Mounted archers are fantastic, since you can full attack without penalty so long as your mount only takes a single move, and the penalty for a double move isn't fatal or anything. The only trick is getting a decent mount (typically an animal companion, unless you can get Leadership or something) as a class that excels at archery. Archery is very feat-intensive, though note that you don't really even need to take any of the Mounted feats to pull the build off.
Otherwise charging with a lance is great. Cavaliers are tailor made for this purpose, but thanks to the Horse Master feat, you can multiclass into, say, Fighter fairly easily. The Sohei Monk archetype is also popular for at least a dip, as it racks up Mounted feats quickly, and has a host of other neat side benefits.
Similar to archery, there are few penalties involved in spellcasting from horseback (or other animal-back), though since you likely want to stay out of combat anyway, having a super buff mount isn't so important. Summoning one is often enough.
As for maxing out ride, I'm not really sure the best way, but a lot depends on your race and class combination.
dont forget ioun stones!
Cavaliers get the ability to ignore armor check penalties on ride checks (which would normally be sizeable for full plate and other heavy armor).
Outside of that, magical items are really the only strong way to buff the skill sizably. Mounted Combat isn't a bad feat by any means, at low levels it can be very useful if you negate the attack against your weak(relatively everyone at low level) mount. Once you get beyond that it's very likely that if they're going to attack your mount they're going to do so multiple times in a round. And their bonus to hit is probably going to scale faster than your bonus to ride.
One of these days, I would like to build a Roughrider (Fighter - APG) off of either the Sylvan Bloodline (Eldritch Heritage tree) or Animal Ally (Faiths and Philosophies).
And then there's those feats that allow a centaur to use mounted feats, the source of those escapes me at the moment.
Thanks guys. I was considering cavalier already, i just wasn't sure if there were some awesome spells to boost ride checks or something.
Why ioun stones?
look both of those over--the interactions and granted effects are surprisingly good, and at usually affordable prices. shoutout to the ebon wayfinder, which holds 2 stones and isnt super expensive.
examples: pale opalescent pyramid slotted in a wayfinder grants weapon focus for the weapon it's tied to for super cheap, pale green prism and its cracked counterpart give you bonuses, with the cracked (or was it flawed) one getting amped by the courageous enchant. theres bonuses to stats, skills, initiative, CMB/CMD, immunities to effects, and lots of utility literally floating around your head with them.
they're really underestimated/underappreciated.
Using the mounted combat feat, how can you really buff those ride checks?
What is the best combat style? Melee, ranged, or spellcasting?
One of the most impressive characters I've ever run was a Half-Elven Summoner who took a one-level dip in Dragoon at 9th (after the eidolon reached Large size at 8th). Before that he fought alongside his eidolon with a longspear and afterward he fought mounted with a lance. Some key components of the build included the Eldritch Heritage feats for the Orcish bloodline which could't be more ideal for such a character and at 11th level the Summoner ability 'Aspect' allows you to take the Skilled evolution for a nice +8 bump to your Riding skill on top of the free Skill Focus feat.