Riding English or Western? Which is safer?

We had another trail accident this week, the fourth this season, that required an ambulance. All four accidents involved solo riders in English tack. Our club facebook posts were all atwitter about the safety of English vs Western tack. As an amateur rider having spent equal amounts of time in both types of tack under similar conditions, I feel reasonably confident in my perspective.

Western tack is safer. 








The saddle fork on a western saddle (also on an iberian, australian, and some endurance saddles) blocks a certain amount of the centrifugal force that comes with a sharp spook, hard buck, abrupt turn or stumbling horse. The stirrup leathers provide more stability and it is more difficult to get your foot caught in the stirrup during a fall.

However, the bulk and heft of a western saddle can also make a wreck worse, such as riders getting bucked onto the neck and caught in front of the saddle, horse and rider falling and getting pinned under the saddle, boot stuck in stirrup with no breakaway option. 

But for your average, run-of-the-mill bolt, spook and buck ... western is the way to go.

Here are a few other considerations/cliches.

- western riders tend to ride harder and faster and are less prone to “riding the brakes” (cross-country eventers, foxhunters, and endurance riders are excluded from this)

- western trained horses tend to be breeds that are less environmentally sensitive 

- western training tends to involve more desensitizing 

- no tack will compensate for poor position (leaning forward or sitting in chair position)

- no tack will compensate for poor training

- no tack will fix anxiety issues

English riders tend to say that they are not comfortable in western tack, feel too far from the horse, and prefer a close contact seat and “wrapping their legs around their horse”, and some are fearful of being speared by the saddle horn while jumping or in an accident.

Western riders tend to say that they are not confident in english tack, with its slippery leather and loose stirrups. And then there is also the concern of comfort over many hours in the saddle for both horse and rider.

Ive competed, trained, jumped and trail ridden for equal hours in both, and I just dont see or feel that much of a difference anymore. It usually takes me a few minutes to adjust to each one when I switch, but the connection and training with my horse always come to the foreground and the tack recedes to the background. Ive never felt limited by either tack. Then again I dont jump anything over two feet.

So how do you choose between western and english? If you plan on doing most of your riding on trails longer than an hour or two, the distribution of weight over the broader surface of the horse of the western saddle will make it more comfortable for you and the horse.

And, odds are, it will be safer too.



Comments


  1. I think good riding is safer than any tack you can have. There are pros and cons to both. Western tack may give you a better "oh shit" handle in the form of a horn, but I have seen people get caught up on the horn and a young girl even got *impaled* by her western horn and died locally. Plus it's a lot harder to bail out of a western saddle. My worst accident (where I broke my leg) happened in a paso fino saddle with a deep seat and a horn, and I would have probably walked away if I'd been in my English saddle. With that said, I'm a sticky rider who can ride through a buck or a spook even bareback most of the time. While I do ride western on a fairly regular basis, I feel that the bulk of the saddle prevents me from being able to control the horse as well with my leg and seat. I do find that novice riders often benefit from a deeper seat (like in a western saddle or a dressage saddle), but there is *no* tack that will save you from a wreck if you're an unfit or unbalanced rider. When I rode racehorses, I was basically on a banana peel saddle-wise and the security to ride race-fit thoroughbreds came from having the leverage of short stirrups and having a lot of physical strength and fitness. And when I compete Arabians in endurance, I almost always ride in a tree-less saddle. Arabians are notorious for teleporting out from under you when they spook, and my ability to stay on and with them comes from good balance, a long leg to wrap around them, and good core strength. Being able to feel the spook coming through the saddle helps too. With that said, I would not put a beginner rider in a racing saddle or a treeless saddle to start. I *would* put them in an English saddle and have them work without stirrups to build strength and balance without the tack. Being able to grab the horn as a last result can be nice if something catches you off guard, but it is not a replacement for good riding. It may be a regional thing here, but all the western riders in the area are scared of speed and cling to their saddles with a sense of false security. We just had a bad wreck at a hunter pace this past weekend and the guy was a western rider. In my personal experience as a trainer, if I take the tack out of the equation, your average English rider will be more comfortable and balanced than your average western rider. I've found that it's easier to teach English riders to learn to ride western than vice versa. I'm sure it varies completely from case to case, but those are my two cents.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for sharing! I think your idea of building balance without stirrups and tack is perfect! Nothing replaces a good seat and balance and of course we all should do more yoga!

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  2. When I was first working with Carmen I tried to find a western saddle for her. I figured I would be safer. However, I couldn't find one that fit (I was trying to buy second hand), so I gave up. Now I find my seat is pretty sticky (self-preservation is a great incentive) but I still would like have an iberian saddle for us. I am pretty comfortable riding in my dressage saddle but I do have a grab strap on the front 'just in case'.

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    Replies
    1. Teresa you are absolutely right! Andalusians are very difficult to fit with a western saddle.

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  3. I think whatever you feel safe in is best. When I was saddle shopping I had NO idea what I wanted. A great saddle fitter came out with western, endurance, english, dressage, you name it, I sat in it (17 saddles the first day!). I wanted something comfortable and secure going down the trails on my then-green horse…when I sat in my Arabian Solstice trail/dressage I knew, it was THE ONE. I've ridden through a lot of silliness in it, (and I am certainly not the best of riders), but it fits me great (and the horse) so that matters.

    That being said, I'd put a beginner in a western saddle, as much for their sake as the horses. The whole weight distribution aspect for riders who are unbalanced is better, and they feel more secure.

    A local trail riding place uses all endurance big horn saddles, a good balance of a western feel without that pokey horn to get caught on while ducking branches.

    I hope the woman heals quickly, what a scary experience.

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