideally, six years old is the best time to start riding lessons. We’ve had students as young as four, but I think at six, kids have a little bigger attention span and better motor skills to handle a horse on their own. As long as someone is physically able to mount, ride, and dismount, there are no age limits for riding lessons.
Is there a benefit to taking lessons outside your chosen discipline?
I’m a big believer that English riding is the best foundation for any type of riding discipline. It gives riders the best foundation for learning how to balance in the saddle and control their horses without relying on their tack. As a whole, English riding is harder because the saddle requires that a rider is balanced and quiet with body and hands. Of course, as a rider moves past the basic riding skills, everything gets more difficult no matter the discipline, but I would recommend everyone begins with English riding to get a solid foundation.
Karen Torrice
Strom Ranch, Lexington
Did you grow up with riding lessons?
I did! I first started riding lessons when I was seven years old with my older sister in the 1970s. I took lessons for two years before we got horses of our own and a place to keep them. It was a great way to get our fundamentals.
And then we did 4-H and further developed those skills. That was a great learning experience, and I highly recommend that for anyone getting into horses because it’s a good way to have a solid foundation and has a great educational program behind it. And you don’t need a horse of your own to be involved in horse 4-H.
Have your three kids had formal lessons?
My kids have been on horses since they were infants. Since we had horses in our backyard, they’ve learned a lot of things simply by doing them alongside me. I love it when our extended family members visit and we get to teach them about horses and all the little things that go into taking care of them.
What is Strom Ranch all about?
We raise our own horses, and our breeding program was started in the early 1990s. We raise horses for people who want pleasure horses to ride down the trail and people who want top-tier show horses. From the time a foal is born, I walk my kids through the process of everything it takes to get the animal into the show pen. It’s just like raising a child; you have to establish boundaries and teach them skills so they can be a good citizen and positively contribute to society.
How have riding lessons been an important part of your life?
My philosophy is that riding lessons should never end. I’ve moved frequently throughout my life, and everywhere I went, I would seek out a new trainer whom I thought I could learn from and grow as a rider. I’ve ridden a lot of different disciplines, everything from fox hunting to reining and hunter-jumpers.
The horse industry is endless. I would encourage anyone who finds an interest in horses to explore every opportunity and discipline. People are very willing to help anyone who has a passion for horses and a desire to learn.
