Riding and Driving. The art of riding may be divided into (1) ordinary riding, (2) school riding, (3) circus riding, and (4) side-saddle riding. The two objects aimed at in ordinary riding (which includes riding on the road, hunting, pig-sticking, stock-driving, breaking in young and freshly handled horses, playing polo, race and steeplechase riding) are to remain in the saddle and to make the animal carry its rider with the greatest possible ease to itself. The former of these objects is the one almost entirely aimed at by the breaker when giving his first lessons; the latter, by the flat-race jockey. Hence we find that the saddle and seat adopted by the Colonial buckjumping rider are those that are best suited for 'sticking on.' The large pads on the flaps of his saddle are about six inches deep, and are curved backward, so as to fit against his thighs, a little above the knees, in a manner similar to that in which the third crutch (or leaping head) acts on the lady's left leg in a side-saddle. The seat of the jockey, instead of being that in which most security can be obtained, is the one by which the rider can best conform to the movements of his mount. Hence we find that, even in Australia, many of the best jockeys on the flat are but very poor performers on a buckjumper. In all kinds of riding balance rather than grip should be the chief means for retaining one's seat in the saddle, for if muscular action be constantly employed to 'stick on' the muscles then brought into play will soon become tired, and will be unable to act at the very moment their aid is most required. One valuable rule in riding is that, except when applying the leg to the animal's side, the leg from the knee down should remain unaltered in its position, so that neither knee nor foot will work backwards or forwards. The movements of the upper part of the body should be regulated by the play of the hips. There should be no hollowing out of the small of the back or pushing out of the chest, or any other action which would give rigidity to the muscles. The great reason why any approach to stiffness, when riding, should be avoided is that it has to be maintained by muscular effort and is consequently followed by fatigue. As soon as the muscles become tired they are weak and slow to act. Consequently, if they be kept stiff (or, more correctly speaking, in a contracted condition) they will be unable to do any work they may be called upon to perform in as effective a manner as they would do were they kept limber. Hence a person should ride, as a rule, by balance and not by grip, until the moment comes to put forth the required muscular effort. The rider should endeavour to avoid the two very common faults of holding on by the reins and of putting too much weight on the stirrups, and he should try to ride with his seat well under him and not stuck out behind. If he find that he is insecure in his saddle he should allow no false shame to prevent him from getting one in which he will have a firmer hold. To give this additional grip the saddle may be covered with buckskin, or with leather the rough side of which is put on the outside. The saddle should be roomy. The back part, upon which the seat rests, should be fairly flat; the seat ought to have a good 'dip' in it; and there should be tolerably large 'rolls' on the flaps. To become a good rider one will require plenty of practice, and a frequent change of horse and saddle. The English style of riding, which has been adopted with marked success in the hunting-field, racecourse, steeplechase-course, and polo-ground, is treated clearly and systematically in Captain Hayes's Riding (Thacker & Co., 3d ed. Lond. 1891). There is also much valuable advice given in that excellent work, Colonel Greenwood's Hints on Horsemanship (Moxon & Co., London). In the Badminton Library book on Riding (Longmans, Green, & Co.) this subject is treated from the old-fashioned riding-school point of view, at which we shall presently glance.
In school riding the object of getting the horse to carry his rider with the greatest possible ease to himself, which is the chief aim of the ordinary rider, is sacrificed to a large extent for increased control, so as to get the horse to perform the various airs de manège with precision. The English military riding system is a kind of compromise between that of the continental haute école and the English hunting style. Although great improvements have been made in high school riding in France and Germany, the riding instruction contained in The Cavalry Regulations has remained practically unaltered for the past thirty years. M. Baucher, we may remark, was the great master of school equitation of the previous generation. His system has been much modified for the better by Captain Raabe and M. Fillis, although these masters differ in some details from each other. M. Barroil's Art Équestre (Rothschild, Paris) is moulded on the teaching of Raabe. Principes de Dressage and d'Équitation (Marpon and Flammarion, Paris), by M. Fillis, contains all his views. Both are most valuable works on l'équitation savante, and should be carefully studied by the student. Previous to their appearance Mr E. L.
Anderson wrote Modern Horsemanship on the same subject; but it is neither so elaborate nor so instructive as either of the other two, which ought to be read conjointly. Of the two we prefer that of M. Fillis, especially as he teaches that the horse should carry his head in a freer and less fatiguing style than that advised by M. Barroil, who in this respect follows the instruction of Baucher. In M. Fillis's book there are some valuable commentaires sur Baucher.
Although exhibitions of school riding are often given in a circus, we must separate it from circus riding, which, properly speaking, is limited to performances (standing, leaping, dancing, and tumbling) in an upright position, either on a pad or on the bare back of a horse. The only part which we could term riding, in the usual sense of the term, is the 'bounding jockey act,' in which the 'artist,' while riding round the ring, takes off his saddle, stands on it, gets off his horse, and jumps astride on him and on top of his back while the animal is galloping round.
In side-saddle riding the lady depends for security of seat on balance and on the grip she has on the upper and lower crutches. Her right leg is placed over the former, and she presses her left leg, a little above the knee, against the latter when she seeks their aid. Her left foot should not be placed 'home' in the stirrup, but only as far as the ball of the foot; and the heel should be slightly depressed. If, when her left leg is held in this manner, she can just feel the pressure of the lower crutch, the length of her stirrup will be about right. The only pace at which she should put weight on the stirrup is the trot. The great requisite for obtaining a 'square' seat, which is the one correct position for a lady on horseback, is for the rider to put her weight on her right leg, and not equally on both, as is often wrongly advised, and to bring the left shoulder up as much as the right. The body should be free from all stiffness, and should be kept erect by the play of the hip-joints, and not by hollowing out the small of the back and pushing out the chest. She should try to get her seat well under her. We would strongly advise the use of the 'Scott stirrup,' which will always release the foot in the event of a fall. The best book on ladies' riding is The Horsewoman (Thacker & Co., London), by Captain and Mrs Hayes. French ideas on ladies' riding are expounded in L' Amazone (Rothschild, Paris), by M. Musany.
The art of driving is studied in Great Britain chiefly with the view of having the horses in perfect control, which is necessitated by the hilly nature of the country and by the crowded condition of the thoroughfares in the cities and towns. In America and Australia there are better opportunities for fast driving. Hence in England a showy style of trotting is sought for, while speed is more thought of in the United States and in the Antipodes. Although strenuous efforts are being made to establish trotting as a sport in Britain, and trotting meetings are often held at the Alexandra Park, Liverpool, and elsewhere, we greatly doubt whether it will obtain any permanent footing.
The best books on driving are Driving (Badminton Library); Riding and Driving, by J. H. Walsh; Coaching, by Lord W. P. Lennox; Down the Road, by C. T. Birch-Reynardson; American Trotters, by Hiram Woodruff; and Among the Trotters, by John Splan. See also the articles BRIDLE, COACHING, FOXHUNTING, HORSE-RACING, and TROTTING.