General Commands

[Nhulme2606]

Was just looking for a bit of advice on general horsey lingo
for example things such as contact, leg on etc. Things that a rider is told/learnt from the get go.
My young daughter has taken up riding and I would like to be able to understand some general riding lingo

Thanks

 

[newforest]

All schools teach differently. You will probably find a vast array of ways we do the same things.

How old is your daughter? I would expect her to be taught the basics of stand, walk on and holding the reins. The technicality comes later in Imo.
Could you have lessons, then you would understand it more.

 

[Jessey]

There is massive variation in what words people use and a lot also depends on the type of teaching and level at which she is riding, but there are also some which are pretty universal I think, I'll try and list a few and others can chime in if they understand them differently perhaps

Contact - is the connection from your hand to the horses mouth via the reins/bit
Leg on - application of pressure from the lower leg
Sit up! - they are looking for alignment of the head, shoulder, hip and heel vertically (not leaning forward/back)
Change the rein - is when you go across the school (often across the long diagonal) and go in the opposite direction
Change the diagonal - when doing a rising trot you have to 'rise and fall with the leg on the wall', its to help the horse balance, as the wall/outside side fore leg goes forwards you rise, as it comes back you sit
Serpentine - is a serpent shape you ride, it can be 3 or 4 loop (or more or less) and is like some S's joined together when viewed from above
Markers - are the letters around the edge of the school, they are in a set order so no matter where you go they are the same
Halt - is to stand still
Gait - is the way which a pony moves which is also related to their speed eg walk, trot and canter

I hope that's helpful

 

[Wally]

If you hear the riding instructor tell the rider to "sit deep" ask them to clarify that as it's one of the terms used in teaching riding that , to my way of thinking is useless!

 

[Skib]

If you are asking about language used in riding - you are right. Some of it can be very confusing and it is just assumed that you will understand. However British riding language is not the same as USA, so you need to explain a bit about where your child is learning and what sort of riding she is being taught.
In Britain most riding schools are approved by one of two organisations -but there are also teachers teaching in a different fashion.Classical, Western and so on.
I began riding as an adult and I used the Pony Club Handbook for quick reference about how things were done and what things were called. It is very dull, very neutrqal but I suggest you start there.

The examples you give are a bit strange for a total beginner child -Most of us here could give you a brief definition but one of the things about riding is that different teachers will use these words in different contexts. And may even have different views on what is best or vary it from horse to horse.

Contact usually refers to the reins. Ideally in a secure and experienced rider, the rein contact implies communication between the fingers of the rider and the mouth of the horse (the two most sensitive part of the body in a horse and a human. In early lessons when students are bumping about they may ride with long loopy reins to avoid pulling on the mouth of the horse. But experienced riders can maintain contact even with a long length of rein.
But the word contact isnt used just to mean communication. Often it is used in a lazy way to refer to the length of the rein. How long the rein should be and how one uses length of rein to restrict or extend the length of the stride is another question entirely. And so too is the shortening of the rein to create a so called outline - regarded as the be all and end all of some dressage competitions and thus of some misguided riding lessons.

There are however a number of words used in riding lessons which are simple, straight forward and often misleading. I will list mine here but others can perhaps add more.


Go large - ride round the outside of the school arena.
Go large on the right rein. Go round the outside of the school turning right at each corner (i.e. clockwise).
Outside - the side of you and your horse and your reins etc. near the edge of the school or on the outside of a circle.
Inside- the side towards the inside of the school or the circle.
Transition. - A change of one gait to another, e.g. walk to trot. or walk to halt.
Turn on the forehand. The horse's forehand means its front legs. The front legs stay pretty still and the hind legs circle round them.
Turn on the haunches - haunches means the horse's back legs. So the back legs stay pretty still and the front end of the horse circles round them. Some schools may call this a pirouette.
Tack does not mean the same as on a boat. It refers to the harness in which one rides. To tack up is to put on the saddle and bridle and to untack has nothing to do with unstitching sewing. It means take off the saddle and bridle.
To pick up the feet of the horse means to lift up each foot - all riders and horses should be trained to do this safely. But picking out the feet means cleaning out the mud and straw that gets into the foot and this is done with a hoof pick.
The word run is used confusingly. Horses run in horse races. But when kids learn to canter they are told not to let the horse run - that word run means a very fast trot.

The word diagonal is the most confusing of all. Especially for kids who may be a bit dyslexic or confuse the left and right hands. You can ride across the diagonal in a school, crossing from one corner to the opposite one. But the word diagonal is also used to teach children to ride in trot in time with the feet of the horse. When a horse trots, the feet move two at a time in two time. The right front leg moves simultaneously with the left hind leg. The left front leg with the right hind leg. This is known as the diagonal.

The name refers only to what the front leg is doing. If the right front moves forward and takes the step, that is called the right diagonal. It comes into riding lessons because in theory and in order to help the horse get its long body round the sharp corners of the school, children are taught to rise in trot on the correct diagonal. That is they must rise when the outside front leg goes forward. A use of language, direction and co-ordination that has driven many of us to despair.