What Is Reining?

Reining is often called "the Western dressage" — a sport that showcases the athleticism and willingness of the stock horse through a precise pattern of circles, spins, sliding stops, rollbacks, and backup. Judged on a 0–80 point scale by NRHA rules, each maneuver receives a score from -1.5 to +1.5 points added to or subtracted from a 70-point base score.

A great reining horse is soft, supple, responsive to the lightest aids, and appears to work on its own — a horse that "loves its job." The sport demands both physical development and a deep training foundation built correctly from the ground up.

The Reining Training Progression

There is a right order to building a reining horse. Trainers who skip steps create problems that must be fixed later — often at the expense of the horse's confidence and career. The correct progression:

1
Complete Groundwork FoundationYielding fore and hindquarters, backing, desensitizing, loading, respectful halter work.
2
Forward, Straight, and RelaxedHorse must want to go forward willingly. A dull, heavy horse cannot learn finesse.
3
Steering and Lateral SoftnessOne-rein stops, direction changes, lateral give on both sides.
4
The Stop — Walk to Trot to LopeBuild the whoa at each gait before adding speed. Seat-based stop before hand-based.
5
Circles — Large/Fast, Small/SlowSpeed and size control within the circles. Horse maintains gait without constant cueing.
6
Lead ChangesFlying changes after circles are solid — never before. Simple changes first.
7
Spins and RollbacksAdvanced maneuvers added last. Spins require complete lateral training foundation.