I have always loved doing arena work and training in an arena, probably because I haven't had much access to many nice arenas. My riding education was mostly learned on trail rides; not many of the people I knew were into showing, so I was pretty much on my own with that. However, there are many horses out there who are solely trained for show, such as dressage horses, jumpers, hunters, and Western show horses. All they ever see is an arena, and although this is the preferred way of training to many, I think that a few trail rides can considerably help horses and riders alike. Here are some of the pros to adding a few trail rides to you and your horse's training agenda:

1. Horses can easily get burnt out on too much training, and may get bored or uninterested with too much arena work without any diversions. Getting a horse outside of the arena, no matter what discipline, will give him something else to process and see, which may help keep his mind fresher for training.

2. Getting a horse outside of the arena will help him gain more skills and versatility. A horse can see more strange things in one trail ride than an entire season of shows, and the nature of the trail continuously introduces new things as you ride. One trail ride can hold any or all of the following experiences (I have personally seen every one of these): creeks, ditches, hills, logs to navigate, swimming holes (if safe), ponds (if safe), rain, snow, the crinkling of plastic lunch bags while riding, removing and donning coats, flies, bees, bridges, roads, cars, four wheelers, hunters (strange beings dressed in orange), dogs, tents, being tied while taking a break, outhouses, other horses and mules, rock climbers, hikers, signs, bikes, hats, dead horses (yes, this happened, and the person that left it on the trail was never found), deer, squirrels, turkey nests, caves, waterfalls, lakes, waves, beaches, sand (very fun to roll in), mud, rocks, fields, and probably many more things that I have forgotten. The point is, trail rides give many experiences.

3. Trail rides can help a rider to better develop their seat. One great way to test your balance and skills is to navigate a good trail. Going up and down hills, jumping ditches, and adapting to all the other types of terrain on a trail can help you develop a seat outside of the arena, which can help make you a better all around rider. Also, trails are fun!

4. Finally, trail riding can help build a horse's (and rider's) endurance and conditioning. Climbing steep hills and navigating terrain will help get your horse into better shape and build more muscle, especially when mixed with sprinting or arena work.

Now remember, all of this is just my opinion; however, I have seen many young horses mature very quickly through being exposed to everything that can be seen on trails, and I believe that trail riding is important for a horse's and rider's training and development. Of course, the best reason to go on a trail ride is simply to have fun!