Silly question - When are you not considered a novice?

[IAmCrazyForHorses]

What is the next level up from a novice? When are you considered to be more than a novice rider, what do you have to be able to do to be the next level up?
Silly question really but wanted to know
Thank you guys xx

 

[Wagtail]

I think the step up from novice is what I would class as 'experienced novice'. That is someone who may have been riding twenty years or more but still needs professional support for some elements of horse care or riding. For example someone who has kept their horse always on full livery due to work commitments and never actually had full responsibility of the care of the horse. There are novice owners and novice riders. They are not mutually exclusive. If I were to start showing, I would class myself as novice because all my experience is in show jumping and dressage. And within disciplines it is all relative. Most people comparing themselves to Charlotte Dujardin would be novice in comparison.

 

[Elvis]

Classifications such as novice, intermediate and advanced for riding ability are so subjective I don't think they are a suitable way of describing a rider.

For example in a riding school a novice rider might be able to walk and just learning to trot, intermediate might be walk, trot and learning to canter and then advanced walk, trot, canter, jump.

But actually in the 'real world' these classifications can be quite dangerous. An 'advanced' riding school rider might see an advert for a horse that says 'not suitable for a novice' and think that they will be fine, but really they are far from capable enough to deal with said horse.

I know some places categorise their riders according to the BHS riding stages which can be a more appropriate way of describing a riders capabilities.

Essentially what I'm struggling to say is ability is very subjective. I'd call myself a novice rider, I can walk, trot and canter confidently with and without stirrups, I can work most horses into a correct frame (ie 'on the bit') and improve their way of going. I can jump a course of jumps in balance and make alterations to aid a horse in jumping better. For someone who has just learnt to walk, trot, canter and jump they might think I'm an advanced rider.

How would you describe your riding? And then maybe people could tell you what level they think you are at and what you need to achieve to 'go up a level' as such.

 

[Equi]

It depends what you call yourself. To me a novice rider is someone who can walk, trot, canter and do basic jumps and knows things like diagonals and leg yeilds. I would say i am just one notch above a novice as i have only had three lessons in 20years (this is why i 'm a crap rider)

 

[windand rain]

In my view a novice is a rider that can manage their own or a riding school horse and are able to walk, trot, canter gallop and jump to about 70cm. An advanced novice can ride a variety of easy horses and can handle them on the ground on their own including adjusting and fitting tack
An intermediate rider is able and confident to ride in balance a young or badly behaved horse and can improve its way of going and can manage a good standard of care for a variety of quirky horses
An advanced rider can get the best out of any horse they sit on and can turn out their horse to a high standard and look after a sick or injured horse properly and can compete at a high level within the horses capabilities
You do get a lot of cross over though as someone may be a novice rider but an advanced horse carer