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The first rule of horse riding arena etiquette is check the bookings diary to see if anybody has already booked the arena. Sharing with consent is quite normal but not everybody wants company if they've paid for an expensive private lesson or are trying to train a child or novice horse. Indeed, you may not welcome the prospect of sharing an arena with somebody who is training for gymkhana races, Le Trec or even some disciplines within Western riding!

Having ascertained sharing is possible you need to knock on the door and ask permission to enter the arena if it is an indoor school. For an outside arena simply ask permission to enter and wait for a gap between the horses sufficient to enter the school. Shut the door/gates quietly.

Move swiftly to the center of the school on the center line to adjust your girth, let down stirrups and put your gloves on, blow your nose and stroke your lucky rabbit paw. Later in your session if you need to tighten or loosen your girth leave the outer track and turn in on the center line before halting. Don't try to be smart and do either task when moving in company, it's dangerous.

Mount up quietly, check your girth and move off into a space, on an inner track. Fastest horses are always given the outside track. If you are moving in the same direction as the other riders but at the slower speed always adopt the inner track.

If you are moving in opposing direction to the other riders then you need to be passing Left to Left. This is a historical habit which originates from the days when knights carried swords in their right hands. If you met a strange knight whom you had no evil intent towards you would approach in such a direction that he could see you would pass left to left, with your reins in your left hand. He therefore knew you weren't about to stab you with your sword. If he resisted this approach and approached you from the right you knew you were in trouble!

Don't tailgate the other riders, it's bad manners, lacks imagination and is potentially dangerous place to be if their horse takes offense at yours. Make full use of the arena, corners, center line, quarter and three quarter lines. Don't hog one end, especially if it's the end with the best floodlight.

If you are sharing with young or novice riders or riders with young horses or highly excitable horses always warn them when you are about to start cantering. Respect their requests to not pass them in canter. You may have to circle more times than you'd plan to achieve this.

In the event of a badly behaved horse rushing round out of control, in danger of hurting itself, its rider or somebody else you should do the polite thing and get out of the way! No seriously, you should bring your own horse back to a halt in a corner or out of harm's way in the center of the school.

Before putting up jumps or trotting poles ask consent of the other riders.

Remember to "poo-pick" after your session in the school. Some yards expect this to be done before you leave it, others will allow you to put your horse away first. Before leaving the arena remember to alert the other riders so that they can be prepared for their horses deciding work-time is over and that they can follow yours back to their stables. If it's a very posh riding establishment you may have to pick out your horse's feet before leaving the school, watch for other riders doing this so that you don't embarrass yourself later.

Finally, if you fall off remember to shout "Loose Horse" as you part company. This alerts other riders to your predicament which they may have been blissfully unaware of, especially if you are riding in one of those lovely international sized arenas.

Learn more about this author, Sarah J Palmer.
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