How did you choose a riding discipline?

[DJohn]

My horse chose.

I have become fearful of hurting my horse, as he got very sick and nearly died 8 or so years ago. I was jumping him before he got sick and having so much fun. After that, I became scared which made jumping not so fun. We did the occasional fence and I just couldn’t make myself do it with all the “what ifs” running through my head. I then trail rode him a lot (he prefers trail 100% to ring work). I taught him to pull a cart (he loved it).

Now we mostly stick to flatting (hunter-ish style) and trail riding. I often wish I could pop him over a jump, but whenever I do I hang onto his face and he gets fast/scared. It’s all my issues, so we just stick to w/t/c. Thankfully his canter is a dream and it makes me smile all day long, so there isn’t much need for anything else. I hope to take him camping eventually, which he would love.

As a child I started western, but really only liked the crazy stuff (barrels, adventure trail riding etc). As soon as I got my first horse (ex-trail horse with 0 arena training), I taught him how to jump. I went a year or so with no saddle so I rode him bareback over all sorts of jumps. We jumped x-country fences, jumper, hunter etc. He would jump anything and everything. I was fearless, as was he! My sister and I would do puissance competitions. When you’re fearless, jumping draws you in I suppose!

Oh how the times change!

[Herbaceous]

When I started taking riding lessons, the local lesson barn was hunter/jumper so that’s what I did. After many years (and a fair amount of pressure from my mother, who was worried I’d get hurt jumping), I switched to “dressage”, still at the same barn. After moving to a different barn, I discovered that the instructor I’d had at the first place didn’t know what she was doing, and basically found myself having to start over from scratch. Continued in dressage for several more years (only lessons, no showing), switched barns a few more times, and eventually found myself in an eventing barn.

I’m still riding at the eventing barn, doing mostly flat classes and popping over the occasional crossrail when the spirit moves me. I don’t actually event (I am terrified at the thought of cross-country), but it’s not fair to say I only do dressage when I am getting back into jumping a bit.

I’ve also started doing a bit of trail riding at a local western barn that has a membership program which allows me the flexibility to ride when/if I have the time, and I’ve signed up for a cattle herding clinic in a few months.

[Nestor]

I started in h/j world, as that’s really the only way around New England to start lessons as a kid except western, but I had connections in the english world.

Since then, I’ve done what my horses do. My parents bought me a young QH when I was almost in high school, and even when I bought him, I said I didn’t care what I did, as long as he was happy. And it turned out he loved to event. And it turned out so did I! He grew into a XC ace, absolutely took care of me and was just a machine, and was super careful for stadium. We did not figure dressage out. :lol: But we had a heck of a lot of fun!

When he was shifted into semi-retirement for navicular, my then-BM-now-dressage-trainer offered to let me ride a horse that her client was about to give to her… a lovely 14yo Hanoverian who I had always thought of as a bit more than I would ever ride. I was actually too nervous to even accept her offer, my DH had to talk to her for me! :winkgrin: We ended up getting along fabulously, and so I switched to dressage. That was 6+ years ago! I still believe he would have been a fabulous eventer (lovely dressage horse, loves to jump, tons of stamina), but at his age, we’ll stick to playing around on his fun days.

So now I’m pretty well settled in with dressage, though I would certainly love to event again, but I wouldn’t even know where to start anymore. My plan for my next horse is to do what I’ve done with my current guy, which is to train in dressage but have fun jumping, galloping, or trail days periodically. That pretty well settles my desire for eventing.

[amb]

@Keenah

So, how did you pick whatever it is you do?

Mostly random chance, but I think it worked out really awesomely.

I was a horse-crazy kid just outside of White Plains and eventually wheedled my way into lessons at the local barn, which seemed like it was run by a nice guy. Turns out the guy was a decently big name with the H/J set, Wayne Carroll, but in a non-horsey family I had zero clue about the history of him, Secor Farm, Gordon Wright, or anything/anyone else. About my only complaint is that H/J barns of the time were more “here’s your tacked horse to ride” and less overall horsemanship, but I was into it enough to fix that and I eventually ended up cleaning stalls and doing some exercise rides for him. I learned a lot from Wayne, and he gave me some huge, huge breaks. Speaking of breaks, though, I broke a leg in a bunch of pieces (not riding) and was off horses for a long time, barn closed, Wayne died, and I went off to college without having ridden in the Maclay final.

Adult rerider, had looked around a few times but not liked the vibe of what I’d seen, and finally a friend dragged me along to a group lesson at a very low-key eventing barn I’d never heard of. “Oh, just this once, sure.” That was several years ago now, and it’s been an incredibly good fit for me; I love all three of dressage, stadium, and cross-country, and the vibe of the local eventing scene is just awesome. (I’m sure there’s some bickering drama around here somewhere but I’m riding several times a week at two different barns and I haven’t seen much at all.)

I did at least do some barn shopping for the “adult rerider” part of my life, and have three suggestions:

1. Go with your gut if a barn skeeves you out.
2. Try lots of different things. Nothing wrong with a couple of lessons here and there. If somebody says their way is the only way see #1.
3. Especially since you’re thinking about ownership: find someplace where you’re doing the full routine. Fetching your horse, grooming, tacking up, then at the other end cooling off, blanketing, turnout, maybe some feeding.

[sophie]

I grew up riding English and since I was taught by French Cadre Noir instructors it was first dressage, then jumping indoors, then jumping outdoors. So combined training was my discipline of choice all these years and luckily, the horses I owned and rode over the years agreed with me. I also did / do some trekking, and when I was younger I did some vaulting (I love gymnastics so it was a natural progression for me) and I loved it.

I tried western riding and couldn’t get used to the saddle.

A few years ago I decided not to event or compete anymore, so now I just do what my (now 19 yo) mare likes doing, mostly playing with dressage movements, taking the occasional dressage lesson / clinic, and jumping stuff when we both feel like it (well, SHE is always game, but sometimes over-enthusiastic, lol) . The only “competition” for us now is Hunter Paces, because they are so much FUN!

At my barn there are lots of older re-riders who rode and showed as teens and want to get back into it, and they have a blast on the lesson horses doing the barn and local shows.

[Dutchmare433]

I grew up eventing. Started taking mini lessons at 3, regular lessons by 5, I went to my first event by 11. I just happened to fall into it because my parents’ friends evented and that’s who I rode with. I loved it, but as I got older, I got put on the tough horses because I didn’t have the money for my own. Dressage started really clicking in high school, so I’d ace the dressage then bomb x-country.

In college, still no horse of my own, made the dressage team and have been doing that ever since. It’s really where my passion lies. Though it’s important to me that any horse I own be able to safely trail ride, and to enjoy doing so.

However, during and after college I got hooked up with some fox hunters…and man, is that the most fun ever. I rode lots of really game, really brave horses…even the really green ones didn’t bother me. It helped me get my desire to jump back.

The horse I currently own, I would probably follow his lead if he decided on a discipline other than dressage, but he’s such a happy guy, (like a labrador…everything is fun…let’s do more!) The horse I owned before him finally put her hoof down and was really saying NO to the dressage work, but she loved to jump. Tried to fox hunt her, but she became dangerously unglued by the whole thing. I wasn’t willing to give up dressage and trail riding, so I sold her to someone who wanted to jump and stay in the ring.

[Draftmare]

@Equibrit

Horse chose!

Seems like that is where I always end up!! The mare I had before my current one I really wanted to jump and maybe even event on. I knew nothing about her breeding/past when I got her (she flunked out of the local therapy riding program, was free, and the hefty look that I loved, so I snatched her up) other than she was forward and english-like. Turned out she could barely manage a pole 6 inches off the ground. So that went out the window pretty fast. Found out a year later her bloodlines and she was pretty hardcore halter bred, previous owners had used her for barrels and as a broodmare, and the owners before that used her as a reining horse. :eek: I ended up using her a western pleasure horse and trail horse.

My current horse I again really wanted to event, but we had a bit of a rough start, and then I had an accident on a different horse that kind of scared me off of jumping. Ended up in dressage with her, after a year of struggling to compete against the warmblood types, we switched to western dressage and haven’t looked back. I just recently moved to a barn that has a strong hunter/jumper crowd and instructor, started taking jumping lessons, and both of us are loving it. Don’t think I will event, but I may try a foray into the hunter world since I still have all the clothes and tack. :lol: At least in the hunters all the jumps will fall down if we get in trouble.

[CorazonLock]

I had always dreamed of eventing but didn’t have a trainer nearby for that sort of thing.

I started out riding English at a local, casual barn, with semi-crappy instruction where I learned to jump small fences.

I got out of horses for about four years, and then in high school, was dazzled by the barrel racing and gaming scene, but mostly wanted something to compete in 4H with.

I got my first horse, a QH, who rode both English and western. I expected to do well in pleasure and games. We did terribly. Poor Rusty had no collection whatsoever for the pleasure classes but not enough oomph for the games.

So I played around with him and started jumping him. He was kind of a butt head about it, but I remembered how much I loved jumping, so I started taking jumping lessons without Rusty. I fell back in love, and then pretty soon, I started bringing Rusty to lessons. We had a rough start with him not really wanting to go over fences, but once he figured it out, we never looked back. Within a year he was one of the most honest jumpers out there.

The local stable did hunters and jumpers, so Rusty and I did the hunter ring. He actually makes a game hunter horse, but I hated the eight fences. Eventually, I had some issues with him getting a little bit buddy sour with the other horses, and we never could get our lead changes. He’d place well in under saddle classes though!

I trail rode him some and even took him out to the Black Hills, but to be honest, he isn’t a fun trail horse. He’s too ploddy and gets grumpy around the other horses. Sometimes, he gets too worried about where everyone is and loses his brain, forgetting to navigate obstacles carefully.

I started looking for an eventing trainer, trying out two before coming to my current trainer. I drive two hours one way for lessons, usually biweekly, and we’ve had an absolute blast. I wasn’t sure with Rusty’s attitude on trail riding that he would make a great xc horse, but honestly, he will jump anything. He’s schooled xc less than 10 times and has caught onto it super quickly, jumping some novice and even training fences. He understands that when he jumps off the bank, it’s on to the next fence. And even though he’s hunter-y, he has learned to love the stadium and has gotten to be quite forward.

I guess my discipline preference is based on what I like aligning with what my horse likes. If he weren’t so honest, I’m not sure I’d be eventing. He is a quirky ride, but I know his quirks and that he is safe, so that’s what makes something that is such an adrenaline rush suitable for an anxious person like myself.

[eclipse]

I grew up in England watching all the amazing British show jumpers in the 70s , although I didn’t ride. Then I moved to Calgary at 14 and Spruce Meadows was just really starting to take off (early 80s) so I’d go with my mom every summer to watch Then at 30 I decided to learn to ride, so picked up the phone book and the first barn that answered is where I went (I got very lucky, 20 yrs later I’m still there LOL).

I started once a week on a lesson horse, moved to a lease for a few years and then bought my first horse who took me all the way to the 1.15 jumpers. Now I’m loving hunters with my younger guy and planning on starting some real 1.10 derbys this year in my older years, while I still enjoy jumpers, I love the feeling of a beautiful hunter round and I’ve no real desire to go back to bigger jumper land

[JLR1]

I would have to say I am among the random chance and worked out great choice. I rode a little as a kid, mostly bareback but when I wasn’t too lazy to throw a saddle on I had a hunt saddle. When I bought my first horse in my early 30s I first fell in love with Arabians and then by chance had a friend that was dabbling in dressage. Dressage clicked for me. I’m too afraid to jump and enjoy the process and theory of dressage. 20 years later I’m still doing dressage with Arabians and can’t imagine anything else…although I know this is the road less traveled.

[Mango20]

I started out at 6 at the farm next door, which was eventing focused and had a BHS certified instructor. We really lucked out with that one being what was next door, or things could have turned out differently. I did a few hunter shows and a few events. Eventually, I joined Pony Club, and did everything: Dressage, Eventing, Show Jumping, Games, Tetrathlon. Games and eventing were my favorites. I never stopped riding, but there were several years of a lot less riding. I stopped competing but still trained in an eventing way. Now I’m eventing again, and even played mounted games again a few times! I also really like trail riding. There’s no need to limit yourself to one discipline.