You may be keen to know how to start riding bridleless if you’ve been inspired by recent events.
Much of the interest generated recently is a result of the first British Bridleless Competition. Mia Rodley of The Heart of Horsemanship, who organised the show on 31 May 2026, has long said that any horse and any rider can go bridleless – but not straight away.
Her number one top tip on how to get started in bridleless riding is:
Leave the bridle on.
Steps to riding bridleless
“The bridleless riding is the pinnacle, it’s almost showing off!” Mia says. “It’s showing that you’ve got that connection with your horse.”
So if you want to start riding bridleless, as is the case with anything to do with horses, there’s a lot of work involved to get to that point, but it’s something you can start on straight away.
Relaxation
“First and foremost, you have to have relaxation,” Mia says. “Your horse has to be calm, and able to stand still, on the buckle, without having to halt them. You’d be amazed how many people can’t just stop and chill on a long rein – that’s the first step.”
Once you have relaxation at halt, you need it in all paces; you must be able to walk, trot and canter, on the buckle, at all times and in all situations.
“Can you do it on a hack?” Mia says. “Can you do it in a warm-up at a competition? Is your horse really calm enough to not have to pick up your reins? That’s the first game and challenge a rider can give themselves; if I want to ride bridleless everywhere, or in a competition, can I do it in a competition environment with my bridle on?
“The game is ‘Don’t touch my reins’, or count, how many times do you need to pick up the reins in a ride. That’s another really good exercise, because any time you touch your reins, if you were bridleless, that could be a dangerous situation.”
Connection
Once relaxation to this level has been achieved, the next step is connection. The phrase Mia uses is “calm, confident and connected”; the horse must be calm and confident in his environment, and have the connection with his rider.
“My favourite way to read connection with a horse is their ears,” Mia says. “Can you sit on your horse and cause the left ear to flip back on to you without touching the reins? It’s gauging the level of connection you have with your horse’s mind; can he think back to you or is he looking into the distance at the sheep?”
If so, the test is, can you then keep this while successfully asking for the basic yields; a turn on the forehand and haunches, backing up?
“You have to be able to go forwards, backwards, left and right where you want, without touching your reins,” Mia says. “Then again, in walk, then trot, then canter.
“Count how many times you have to touch your reins while doing this as that’ll give you a really good gauge of whether you’re ready to go bridleless.”
Bridleless riding is the “pinnacle” – there’s a lot to master before you get to that stage. Credit: Evelyn Young Photos Legend Photography
Emergency brakes
“Your horse has to be able to stop, from a canter, if things get emotional,” Mia said. “Unfortunately a whistle stop and a treat isn’t going to cut it in that moment; verbal signals will not work in an emergency. If the horse has bolted, you have to be able to push the turn to slow them down.”
Mia carries a stick, used to inform rather than ever to punish; she has explained before that using the stick to “push the air” by the horse gives him the information to turn, or when needed in an emergency, to stop.
“You’ve got to make sure your horse is ok with the stick,” she says. “A lot of horses have trauma around sticks but once they’re trusting and confident with the tools, you can use them for communication. It’s like a one-rein stop, but rather than pulling on the inside rein, you’re pushing the outside. You can pair that with a whistle, and really reinforce the behaviour to interrupt a bolt or spook, but it’s got to be so solid.
“You need to practise and rehearse your emergency stop a lot – and that’s all before you take the bridle off. Because although this is more natural for horses, most haven’t been trained in it; it’s a new form of communication with the rider and they have to learn it too.”
The relationship
But what if the relaxation, the first step to master if you want to start riding bridleless, isn’t there? This is how it becomes clear that bridleless riding is the means rather than the end; without building the relationship, it is not possible.
“Relaxation first, in all gaits, all environments, on the buckle first and foremost, and that’s massive,” Mia says. “It takes a long time just to get to that level with any horse, whether it’s a warmblood or a cob. That’s where most of us do a lot of groundwork already, a lot of personal development. We’re really looking to improve our own awareness of our horses.
“That’s where liberty work comes in so much for me with bridleless riding, because really it’s the same thing, you just take it under saddle.”
How long does it take to go bridleless?
The main thing to remember if you want to start riding bridleless is that this will take time; no one should just “give it a go” without the foundations.
“I was doing a step by step, how to ride bridleless, at a demo and someone said ‘What happens if your horse won’t stand still?’ and I said ‘Then you’ve got a lot of work to do before you take your bridle off’,” Mia said. “If you can’t just stand on a long rein and let go, you’re not going to be able to do anything else; the horse is not relaxed if they can’t just stand.”
Safety
Safety is of paramount importance. At the British Bridleless Competition, all who competed had to apply, by sending in videos of themselves riding bridleless, including evidence of the ability to perform three different emergency stops, and the class they wanted to enter. All warmed up in some sort of bridle, watched by Mia, while horsemanship expert and relationship judge Lyla Cansfield had the final say on whether each combination was allowed to compete.
“And obviously when horses are learning, it’s really important they’re in a secure space as well,” Mia says. “You have to have checked out every scenario and situation and rehearsed it with your bridle on before you take the bridle off.”
Benefits of bridleless riding
Many people, including dressage judge Mary-anne Horn, have commented on how relaxed and tension-free the horses at the British Bridleless Competition looked – but again, this is a result of the process rather than the bridleless riding itself.
“It’s because we’ve put so much emphasis on the connection first,” Mia says. “Serena Kullich is such a good example; her horses all go so beautifully and that’s because of the work she’s done to get them riding bridleless.”
Not having reins to rely on also means the rider has to use their seat and legs more effectively.
“A great quote is, ‘You exaggerate to teach, but you refine as you go’,” Mia says. “When you’re not using your reins, you might have to exaggerate your body language a bit more to get a turn or a stop – and that’s really good for the human to do as well, as it’s the conscious competence to get what you’re asking, and then it becomes second nature.”
Equipment
The neck rope is important but this is not about neck-reining; it sits at the base of the neck, which has plenty of musculature to protect key structures and minimal nerve endings, and it should never go more than halfway up the neck.
Neck ropes will not be needed for those who are looking to start riding bridleless, but for when you get to that stage, they should be made at least partly of leather so if, in an extreme situation, your horse gets its head down or stands on it or it catches anything, it will break.
Bridleless training
There are many ways to get help to start riding bridleless. Mia gives lessons and clinics, and there is plenty of information on how to work towards it in her online academy for subscribers.
Lyla Cansfield and Tracey Duncan are among the other trainers recommended.
Bridleless competition opportunities
A series of British Bridleless Competitions is planned; there will be at least one more this year, although the date and venue are yet to be confirmed, and the plan is also to include bridleless competition at next year’s British Liberty Show at Hartpury. Follow the British Bridleless Competition social media for updates.
- Enjoyed reading this? For more expert training advice from top riders and coaches, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website
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