Riding whips and crops for the best horse performance
As any avid horse rider knows, a riding whip or crop helps to move or direct horses, ponies, or other lifestock around in the direction in which you need to go. You can find various different types of whips and crops depending on your equestrian requirements, from those needed for hunting, jumping, dressage, training or pulling loads. Each are designed to different specifications, so it's important you find the right horse whips and crops for your usage, from beginner to advanced levels.
Riding crops and jumping bats
A riding crop is a type of horse riding equipment that typically has a leather loop, otherwise known as a popper, to alert the horse. The grip on the other end makes it a comfortable hold. These types of whips often come in black, tan or blue leather and are used for hacking, show jumping, horse racing and other horse event-based sports.
Jumping bats are similar to riding crops but have a larger popper on the end. These bats are often adapted for comfort with loops on the end to keep the crop secure on the rider's hand. Some riders however, believe these to be risky should the horse rider encounter a fall.
Lunge and carriage horse whips
Horse whips are typically longer than your average riding crop, used for training or driving horses from a distance. In the case of a lunge whip, the horse would be trained in an arena without a rider to break them in, before allowing a rider on the horse, to build up its confidence and trust in the first instance.
Schooling crop or dressage whips
These tyes of whips are used during dressage and again are longer than the riding crop. During dressage, a rider is expected to have slightly different types of horse equipment, with a dressage whip as one of those necessities. These dressage whips allow the rider to reach the very back of a horse, whilst maintaining in the right position on the saddle to impress, particularly during competitions.