It’s wonderful to watch a skilled rider who has developed a great partnership with a pony. Sometimes it’s easy to forget the hours of learning that have gone into making that happen, and sometimes it’s hard to know where to start in the quest to get there.

So where is a good place to start? Having experienced horse people among your friends and family is a valuable thing and they can provide a great source of advice for the beginner. Lessons from a local professional can also be a great way to learn to ride, and can be very helpful when it comes to noticing and preventing the development of bad habits.

There are also a number of basic things even a non-horsey parent can help with or the beginner themselves can work on:

Rider position

It is important that the rider sits balanced on the horse. Ideally if you were to remove the rider from the horse they would be able to stand balanced on the ground in the same position they are sitting on the horse. That is, their feet are not so far forward that they would fall back or so far back that they would fall forward. A great way to encourage a balanced rider position is for the rider to spend time riding either bareback or without stirrups.

Ask and release

When asking your pony to do something (e.g. move off, turn, stop etc) you will use some form of pressure as your ‘ask’. As soon as the pony responds by doing what you have asked for, release that pressure. This communicates to the pony that they have done the thing you have asked for. It seems like a very simple thing, but the rider who continues to ‘ask’ for something the pony has already given them can end up confusing the pony (especially if the pony is young and still learning themselves).

Start and end well

Begin your ride by doing something the pony is able to do and will enjoy. This starts the ride well and helps encourage a good frame of mind in both the pony and the rider. You can then move onto new or challenging things. If for some reason the ride doesn’t go as planned and you don’t manage to do the things you were trying to do, make sure you always end the ride with something both the pony and the rider can succeed at. Whatever you do last is the thing your pony goes back to the paddock thinking about and the rider goes home feeling good or bad about. Make sure it is positive so that both the pony and rider will want to ride again tomorrow.

Establish the basics

While it can be tempting to continually be looking to go faster and higher, there is great value in making sure the basics are well established. The rider needs to be able to be well in control of the pony at a walk before moving on to the trot and so on. Hours spent in the saddle learning to understand the pony and gain a balanced independent seat will pay off in the long run. If the rider is finding that things are just not working out as they go faster and jump higher, it may well be an indication that some more hours are required establishing the basics well.

Enjoy your horse

Take time to stop and ‘smell the roses’ with your horse. Hang out with them, brush them, do things together that you both enjoy. You’ll find it beneficial for both of you – after all having a horse is meant to be fun!