English Vs. Western Riding Styles

English and Western riding styles developed for different reasons. The English style was originally used primarily for pleasure riding and hunting with dogs, while the Western style developed to allow riders to control the horse with one hand, leaving the other free to rope and manage cattle and other animals. The saddles and other tack used are also adapted to each style.

  1. Saddles

    • The English saddle is smaller and lighter than the Western saddle, and is designed to place the rider in closer contact with the horse. This can help make the rider more receptive when jumping and cantering. The English saddle is attached with a buckle. The larger, heavier Western saddle spreads the riders' weight over more of the horse's back, making it more comfortable for horse and rider to spend more time in the saddle. The Western saddle is also deeper than the English saddle, has a pommel on the front and a high back. The pommel was traditionally used to help in roping cattle, but it also makes the western saddle feel more secure and stable for beginners. Western saddles are generally attached with a cinch.

    Stirrups

    • In the English riding style, the stirrups are placed high up the horse, so that the rider's knees are bent near the horse's shoulders. With a Western-style saddle, the stirrups are placed lower, so the riders' legs are held straighter. The height of the stirrups in Western riding also makes it easier for beginners to mount a horse. With an English saddle and stirrups, the rider often mounts using a mounting block or bench, while in Western riding, the stirrups are usually low enough to allow the the rider to place their left foot in he stirrup and swing their right leg over the horse. The differing height of the stirrups also means that Western riders tend to wear riding boots with higher heels to prevent them from slipping through the stirrups.

    Controlling the Horse

    • Western riders generally use a curb bit with a single pair of reins, or two reins tied together, where the English style uses two sets of reins. Western reins are also longer than the reins used in the English riding style, and are held more loosely. In Western riding, the bridle tends to have an offset headstall -- the strap that leads up from the bit and around the horses ears -- that goes around just one ear, while an English headstall goes around both ears and has a nose band that buckles around the nose, above the bit. The arrangement of bridle and reins allows Western riders to control the horse with one hand -- leaving the other hand free for roping.

    Riding Styles

    • The position of the body on the horse allows Western riders to wear looser clothing, although both Western and English riders sit straight, with a solid seat, and balance their body over their feet. Horses trot by switching from one diagonal pair of legs to the other. As they switch pairs of legs, the horses's back rises. In English riding, the rider posts, or rises out of the saddle, as the horse's back rises during a trot. This is also called a rising trot, or posting trot. In Western riding, riders tend to sit in the saddle at all times.