We all know that the best way to improve your horse riding ability is through practise. Unfortunately like many other sports, there is no quick fix or overnight shortcut to perfecting the art of riding horses. Falling off, dusting yourself down and getting back on is the only real way to progress. Making mistakes and learning through those mistakes is the only sure way to improvement and development. Any professional equestrian athlete will tell you of the blood sweat and tears that has gone into their careers and journeys as a sportsman or woman. However, there are many online horse riding lessons that can seriously develop your ability and advance you as an equestrian! If you have a busy schedule or find that very regular horse riding lessons are time consuming, online resources may just be the answer to your prayers. Online horse riding courses have become incredibly popular since the spread of Covid-19 and the subsequent lockdowns worldwide. As restrictions begin to lift, many people are still enjoying the benefits of learning from home.

Qualified professionals put many of these online resources together, so you are in great hands. There are so many to choose from and each course varies, some concentrate on horsemanship whilst others aim to improve on fitness and physical technique. We’ve put together some of the best online resources out there, whatever your aims in the equestrian world; these courses will help you get there.

1. HorseClass

Outside of official courses and qualifications, there are hundreds of blogs online that make it their mission to share informative and helpful resources related to all things equestrian. Each blogger will vary in experience and specialism, so it’s worth doing some research into the blogger and their background. HorseClass posts a new training video or blog every Friday and covers many topics, in the saddle and out of the saddle, even covering exercises for both you and the horse when you’re not riding!

HorseClass team also offers free online horse riding workshop that is an amazing resource for all types of equestrians.

2. REIT TV Academy - Get Online Feedback About Your Riding

REIT TV is a very popular Youtube Channel from Germany, which creates online video content about horses and riding. Their new project,  "REIT TV Academy" is a platform, that focuses on improving your horse riding skills online.

What you need to do is, sending your riding video to REIT TV Academy team first. Then their professionals will individually analyse your ride and give you tips on how to improve your horse riding skills significantly.

By the way, Horse Riding Network visitors have an exclusive discount of 25% with the promo code: hon-25 on REIT TV Academy orders.

3. Online Horsemanship Course - Krystal Kelly

To be a well-rounded horseman or woman, you need to be able to understand the language of the horse. If you can’t understand what the horse is telling you, then you don’t stand much chance of communicating effectively. When you can understand your horse and your horse understands you, you can enjoy a successful partnership. This course created by Krystal Kelly, is called Speak the Horse Language: Master Your Horsemanship Energy and it aims to help equestrians of any level to achieve several objectives, including learning about pressure points, earning trust, mastering your seat and warming up in the saddle.

4. Finding the Right Horse Riding Coaching Online - Noelle Floyd

Every rider knows how difficult it can be to find the right coach, finding a coach that brings out the best in you and your horse riding ability. Trying out a few different coaches of various specialisms is often a good idea, however many of us just don’t have time to commit to having several riding lessons from numerous instructors. Noelle Floyd’s Equestrian Masterclass solves that problem! This useful website comprises a number of talented coaches, who all specialise in different approaches and have different strengths.

5. Become a Horse Riding Coach - Krystal Kelly & Rita Mihalaki

Another great online resource by Krystal Kelly is Be a Horse Riding Coach – How to Teach Others Horsemanship. This course teaches you how to begin to be a horse-riding instructor and teach beginner horse riding lessons; it covers all the basics and some more advanced topics such as basic dressage exercises. For this course, no horse is required, just a basic level of horse knowledge. By becoming a member, you are introduced to a different kind of equestrian education, one that gives you access to the best teachers and coaches, through video courses, training programmes, workbooks and a close community of fellow equestrians who are all learning and developing together.

6. Essential Skills for Horse Riding - Alexandra Mannerings

This handy and informative online course is created by Alexandra Mannerings and is titled Essential Horsemanship Skills: How to Handle and Ride Horses. It does exactly what it says on the tin and provides a brilliant foundation for those wanting to expand upon their experience. It helps to have a horse at hand, but you can also complete the course without a horse. The course teaches you how to ride a horse in three gaits, safely and effectively, how to tack up, lead and more. With plenty of tips and tricks such as how to tie a quick release safety knot, it’s a great investment of any horse enthusiast’s time, especially at the current time when horse-riding lessons are more difficult to arrange due to Covid-19.

7. Essential Skills for Horse Riding - Wehorse

Another brilliant resource for building essential skills for horse riding is Wehorse, an online platform that offers coaching and tips from top horse riders such as Chris Bartle and Ingrid Klimke. The membership is affordable and easy to use, allowing you to choose from a number of categories from rider seat to show jumping and horse care! With over 30 coaches and over 90 courses, you’re not going to get bored anytime soon and the best bit is you can learn flexibly, whenever suits your schedule.

8. Online Classical Riding Academy

The Online Classical Riding Academy is the brainchild of Heather Moffat, international riding trainer with over 45 years of experience of coaching. Heather has trained people of all levels and has a simple and effective approach to topics, with clear demonstrations and explanations. The resource is essentially an online platform of videos, teaching everything from riding to horsemanship.

9. The Virtual Equestrian

This is a website that offers free online equestrian courses, designed by the Equestrian Canada Learn to Ride National Program… yes you read that correctly – free. The courses are taught by certified instructors and coaches who are both knowledgeable and passionate. The courses include a theory aspect and practical application, both equally important.

10. BHS Qualifications

If you live in the UK and you’re serious about progressing and taking the next step in your equestrian career, then the British Horse Society is the way to go. They have recognised qualifications and courses, many of which you can do online. The BHS online resource hub has all the information that you need, including learning and assessment preparation.

Bonus: Social Media - Equestrian Pole Club Facebook Group

It’s worth mentioning that Facebook is an amazing resource in itself for horse riders and horse lovers. There are literally hundreds of Facebook groups dedicated to providing forums to share and discuss everything equestrian. There are riding club groups, horse event groups and even polework and gridwork groups, dedicated to bringing you polework and schooling tips and inspiration for exercises for you and your horse. Equestrian Pole Club is a good sample of these groups.

Whatever you decide to do – there’s a huge array of online horse riding lessons and resources out there to suit everyone, from the beginner wanting to take their first steps to the aspiring dressage rider or coach. Hone your riding skills at home or work on building your knowledge of horsemanship and horse handling around your other commitments while you have fun and improve! By the way, do not forget to try Horse Riding Exercises at Home to improve your strength while you spend time at home and improve your riding skills.