What equipment do I need for reining?

Reining equipment requirements are both discipline-specific and highly individualized — specific in that certain equipment is nearly universal across the competitive discipline for reasons rooted in the sport's rules and the specific athletic demands of reining maneuvers, and individualized in that the bit, the specific saddle, and the specific leg protection combination that works best for any given horse and rider is a product of that horse's training stage, that rider's skill, and the specific way the horse and rider move together. The reining saddle is the most significant equipment investment and the one that most directly affects the rider's ability to ride the specific maneuvers that reining requires. A reining saddle is characterized by a deeper seat than a pleasure or trail saddle, a relatively high cantle that supports the rider during the stop, a slick seat that allows the rider to move freely during turns and circles, and a close-contact fender that allows the rider to feel the horse's barrel and apply leg aids with precision. The position that a correct reining saddle places the rider in — slightly behind the center of balance, with a long leg and a soft lower back — is the position from which the deep-seat stop cue is most effectively applied. The bit progression in reining reflects the horse's stage of training more directly than in most other western disciplines. Young horses in early training and futurity horses in their three-year-old year are shown in a snaffle bit as required by NRHA rules for certain age divisions. As the horse advances in his training and his responsiveness to the aids becomes lighter and more refined, the bit typically progresses through increasingly refined shanked options — two-rein work with a bosal and shanked bit simultaneously, and eventually to the finished horse's fully shanked bit in the appropriate curb or spade bit tradition. Sliding plates — the specific horseshoes used on reining horses' hind feet — are the equipment item most unique to reining and most directly responsible for the long dramatic slides that define the discipline's most famous maneuver. Sliding plates are wider, smoother, and longer than standard horseshoes, providing a larger contact surface with the arena footing that allows the hind feet to slide rather than dig in when the stop is engaged. The specific sliding plate configuration is a decision made by the farrier in consultation with the trainer based on the specific horse's conformation, movement, and the footing of the arenas where the horse works most regularly.