We are celebrating Plus Size Riders throughout the month of July on YourDressage! With that celebration, we have partnered with SmartPak to offer three awesome prizes for the readers and writers of Plus Size Riders Month. Learn how to enter here!
Here, a versatile rider and trainer from Region 3 shares her experience navigating the horse world as a plus-size rider, from finding equipment and apparel that fits and is affordable, to the way it affects her teaching style and training program.
By Josey Lillibridge
I’m Josey Lillibridge Shepard, and I own Gray Lily Farm in Havana, Florida. I currently have two personal horses, along with my husband’s horses, lesson horses, and a handful of sale projects moving in and out throughout the year. My heart-horse Bonfire, Jockey Club name “Speightsville” (Speightstown x Cristal – Semenenko), is a 2007 chestnut off-track Thoroughbred (OTTB) gelding. My up-and-coming horse is a 2021 dark bay Trakehner gelding named Newcastle, who was bred by my dear friends Sarah and Daniel Mills.
My riding career has evolved through the years, leading me to focus on slightly different disciplines based on my goals with the horses I had at the time. I grew up eventing, where I developed a strong background in dressage, but show jumping was my favorite phase. Since I had no desire to continue beyond the Preliminary level, I found myself doing more jumpers in my twenties. Then I decided I wanted to join some friends in the hunter world for a while. This is when Bonfire entered my life.
I purchased him off a single photo, at the advice of an amazing OTTB contact I had in Ocala. He was four years old, and two weeks off the track. I rode him the day he arrived at Gray Lily. Of all the OTTBs I’ve owned, trained, and sold, I never clicked with one as quickly as I did with Bonfire. From day one, I knew he was destined to become my next long-term horse.
Over the next several years, I brought him along primarily as a hunter. I like well-rounded horses, so we’ve dabbled in some jumpers and even a little cross country schooling.
This is tough to admit, but I have been a “plus-sized rider” for most of my adult life. While it’s easy to look at me now and say, “Well, of course you’re considered plus-sized,” it was quite difficult to accept when I was a really fit eventer and still considered “plus-sized” compared to my peers; at the time, I was already wearing the largest sizes available on the riding apparel market. Luckily, my own coaches looked past my physical size. They focused on the rider I was and the rider I could be.
In my mid-thirties, “adulting” led me in a new direction, and I decided to get back to my dressage roots. I needed a new goal to work toward and decided to earn my USDF Bronze Medal. Always game for anything, Bonfire stepped from the hunters into the dressage arena. About 18 months later, we accomplished our goal. I can proudly say I achieved my Bronze Medal on my self-trained OTTB, with the help of some wonderful clinicians, including Jodie Kelly, Chelsea Akavickas, Judy Downer, and Greta Wrigley. I have big plans to earn my USDF Silver Medal on Newcastle – he just doesn’t know it yet.
I have owned, ridden, and shown a ton of different horses in my lifetime but have only had a handful who were MY horses: those who were never destined for resale, those who I wasn’t just riding for a short time for one reason or another.
Bonfire has been that horse for me in my adult life. He has been in my barn for the last thirteen years, every single day. I can count on him like I count on the sun to come up every morning. He has been my hunter and dressage horse, has gotten me safely back into the saddle after numerous breaks in my own riding career due to challenges arising throughout my life, and has been an invaluable schoolmaster within my lesson program. This means more to me than any of the awards he’s won or any of the “fancier” horses I’ve had the pleasure of sitting on over the years.
When I decided to begin teaching and training professionally again, I knew that focusing my program on teen and adult riders meant I would need to obtain appropriately sized horses and tack to fit them. I have seen other programs advertise they are open to adult riders, then implement weight limitations, expect all riders to fit into 16” saddles, or ride 14-hand lesson ponies. I would have been turned away from those barns when I was successfully eventing at the Preliminary level; I haven’t been under 150 pounds and 5’8” since I was 14 years old, so I know the struggle all too well.
While I strive to foster a size-inclusive, supportive environment within my own barn, I believe the most important aspect of any equestrian program must always be equine welfare. In order to maintain a safe and effective program for our horses, I have to ensure clients are realistic about their own abilities and expectations. I tactfully discuss areas where I believe they may be struggling and offer them exercises, both on and off the horse, that will help them be more effective riders despite their body type.
Because I’ve never been the typical statuesque rider you’d see on the cover of a magazine, I can recognize how and why the physical struggles happen better than some instructors who’ve always had riding come naturally to them. I then help my riders develop correct biomechanics, regardless of size or shape. I have found that physical weight rarely determines a rider’s fitness level. Some of my most well-balanced, tactful students have actually been the larger riders in my barn family.
However, that does not mean I’m equipped to welcome all riders into my program, regardless of size. I do still have to ask for a rider’s height and weight when asking about their previous riding experience to make sure I have an available and suitable horse for them. On rare occasions, I have had to let riders know I could not accommodate them; the horses always come first.
Whether competing or not, riders need to be realistic about their personal fitness, horse suitability, tack, and apparel. Fit doesn’t always mean thin, but all riders need to maintain some level of strength, stamina, flexibility, and balance to ride safely and effectively.
Once you find the right program, trainer, and horse, the next challenge for many of us is finding appropriate tack and apparel. As a larger rider, this typically means spending more than your smaller peers because we cannot find the items we need just walking into the local tack shop or browsing the sales online. Some equestrian retailers are starting to provide more options for us, but when a street size 12 is considered XL by most brands, and 18” dressage saddles only fit the same street size 12 rider due to the ultra-deep seats and huge knee rolls that are so common today, shopping can be really tough.
My best advice for all my clients is always to get what works, not what’s cheapest, nor what you can barely squeeze yourself into, but what you actually need. Again, be realistic. Tack and apparel need to work for you and your horse, not against you. Once it’s fit correctly, you shouldn’t think about it all during your ride.
Unfortunately, the saddle your neighbor gave you because her daughter quit riding in high school is probably not going to be the right fit. Be open to asking, “Does this saddle work?” and don’t get upset when your trainer says, “No, it’s too small.” We just have to accept that we are larger people and plan accordingly.
We are all trying to do the best we can within our budgets. For years, going “custom” was the only way for larger riders to find apparel (and saddles) that would work for them. This was financially limiting to many riders. I remember hearing people say, “I only do schooling shows because I don’t have a coat,” or “I can’t show in the hunters because I only have half-chaps,” meaning they couldn’t find items that fit, or the ones they found were too expensive.
Hell, I’ve been one of those people! I wore a black tee shirt from Target and a bib stock tie to a USDF show because I had a coat that fit at that time, but I couldn’t find a white show shirt to save my life. I recall it was hot that day, and I was the largest rider in the class and the only rider in the warm-up with a tee shirt on, trying to make my Third Level debut on a Thoroughbred… talk about demoralizing. I’m glad I didn’t have to live that day more than once.
Luckily, things are getting much better! While many of the most popular, mainstream brands are still limiting sizing across the board, we have seen more brands begin branching out, offering extended sizing in some items, if not entire apparel lines. I can distinctly remember when I found out the SmartPak Piper line and Kerrits apparel actually fit me, and I rode in that for years. Romfh now offers some extended sizing, as does Pikeur; both are of lovely quality, and it looks like I’ll be going with Pikeur for my next show coat!
One of the brands I am most excited about right now is Sync Equestrian apparel. I happened to find Sync when they were just starting to gain traction on social media and immediately recognized they were working really hard to promote size inclusivity, while offering lovely products at affordable prices. I reached out to them to discuss sponsorship, and they were happy to accept me into the Sync Equestrian circle. I do get a discount on merchandise from Sync, but most importantly, I love helping promote the brand because they are doing all the right things to support us as riders!
Now, let’s talk about boots. I have struggled with tall boots for decades. They either don’t zip at all, or do zip, but they’re huge around my ankle. Sometimes, a brand only makes my size in dress OR field boots when I need the opposite, or they make a “wide” calf that’s only 16 inches and a “plus” calf that’s 19 inches when my calf is 17.5 inches. About two years ago, I discovered Gallors boots. Like most riders, I thought custom boots would be far out of my budget, and I was terrified that they wouldn’t fit even if I did save up my pennies and order some. I am happy to announce that I was wrong.
While I had apprehensions about getting myself professionally measured (there is always an underlying fear they will say, “Sorry, we don’t have anything that will fit you”), I am so glad I did. The Gallors reps, Cemone and Katya, were wonderful. They had me try on tons of sample boots so I could design the exact boot I wanted, from the shaft, zipper, and gusset, to the ankle and foot shapes, leather type and sheen, to the color, trim, and accents. The best part is my boots were under $1,000 and fit perfectly right out of the box! I’m not a sponsored rider (although I would love to be); I am just promoting the Gallors brand because they are awesome.
I believe the national organizations are on the right track and can do a few more things to promote inclusivity, such as amending apparel rules, judges training, dressage test requirements, and marketing.
The recent changes in USDF rules with regard to apparel have been “fun” for all riders, but might actually be the most beneficial for larger riders. Not only do the new rules allow for more options when shopping, but the freedom to choose apparel colors that are more flattering to a rider instantly provide said rider with more confidence in the saddle, which is something we can all benefit from.
While I haven’t experienced many negative interactions with horse show officials and judges relating to my weight, I have come across a few judges who were less than tactful with their comments. I’ve known other riders who have had interactions so negative they gave up showing all together. Officials and judges could probably benefit from some sensitivity training with regard to how they approach things like writing comments regarding a rider’s weight or fitness on dressage tests, or what verbiage should be used when a rider’s size versus horse appropriateness comes into question. We should always advocate for the horses, but that can be done tactfully.
I know many riders of all sizes who would like to see the dressage tests rewritten to allow for the option of rising or sitting trot, at least through the mid-levels, if not all levels, for national competition. USDF should be working with USEF regarding changes like this, which would not only promote horse welfare in the show arena, but coincidentally allow riders to perform a smoother test and potentially move further up the levels than before. Relating specifically to larger riders, many of us also ride larger horses – who have larger gaits – and I can safely say there is no amount of shape-wear that will keep things from bouncing during the sitting trot; it’s a painful experience on several levels.
While larger riders are very appreciative of organizations like USDF featuring our segment of the equestrian population, which draws much-needed awareness to the struggles we face, we will never be truly accepted as long as we are labeled “plus-sized riders,” when we really just want to be accepted as “riders.”
For more about Josey and her riding program, check out www.GrayLilyFarm.com.
Great summary