[Opinion] Horseback riding deserves as much recognition as other sports
Many people believe that equestrians, or horseback riders, should not be considered athletes, as they sit on their horse while the animal does all the physical work. However, this is untrue as horseback riding is physically and mentally demanding like most sports.
Horseback riding consists of dressage, show jumping and vaulting. Dressage is when equestrians move gracefully with their horse. Show jumping is based on speed and an obstacle where the horse cannot touch or knock over the pole. Vaulting is gymnastics on a horse and is occasionally done in a group with two to three riders on top of a singular horse doing flips and holding each other up in the air.
Equestrians are athletes because they are constantly using their legs and arms to control a 2000-pound horse. When riding, equestrians use their legs by squeezing to keep the horse from slowing down. They also use their legs to communicate what they want from the horse. Core muscles are mostly used to maintain balance and stay on the horse, especially to keep proper form. Their hands should always be still, yet soft while maintaining good contact with the bit– part of the horse’s tack–to have full control.
Horseback riding is just as complicated as other sports. When horseback riding, the rider has to put full trust in their horse. Equestrians have to communicate with their partners and work with an animal twice their weight. As riders guide their horse and control their movements, the rider’s leg muscles come into action, including their quadriceps, hamstrings and calf muscles. Over time, these muscles become more worked and visible because of how much the muscle is being used. For example, when trotting the rider is doing squats with the timing of the horse.
Since horseback riding is a sport, every discipline comes with different objectives and different muscles moving. When jumping, for instance, riders need to have their heels down, shoulders and back straight, legs on and forward, hands forward for a release and body going with the horse. When jumping, riders have to push themselves up the horse with the right timing or else the horse can lose balance.
Vaulters need as much muscle as a gymnast. Since riders do acrobatics and flips, they need to be able to back and front flip. Horseback riding needs more recognition because they do more than one discipline and every discipline demands different muscles in the human anatomy.
Vaulting is dangerous because the horses and riders are doing tricks in the face of danger. One fall could end deadly for the rider, especially when horses are easily scared, making it difficult for riders to stay on. Riders need a lot of muscles to do those tricks and to stay on at the same time.
Horseback riding demands focus. When in the saddle, equestrians should always be focused because if the horse gets spooked, the rider could fall or not ride the horse properly. After all, every horse is different to ride and has a different mentality. Some people might say that it is not that difficult or dangerous to do, but an equestrian’s life is in danger just by standing near a horse.
Horseback riding also demands mental strength. Riders have to be able to know that at any point in the lesson or competition, something could go wrong and they could get injured. Every rider must adapt to their horse because of their differences, making some harder to ride than others. The horse could be head heavy, which means they put a lot of pressure on the rider’s hands which in turn, takes muscle to get the horse’s head back up and normal.
After all, the horses do not have much muscle past the knee and can die, which can be hard on the mental health of their rider. Some riders spend hours a week training with a horse, and losing that horse could take an emotional toll almost as big as losing a family member.
A big percentage of the equestrian community is very competitive. People will do everything and anything to get themself first place, which could affect riders mentally as well. This could affect the rider’s mental state by making them think that they are not good enough to compete. The pressure that equestrians feel could come from an inpatient trainer who fails to take time with them to explain what is wrong.
A common theme across all sports is that it is physically demanding. Horseback riding is like all of them; it takes time, patience and energy to get to where the rider wants to get. Equestrians work hard and use their muscles to make their horse understand what they are asking for. Horseback riding is very complicated and equestrians are not given enough respect by other athletes, even though they do just as much as everyone else.
