Learn to Ride Sidesaddle! Part II…

Last week, we talked about the nuts ‘n’ bolts of riding sidesaddle… what the art represents… how to find a correct saddle… what makes a good sidesaddle horse? This time, we’ve got our saddle, our trusty steed and our boots are on. We’re ready to ride.

 

So, I’m riding sidesaddle. Now what?

One of my goals while riding sidesaddle, is to hold my own personal concept of good horsemanship as my ideal. I am not interested in being a curiosity, an oddity in a costume or a figure of fun. Nor do I want my horse to pay the price of a sore back so that I might follow my passion.

 

I’ve decided that I am after the very same skills, level of proficiency and horsemanship when I am aside, as when I am riding my ordinary saddle. If I follow this guideline, seldom will I go wrong.

 

Sidesaddle riders tend to be the gals who enjoy the limelight. We like to stand out in a crowd. However, there are other, more useful, reasons to ride aside. Both women—and men—with issues of hip mobility and arthritis have taken to riding sidesaddle with encouraging results. The World Paralympic Games have featured high-level dressage riders and their sidesaddles. Many therapeutic riding programs successfully use sidesaddles for people with issues of balance, flexion or spasticity.

 

For those of us dealing with ageing or the effects of injury, sidesaddle can allow us to keep riding after we think it’s time to quit.

Where will you ride?

I would like to say that wherever you ride now, you can ride aside… with a few exceptions. If you are planning to compete, it is important to read the rule books. Some organizations, such as the International Arabian Horse Association and nationally recognized hunter shows, have specialized sidesaddle divisions. Others, like the American Quarter Horse Association, do not permit riding sidesaddle in their sanctioned shows.

 

Most open shows and dressage competitions welcome sidesaddle riders, provided they inquire about doing so well before the event. It is considered a courtesy to request permission from the organizing committee whenever we want to ride aside in open shows.

 

Sidesaddle riders can be found trail riding (both competitively and for pleasure), fox hunting, cattle penning, reining, jumping, eventing, showing dressage, racing (on the flat and point to point), riding in parades and giving demonstrations all over the world.

 

People are fascinated that our horses go so well and that we riders are so secure. Always, they want to know about the magic that goes on beneath our skirts!

The only time I don’t like to see a sidesaddle being used is if the horse is very young… if he is badly behaved… if he rears… if he shies violently… or if the saddle obviously does not fit the horse or rider. Remember, a bad display of horsemanship is not what we want the general riding population to see.

 

Are there skeptics out there? Unfortunately, yes. Whenever they see a horse moving with a sore back, or crookedly, they point fingers. Whenever they see a rider who is not upholding the standards of good horsemanship, they shake their heads. Be it resolved that whatever our sizes, whatever our ages, that will not be us!

 

Aw, do I need to go to lessons?

For a while, yes. Riding sidesaddle is a bit like ballet. It looks effortless when well done but there is a lot of muscle memory and core strength that we don’t just find on our own. Lessons are a good idea, even if you’re already a good rider. One of the reasons I urge beginners to find a teacher is that it’s easier to start with good technique, than it is to change bad habits. Even experienced sidesaddle riders should get themselves in front of a coach as often as possible. We need to make sure we are, in fact, sitting straight.

 

In a nutshell, we are wanting to sit square with our horse. Our shoulders should mirror his shoulders, our hips be as square to his as the saddle allows. We must sit tall and poised, yet without any stiffness. Our elbows must be bent yet held close to our sides. Our right thigh must run parallel to the horse’s spine. Our left leg should not be clamped under the leaping head but should be at a similar position as to riding astride.

There are two mantras that will keep one out of trouble. “Right shoulder back!” is gospel in keeping the rider from doing an anti-clockwise twist to the left. If this should happen, all security is lost and the rider invariably goes out through the offside back door. During the first few lessons, an experienced coach might ask you to stay on the right rein only to counteract this tendency to twist left. In the very old days, ladies’ horses were taught to canter only on their right leads to assist their riders in staying straight.

 

The second mantra is, “Right heel back!” toward the left shin.  This is the purchase, our secret grip, that keeps the sidesaddle rider so secure. You can practice the feeling of power by pressing the flat side of your right foot against your horse’s left shoulder. Doing so will move your knee strongly against the fixed head. For safety’s sake, we never want to see the rider’s right foot creeping up her horse’s neck.

 

The security of the sidesaddle seat is found because our centre of balance is behind the long bones of our thighs. To get thrown over the front of the horse, something we are most susceptible to while riding astride, our hips must be moved ahead of the pommels. Thus, if we can stay straight and avoid the dreaded left-hand twist, our seat is very strong. Because of this, so many horses that pull mightily astride will go feather-light when ridden sidesaddle.

 

While we are riding at ordinary walk, trot or canter, we sit in a relaxed but poised position. We do not want to clench the left thigh against the leaping head. This is a tiring, cramping habit to get into and unfortunately, is one that is all too often seen. How we avoid this is to make sure that our left thigh has about an inch or two of space between it and the curved leaping head. An easy way to check this is to make sure the flat of our left hand can easily fit into this space.

Instinctively, we know that clamping our left thigh under the leaping head is a very secure position.  In fact, it is what we call our “emergency grip”. By either pressing up with our leg, or else leveraging our toe down and heel up against the stirrup, we can exert great force on the lower pommel. This makes it fairly hard for us to be thrown. Because it is a clenched position, the emergency grip should only be used to see ourselves through a bad spot.

 

When we get into the habit of riding, particularly cantering, with our emergency grip, horses become tense and swishy. They may even threaten to buck. We, ourselves, will tire quickly and cramping will be commonly felt in our legs. When we are first learning, it is very hard to resist the impulse to grip and our teacher may have to keep reminding us.

 

From then on, it is a matter of mastering the core strength that is needed to keep from leaning back or rowing at the canter. Our goal is a rider who floats along with her hat completely still and level, her hips quietly absorbing the motions of her horse.  Done well, there is nothing like it. A good sidesaddle rider makes it look easy!

Once we get a start, I also encourage riders to learn to be properly ‘put up’ on their saddles. If you don’t have a strong helper, you must teach your horse to stand still at the mounting block or else the fender of the trailer so that you can mount. Never climb on from the ground, as once you pull your saddle off centre, it’s nearly impossible to get it straight again without unsaddling. Many of the English saddles won’t allow us to mount up by the stirrup, anyway, without the safety fittings on the stirrup leathers popping off.

 

Dismount by halting your horse, putting your reins and stick in the right hand. Drop your stirrup and bring your right leg behind the pommels so that you’re facing left. Spring up and away from the saddle, keeping your rein hand on the pommels for stability. Practice landing lightly on soft knees, turning a bit so that you’re facing the same direction as your horse. This method will keep you away from the saddle so that you neither lose coat buttons by getting hung up, nor risk scratching your saddle with your pants pockets.

 

A chivalrous man can aid us by giving a steadying hand as we land. Sidesaddle riding has a strange way of bringing out the chivalrous knight hidden in all our men!

 

Once you’re riding straight and feeling confident, it’s only a matter of time before you will want to follow your own area of interest. Jumping, dressage, reining, cowboy challenge, showing pleasure horses on the rail… whatever your age or expectations, sidesaddle will be a fit.

 

Well heck, this is hard work!

Be patient with yourself while you’re learning. Just because you are experienced riding astride, don’t have the same expectations of yourself at first. This will come. Riding sidesaddle requires a huge amount of technique, like regular riding does, but it also requires a strong core.

 

There are two main muscle groups that will surprise you when you start. First are the abdominals that run down the front of your tummy. Imagine the shaking that happens while one is doing ‘the plank’ at the gym. Building this core strength over time, is key to your enjoyment on your sidesaddle and also to the elegance with which you will sit your horse.

 

Well done, the rider will appear suspended by a string from the top of her head, her torso will be long and the small of her back will be just slightly concave. I like to think of the calendar gals straddling their Harleys on the walls of the tire shop! It’s a matter of lengthening and embracing our curves.

 

The second muscle that new riders get acquainted with is the long quadricep of the right thigh. By keeping this muscle at work, we can centre the bulk of our weight at the point where our right leg crosses our horse’s spine. This keeps our mass from bumping up and down on the backs of our saddles.  Our right leg might complain horribly, at first, but our horses will grow to thank us.

For me, a lifelong rider, every winter I lose my core strength. This is getting more marked as I get older so I’ve learned a coping technique. Each spring, I start back to my sidesaddle riding for maybe only five to seven minutes, tops. By riding aside at least three or four times per week, I increase my riding by one or two minutes each ride. In about two weeks, my key muscles have completely regained their strength and once again, I can ride aside for almost any length of time.

 

It’s important while we’re learning that we recognize when we are losing strength. When we are getting tired, we must bring the horse back to the walk, swing our right leg back over to an astride position and give ourselves a few moments to recover. Tired muscles do not have the ability to hold us in position. Riding tired will do more to get us riding wrongly than anything else. More importantly, if you are hurting while riding sidesaddle, it is almost a given that your horse is, too.

 

More on technique…

Now that we’ve had our first few lessons, it’s time to finesse our position. Always, we must bear in mind that our hips and shoulders must be straight to the horse. How do we enable this?

 

When first one sits on her saddle, even before throwing her right leg over the horse, she should move her hips forward so they sit evenly in the sidesaddle’s ‘sweet spot’. While we’re riding, our left hip will want to inch backwards, while our right hip moves ahead. Therefore, the trick is to bring the right leg up, over and around the fixed pommel without moving the hips. This is your default position, your reset button, whenever you get tired or feel yourself sitting crookedly.

 

I was taught to lock my right leg against the fixed head by taking my left hand and holding the relaxed inner thigh muscle of my right leg upward. While I do this, I firmly and quickly shove my right leg down, putting my heel back and holding my right foot against my horse. Doing so creates a sort of ‘suction’ that keeps the right knee down and against the saddle with little effort. If you’ve danced, you will understand the concept of ‘turn-out’ for your feet… sidesaddle equitation employs a similar technique.

 

My leg position will be completely correct if I point my right toe downward and against my horse as I ride. This not only keeps the right leg from cramping, it stays back from the horse’s shoulder and lets the apron lie smoothly… without an unsightly bulge at my foot.

The left leg must hang in a natural and relaxed position at the side of the horse. The stirrup is merely a foot rest and nothing more. When we put too much weight in the iron (and this can be seen when the heel is sharply pressed down) we will pull our saddle to the left with every stride.

 

The Old Guard held great store by riding with a lot of boot showing under the apron. There was no cheating by riding with a short stirrup and an ongoing emergency grip! A regular test of this was to take the student’s stirrup off the saddle entirely and have her trot and canter with her left leg hanging straight down from the hip.

 

Straightness can be best evaluated from in front and behind. Is the gullet of the saddle, along with the central seam of the jacket and breeches lined up with the spine of the horse? Can the rider look down and line up her buttons with the horse’s mane? When viewed from behind, does it seem as though an ordinary astride rider has had her right leg chopped off? For the horse’s sake, there must be no leaning!

Very little of the rider’s weight is on the left hip. You can imagine there is a tack under this hip but don’t overdo or you’ll tend to ride in an twist. I prefer to imagine that all of my weight is centred where my right thigh crosses my horse’s spine. There is a feeling of poise (which is actually the strength of one’s core) that has us almost sitting forward. Only this sensation keeps us from dropping our weight on the horse’s loins.

 

While the hips are key to sitting properly, our shoulders are also a sign of straightness. If your horse’s poll was the point on a triangle, if there were strings running from the crownpiece of the bridle to each of your shoulders, would these strings be the same length? It’s all too easy to have the right string shorter.

 

In fact, I seldom see pictures of myself riding when I don’t wish my right shoulder was further back. This is the biggest reason why western sidesaddle riders must train themselves to hold their reins in the left hand… so that the right hand can hold the romal and help keep the rider straight.

Keep your head still at all paces, especially the lope or canter. The rider’s loins must work independently to absorb the motion of the horse. Envision yourself riding with a string pulling you up from the crown of your head. Your neck will touch the back of your collar and you will turn your head at 10:00 or 2:00 o’clock as you make your turns.

 

The rider must keep a soft and relaxed angle in the elbows so that there is a straight line between the elbow and the horse’s mouth. It has become a modern fad to have the rider’s hands low and wide to hold one’s horse into a frame.  This is incorrect. If the horse is going roundly and not over bent, the rider’s hands will generally be on either side of the right thigh, up towards the knee.

 

Be mindful of keeping your coat sleeves against your sides so that there isn’t an airspace or it will appear as though you are square dancing!

 

Always, the look is of studied elegance.  Our position should in no way take away from the beauty of our horse.

 

Dirty habits… what shall I wear?

For day to day riding and lessons, it’s best to keep it simple. Boots and breeches with a helmet are required for most lessons. Older boots that are out of style are best as they are short enough to not dig in back of the right knee. Yoga pants and paddock boots also work. Western riders must be careful to not wear jeans with rivets, blingy pockets or studs that will scar their saddles. Be especially careful of flashy jeans whenever your friends want to jump on and ‘have a go’.

 

It seems that most gals who get involved with sidesaddle eventually want to have a habit, which is what we call the traditional ladies’ attire. Understand that what makes sidesaddle turnout so elegant are the longstanding traditions. We veer away from these at our peril!

 

That means that we don’t wear lace flounces or trailing skirts. We don’t wear bustiers and leather capes like Lara Croft in Tomb Raider. Historically, women are made more beautiful when they dress to underline the inherent dignity and beauty of the horse… and never to cheapen or distract from it.

English turnout is traditionally very strict. Our hair is severely drawn back into a neat bun, pinned so that this bun touches the brim of the hat. Two hairnets and a good spray will generally look after any straggles. Flowing locks are found only on television ads for tampon commercials… and remember that jewelry is discouraged beyond the wearing of a plain, manly stock pin and tiny gold studs.

 

Keeping with tradition, one has a choice between wearing a hard bowler or a silk top hat, depending on the hour of the day and the formality of the show. Nowadays, we’re encouraged to ride in modern safety-approved helmets. Rulebooks require them for junior riders and in classes over fences. When we’re not wearing a helmet, however, our tautly-tied black veil is truly elegant!

 

One wears either a stock and plain pin for formal occasions or when hunting, or more informally, a white shirt with collar and men’s tie.

Breeches should tone with the habit. Boots are plain black dress boots, not lace-up field boots because these traditionally were worn only by men. There is one spur worn along the seam on the left boot. Gloves are always brown, even when wearing black. Depending on the day, our rider will carry either a hunting whip with thong and lash or else a leather-covered cane.

 

The habit is made of a matching jacket and apron. The jacket is cut traditionally with padded shoulders and curved arms, a slim waist, with double rear vents and a cutaway front. Under this low-cut front is a woolen or linen vest of canary, cream or tattersall check.

 

The apron is a weirdly-shaped garment that evolved with women’s safety. It is meant to not hang up on our saddles, should we have a fall. It must hang dead straight, box-like and lie absolutely still along the side of the horse. The back and bottom hems will hang level even during wild weather and galloping. This is achieved is by expert tailoring of heavy wool twill in either navy, dark grey, black or muted brown tweed… by wearing correct undergarments… and by making a very deep hem. When all is working as it should, with the excess wrapped snugly under and around the right toe and fastened with a loop of elastic, the right boot will not be seen.

Sadly, none of this is had cheaply. Nor is wearing a woolen habit an entirely pleasant experience in the hot summer sun! People will try and sew riding garments of lightweight fabric, weighting the apron’s hem, but seldom do they achieve the desired results. 

 

Instead, one’s creative side can be appeased with habits made to historical patterns, using richly-coloured fabrics and longer, flowing jackets and apron skirts. When we do so, safety and historical accuracy must always be our guides.

 

Western gals have somewhat more leeway. If showing in recognized shows, then we’ll wear an apron skirt that usually tones and is embellished to match one’s modern rail shirt. The western apron is expected to cover both boots but for safety, will not hang below the horse’s knees. Our hats will be beautifully shaped, either in black, white, silver belly or otherwise tone with the outfit… and our gloves and woven saddle blanket will be the same. The rider can carry a romal and/or a long whip in her right hand, if needed.

 

If we’re not showing at approved shows, we have historic photographs to guide us. The big difference here is that we can ride a western sidesaddle in either a longer apron, a cutaway prairie skirt with a safety opening made on the off-side seam, or else a split skirt made of heavy corduroy or fringed leather.

 

Our hair must still be tidy but we can wear the flamboyant ‘Gus’ hat, silk scarf, gauntlets, a wide bronc belt and gorgeous high-top boots. One spur is worn on the left boot heel. Western sidesaddle turnout is sexy, colourful and always fun!

 

Where do I get my sidesaddle fixed?

A word to the wise. When it comes to repairing your sidesaddle, there are people you’ll want to avoid. Many saddle makers who otherwise do good work, don’t put the care and attention into a sidesaddle that they otherwise would, Repairs are often needed to ‘undo’ many a saddle’s previous fix.

 

Be especially wary if the person repairing your saddle wants to replace the original pommels or seat as these things, in particular, require skills that are seldom seen. Many western saddle makers want to remove the English panel entirely when faced with one.

 

Generally, repairs on all antiques must be done in a restrained manner, hand sewn, with any fixes being hard to make out.

 

Basic repairs such as new billets or western rigging can be carried out by any competent saddle maker. It is wise to have these done, as too many of us are riding happily along on saddles that were last checked when people flew biplanes! Trust me, if you’re nervous at the thought of bending the billets in case they crack, it is time to replace them. Doing so will not devalue your antique.

 

While I always encourage newcomers to learn their riding technique on old-name English sidesaddles, these saddles do have one major drawback if you live in the new world. In North America, particularly here in the west, we have a serious shortage of craftspeople who are knowledgeable about flocking panels up to fit.

 

Sadly, we see many old saddles riding low behind, putting an incredible amount of pressure on the horse’s loins and spine because the saddles haven’t been flocked since the time of the Great War. All other things being equal, western bar trees are probably easier to fit.

 

This bears repeating: a love of sidesaddle riding and all its romance must NOT come at the expense of the horse.

 

Take a ride on the wild side!

No matter your age, your achievement, your interests, the breed or size of your horse, I urge you to try riding sidesaddle. Able bodied or otherwise, riding aside has nothing to do with shunning the modern rights of women. It transcends fads in fashion.

 

Because riding sidesaddle is not political, because it does not represent big money in the futurities or the show circuit, it is timeless. It is the art of womanly horsemanship. I encourage anyone, of any age, to give it a try.

 

For forty-five years I have loved everything about riding sidesaddle. To know about sidesaddle is to know the history of women and their horses. We must not forget.

Did you enjoy your virtual sidesaddle lesson? Please share your thoughts!

 

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