10/10/2025
Groundwork is everything.
The toxicity of the “ride them through it” and “be a gritty rider” mindset…
The horse world has built a culture around the idea that the epitome of being a good rider is being able to ride a horse through anything.
A refusal to get off.
That endangering yourself (and in many cases, also the horse) is a badge of honour.
That it’s an inherently admirable trait to evade groundwork and try to do everything from in the saddle, even when the horse is showing you that they are struggling.
This belief system has led to many people growing up putting themselves in unnecessarily dangerous situations with their horses.
I was one of those people.
I took immense pride in my ability to ride through horses broncing, rearing and otherwise panicking.
I am lucky I didn’t end up with worse injuries than I have. I put myself in a lot of dangerous situations that were avoidable.
All because I was taught a narrative that to get off the horse is to be weak.
That dismounting was a failure. That it was letting the horse “win.”
But, training isn’t a battle.
And if your training resembles a battleground, you’re doing something wrong.
Creating lasting confidence in horses often involves meeting them where they are, not forcing them to work through increasing stress until they either fatigue physically and stop fighting or mentally shutdown.
We should be encouraging riders to know when to stop when they or their horses are struggling with anxiety and lack of confidence.
We shouldn’t be trying to push people to ignore the alarm bells that their brain is sending them and ride through it anyways.
Ground work is a powerful training tool.
Getting off the horse, even if just for a short pause, can be a powerful reset.
It can allow both horse and rider to regulate.
We need to do away with the archaic “cowboy on” mentality that leads people to believe that they need to endanger themselves in order to become a good trainer.
The best trainers and riders are the ones who learn to operate in a way where they avoid stressing horses to the point of explosives.
Where they can develop a horse without the extreme anxiety.
The best trainers make training look quiet and easy.
Sure, it might not be as entertaining and dramatic to watch.
But it is infinitely better for both horse and rider.
