In carriage driving, you control a horse or pony not from the saddle but from a carriage, using long reins. It's a discipline recognized by the KNHS, alongside dressage and show jumping, for example, with its own learning curve: what you learn isn't so much sitting and steering, but harnessing up, communicating through the reins, and working together with the people around you on the box seat.
What Carriage Driving Actually Is
The driver steers the horse via reins from a carriage (also called the vehicle), standing or sitting on the box seat. The horse goes in front of the carriage in harness (the driving harness), which is built differently from a riding saddle: it distributes pulling force across the chest and shoulders instead of weight across the back. Carriage driving is practiced both recreationally and at competition level, and the basics you learn in the first lessons (getting a horse to move calmly and under control in front of a carriage) are the same for every hitch.
Hitches: Start With a Single
How many horses you put to the carriage determines the hitch:
| Hitch | Number of Horses | Suitable for Beginners |
|---|---|---|
| Single | 1 | Yes, the usual starting point |
| Pair | 2 (side by side) | After experience with a single |
| Team (Four-in-Hand) | 4 | Advanced, often competition drivers |
Less common variants also exist, such as a tandem (horses one behind the other). For anyone starting out, a single is the logical choice: one horse to keep track of, one set of reins to learn to feel, and a manageable carriage.
Harnessing Up: Getting the Horse Ready for the Carriage
Harnessing up is the process of putting the harness on a horse and then hitching it to the carriage. This happens in a fixed order: first fitting the harness, then positioning the horse between the shafts or at the pole, and only then actually attaching the carriage, so the horse never feels an unexpected pull.
A horse needs to get used to a carriage before it can go well in front of one: the sound of wheels, the presence of something behind it, the pressure of the harness. That habituation happens step by step and under the guidance of an experienced driver or instructor. This isn't something to try yourself without lessons: a horse that spooks at a carriage is harder to correct than a horse that spooks under saddle, precisely because the driver isn't on the horse.
The Role of the Groom
In carriage driving, the driver usually doesn't sit on the box seat alone. A groom (achterrijder in Dutch) helps balance the carriage, hops off to clear obstacles or walk a hazard, and keeps an eye on safety during phases like the marathon. With bigger hitches and at competition level, this role is standard practice; in single-horse lessons, an instructor can fill that function until you become more independent.
The SRR Menbewijs
The Menbewijs ("driving certificate") is an exam run by SRR Nederland, the institute that also runs the Ruiterbewijs (the riding certificate). SRR compares it to a driver's license for motorists: it shows that you can drive a carriage safely and responsibly, in the countryside and on public roads. It used to be called the Koetsiersbewijs. The Menbewijs is not a requirement for a KNHS competition: the 2026 Driving Discipline Regulations ask for KNHS membership and a start pass or license, and do not mention the Menbewijs. It is mandatory in some nature areas, however, for example in the forests of the municipality of Arnhem.
How the exam is built. The Menbewijs has two parts:
- Theory: a digital exam with 35 multiple-choice questions. You pass with at least 28 correct answers. The study material and practice exams are online at SRR.
- Practical: the examiner assesses the horse or pony and the carriage, harnessing up and putting to, your control while driving, and how you drive turns. The examiner also looks at how you behave in traffic, for example your position on the road and signaling direction. The exam includes a drive through the built-up area of a town or village.
The Menbewijs covers a single hitch. SRR also has exams for pair and "langspan" (a hitch of horses one behind another). For the pair exam, you must have held the Menbewijs for at least three months, and you also take a theory exam. The langspan exam is practical only and can be taken three months after the pair exam.
Minimum age. SRR gives a minimum age of 12 for the Ruiterbewijs and the Menbewijs. If you are just under 12, you can ask for an exemption.
Cost. Under SRR's rates from January 1, 2025, the Menbewijs costs €110 including VAT. That includes the digital study material, the examiner, insurance during the exam, and a pass that is valid for life. On its general page about the Menbewijs, SRR still states €100; the rates page says €110, so check the current price if in doubt. A practical retake costs €63 and a theory retake €40. The pair and langspan exams cost €90 each. Lessons and renting a carriage are paid separately.
Where to take it. Through your own riding school, stable, instructor, or club, which requests an exam from SRR, or at a trainer from SRR's list. The exam calendar shows where and when exams are held. Some locations ask you to bring your own hitch, others have one on site.
How a Driving Competition Is Structured
A combined driving competition classically has three phases:
- Dressage: a set or prescribed test with precise movements in the arena, judging the hitch's posture, obedience, and suppleness.
- Marathon: an outdoor course with compulsory hazards (often natural or built obstacles, such as water crossings), where pace and agility count.
- Cones: a course of cones with a ball resting loosely on top of each one; you drive precisely between them without knocking a ball off, which tests steering skill and precision.
This is the classic three-phase structure common in carriage driving; which phases and classes apply to a specific competition, and how they're judged, varies by level and category. For the exact rules and class structure, knhs.nl is the appropriate source.
What the Rules Require for Your First Driving Competition
This is from the KNHS Driving Discipline Regulations 2026 (effective April 1, 2026).
Membership and license. You must be a KNHS member. You also need a valid start pass or license for each type of hitch you compete with. Exceptions are the Impuls classes (see below) and the mini-marathon, unless the class is for start pass holders only. In the 2026 rate list, the driver's license for carriage driving (rijder licentie mennen) costs €150 for twelve months, €36.50 for a month, and €24.75 for a day.
Minimum age. You may take part in combined driving competitions, mini-marathons, and dressage-cones competitions from the start of the calendar year in which you reach the following age:
| Hitch | Minimum age of the driver |
|---|---|
| Single pony | 10 years |
| Single horse | 12 years |
| Pair of ponies | 14 years |
| Pair of horses | 16 years |
| Tandem and four-in-hand, ponies | 16 years |
| Tandem and four-in-hand, horses | 18 years |
The groom has limits too. If the driver is under 18, the groom must be 16 or older and stay close. If the driver is 18 or older, the groom must be at least 12 for dressage and cones, and at least 14 for the marathon and the mini-marathon. Breaking this means elimination.
Helmets and body protectors. Competitors, grooms, and passengers must wear a properly fastened safety helmet approved for equestrian sport in every phase and while warming up, on penalty of elimination. In the marathon and the mini-marathon, competitors and grooms must also wear a body protector (EN 13158). Competitors, grooms, and passengers under 18 wear a helmet and a body protector in every phase. An inflatable vest is only allowed as extra protection, over a regular body protector. More on helmets and vests is in Riding Safety: Helmets, Body Protectors, and Airbag Vests.
Entry-level classes. An organizer can offer Impuls classes: a youth class and a BB class. You take part as a KNHS member, without a start pass. The level is B for dressage and L for cones, and results are not registered. An organizer may draw up a ranking. The minimum age for the driver is lower here: single pony 8, pair of ponies and single horse 10, pair of horses 16, and the groom is at least 16. The youth class is for competitors up to and including the year they turn 18. Children aged 7 and older can take part in Bixie&Friends with a pony in a single hitch.
Getting Started With Carriage Driving Yourself
Anyone who wants to start is best off looking for a riding school or driving club that offers driving lessons. There you learn under supervision: first the basics of harness and harnessing up, then your first steps on the box seat with an experienced instructor beside you, and only later steering a horse in front of the carriage on your own. If you then want to take part in organized competitions, you choose driving as your discipline when applying for your KNHS start license. The steps for entering are in the guide on entering a competition.
In Short
- Carriage driving is controlling a horse in front of a carriage with long reins, instead of riding on its back.
- A single (one horse) is the usual starting point; pairs and teams follow with experience.
- Harnessing up (putting the horse in harness in front of the carriage) you learn step by step under guidance, with safety first.
- A groom helps out on the carriage with balance and safety.
- The SRR Menbewijs is an exam for safe driving from age 12 and costs €110. It is not required for a KNHS competition.
- A driving competition classically consists of dressage, marathon, and cones. For a single pony you must be at least 10, for a single horse at least 12.
- A safety helmet is mandatory in every phase, a body protector in the marathon and the mini-marathon, and always for competitors under 18.
Sources (verified September 7, 2026, Menbewijs and competition rules November 2, 2026): KNHS Driving Discipline Regulations 2026 (art. 400, 401, 433 to 435 and appendix 4) · KNHS 2026 Rate List · SRR Nederland: the Menbewijs · SRR Nederland: Menbewijs costs · SRR Nederland: pair and langspan exam · SRR Nederland: frequently asked questions · KNHS: When can you take part in Bixie&Friends practice days?
See also: Applying for a KNHS Start Pass and Start License · Entering a Competition · Riding Safety: Helmets, Body Protectors, and Airbag Vests · Level: First Competitions · Glossary