Riding With Style… Western Style

The Western style moves a horse makes can be just a bit different from the moves taught in English style trained horses. A Western competitive horse is often taught to do a roll-back, and also long-slide reining. It is also trained to neck-rein, which means that the horse will move to the right or left depending on which side of the neck the rider applies pressure with the reins.

One of the central aspects of training a Western horse is the quality of the pace. These paces are called the jog and the lope, and are essentially a shorter-stride version of the trot and the canter.

One specialized move is the Western spin. Performed at full-speed, the horse will pivot smoothly on the inner hind leg. All the moves that Western horses are taught were originally developed for working with cattle. Cutting horses are the standard for horses that perform real work on cattle ranches. However, the Quarter horse is the superior example of Western show class competitions.

A Western saddle is made with a horn at the front—also called a pommel—which can carry a looped rope, or can affix a rope when the rider is lassoing cattle. Western horses use a curb-bridle or a bit-less bridle, and the saddles are made with long stirrup leathers to allow the riders to use a straight-leg position.