Adaptive Horse Riding: Western Saddles

Video Transcript

"My name is Raeshell Sorensen. I'm the Equestrian Program Manager here at the National Ability Center. This is some of the equipment we use here. This saddle is a western saddle. It's a small western saddle. But we generally start our riders in this type of saddle because it provides a little more stability. It kind of holds the rider in a little better. They also have a horn to hold onto so that they're scared, they can feel a little more secure. In the assessment going on behind us, we're using another western saddle such as this, and we generally use these saddles for assessments because they are more stable and more secure. Also, it's the general idea of riding. Most people when they see riding, they see a western saddle; they see the cowboys, so for a lot of kids this is more fun. They get to be the cowboy as well. We always use safety stirrups. These tapaderos which cover the stirrup help to keep rider's feet from slipping through. We allow riders to ride in tennis shoes because some people because of leg braces or what not, can't wear boots or can't afford to buy boots so we have safety features such as this on our saddles."