This week the Riding Instructor recounts the story of her own best Christmas ever. She was 14, and she was about to become the proud owner of her very first horse. (more…)

Introducing students to the sport of eventing can be challenging–logistically, financially and practically. Our intrepid columnist the Riding Instructor explores the issue. (more…)

For a riding instructor, teaching people how to maneuver around on a horse is only a fraction of their job description. Our columnist explains. (more…)

Where does it come from? How does it accumulate, or disappear? Why does it come so easily to some riders while eluding others completely? The Riding Instructor contemplates. (more…)

Re-riders: “women ages 35-60 who rode as teenagers and who now, having raised their kids or acquired independent incomes, are returning to their youthful passion.” (more…)

Santa might be well-intentioned, but he isn’t always well-informed. Here’s how our ever-tactful columnist The Riding Instructor handles this annual week-after-Christmas dilemma. (more…)

Think Black Friday is unnerving? Try horse shopping, any day of the year. This week, The Riding Instructor offers some advice for sellers to streamline the process for buyers. (more…)

Like many horsepeople, The Riding Instructor is mourning the loss of precious post-work riding and teaching time thanks to Daylight Savings. How to manage? (more…)

How does your trainer stack up against this list of principles that The Riding Instructor uses to guide her work as an instructor? Or, if you’re a riding instructor yourself, do you agree? (more…)

At every riding school, there’s an unwritten parental code of conduct: what to do, what not to do, what to say, what not to say. Our columnist, The Riding Instructor, presents some basic guidelines. (more…)

Just because your child wants a pony doesn’t mean he or she is ready for a pony. Before you take the plunge, check out The Riding Instructor’s list of childhood horse ownership prerequisites. (more…)

This week, the Riding Instructor shares her experience of teaching three generations of a family–all in a single lesson. (more…)

Horse shows offer riding students an opportunity to put their skills in action–and practice other virtues, like persistence and sportsmanship, in the process. The Riding Instructor shares some insight. (more…)

This week, The Riding Instructor offers some tips for helping students work their way through steep learning curves without frustration. (more…)

This week, the Riding Instructor discusses the “curious paradox about horseback riding that so many people both love it and are terrified by it at the same time.” (more…)

Spills are bound to happen. This week, the Riding Instructor explains how best to proceed when a student’s confidence gets shaken. (more…)

An old photograph reminds The Riding Instructor of how she learned to jump, which she then compares to her own method for introducing students to over-fences work. (more…)

Today’s topic: Your student’s first canter. Our columnist discusses introducing this brave new gait in a way that inspires confidence, not fear. (more…)

Up this week: the camp instructor’s “secret weapon” for educating and entertaining. (more…)

Teaching gifted students comes with a fragile responsibility. This week, The Riding Instructor explores a paradox she describes as the “Talent Trap.” (more…)

There are students who like horses, and there are students who love/eat/sleep/breathe horses. Is it possible to accommodate both? (more…)

A good lesson horse is hard to find. This week, “The Instructor” introduces us her to her favorite sort of schoolie, whom she aptly refers to as The Dream. (more…)

This week, The Instructor sings the praises lesson-barn working students, whom she describes as “the grease in the wheels” of her lesson operation. (more…)