“Just” a Trail Rider – Part 1

Don’t Use a Love of Trail Riding as an Excuse to Avoid Learning and Improving

There’s a phrase I often hear when talking to horse people. Usually, I hear it at the start of my clinics, when we all introduce ourselves and tell a little about what we do with horses. The words are, “I’m just a trail rider.” 

I want to discuss the implications of this mindset. It’s not intentional when people say this, but it seems like a way to set the standard or expectation low, whether for oneself or others. It implies a casual approach or one that is not too demanding in schedule or technicalities. People who say this about themselves suggest that their riding is mainly a hobby and/or a pursuit of pleasure.

Now, don’t get me wrong. Of course, there is nothing wrong with enjoying horses as a hobby and not wanting to compete or show. Being laid back in our approach can mean we take more time to work through things. But I don’t believe having a simple hobby like trail riding excuses us from pursuing the best approach and increasing our knowledge in every way possible. There are plenty of folks who approach trail riding as simply an enjoyable pastime and they have no ambition to understand the horse better or improve their riding. A person may get along doing this in a very average way for a long, long, time—especially with a good horse. Let’s be honest—it doesn’t take much skill to sit on a horse as it follows along nose-to-tail up the trail. But a passive approach to trail riding does a major disservice to both the rider and the horse, and the consequences can sometimes be dramatic.

Many times the rider ends up injured because of a lack of solid preparation or understanding. Situations that are entirely avoidable can result in injury or loss because of ignorance. Circumstances are not as cut and dried as all the people with advice or opinions (seems like there are a lot of those) would like to make it, or as simple as what you saw in a YouTube clip one time. It’s not just a matter of “Show ‘em who’s boss!” or “Get right back on when you get bucked off!” 

A classic example of this is the common opinion that you should never get off when you’re facing a challenging situation. This is because many folks believe it’s quitting; once they’re off the horse, that’s the end of the conversation because they lack the ground skills. And of course, you wouldn’t want to end that way and show the horse that refusing to try is acceptable. But if we’ve made good groundwork part of our study in horsemanship, then stepping off to continue the conversation in a different way—one where we may be safer, more effective, or confident—is not a problem at all.

There are literally thousands of possibilities when we start to look at the combining factors that form these dangerous situations. Going into these circumstances with no plan or preparation is like going to get your driver’s license with absolutely no practice or study. Continuing to “just trail ride” without intentionally bettering your horsemanship and skills is like that uninformed 16-year-old saying they don’t really need to get any better at driving because they’re not going to be a professional race car driver. It never ceases to amaze me what people get away with not knowing about their horses (and many of them don’t get away with it).

This lack of intentional improvement can also be a detriment to the horse that is not ridden well. Any dude can sit on a horse and meander down a trail, but if you notice older trail horses who are ridden a lot and may be in top cardiovascular fitness, you will see many who are quite weak in the core and topline and lots who have a big sway in their back. This is for lack of proper gymnastic development and correct riding that builds and sustains a strong core and topline. They are ridden a lot, but they’re not ridden well. 

Next month I’ll discuss some of the common problems trail riders face and how to deal with them. Stay tuned and I’ll catch ya down the road!

“Just” a Trail Rider – Part 2

See this article in the July 2025 Online Digital Edition:

July 2025