I cant ride!

G

Greyhorse

New Member
Sep 3, 2009
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I am having real trouble and would love some advice.

Right the background. I had my first pony for 5 years, 3 of these I didnt ride (her arthritus) . She died 3 years ago and i rarely rode during the past 3 years.
I then got my current horse and he is lovely, but for some reason I have forgotten how to ride :eek: I havnt ridden him often due to lack of motivation, but have made a new resolution to ride daily since my last post and I have stuck to it! :p So I have been riding regulally for the past say 6 months or so and didnt ride regulally for 6 years ish. He was an impulse buy and if i had thought it through i would have taken up some lessons again, but he is my dream horse and was too good of an oppertunity to pass up.

With my first pony I always felt secure and had a good seat. I never had position problems or confidence problems. She was a big round cob, current horse is a little fine arab so big difference :eek:


Now these are the problems I am having can anyone help me please?

- I cant seem to keep my legs/heels in the right position. My feet slip through stirrups, I cant seem to stand up in the stirrups without falling back down and it unbalances me. Maybe it is my stirrup length, could they be too long or short? How can i keep my heels down and my leg secure!? I am fine in walk it is trot and canter when it happens.

- I cant seem to get used to current horses paces. He is incredibly bouncy and trots so fast I can barely keep up. I often get left behind and this again leads to balance problems for myself. I often find i am on the wrong diagonal or bounce twice because I am left behind and it cant be comfy for him. Same goes for canter, I feel as though I am bouncing hard on his back but I cant stand and canter. How can i get used to his paces as at the moment im bouncing allover and feel as though Im ruining him :(:(


Would it be best to get some lessons on my own horse to get us both working properly, or would I be better off going to a school and getting myself back up to scratch before starting on my own horse. I feel like a complete novice (or someone very stupid who shouldnt have bought a horse so soon!)
 
Could you try some work without stirrups each time you ride, just for 5 or 10 minutes at a time to start. When you take your stirrups back you should have a better idea of what length you are comfortable with (i.e. they should feel clearly too long or too short if they are either). It'll help your seat and balance too, and will help you get a better feel for your pony's paces.
Are there any riding schools near you where you can take your own horse and have a lesson on him? That would be the best option because your instructor will be able to advise you on what you need to practice with him.
Hope that helps, and good luck with him!
 
Thanks :)

I havnt dared do any no stirrup work because he is so bouncy i just cant stay on :eek: He has also been known to put in stops and spooking sideways with no notice and im scared i might go shooting off!! I would like to try it but im nervous as he is so unpredictable

There is one riding school I could take him too but unfortunatley he wont travel easily and I fear if i do take him he would be so stressed by the whole thing we would get noting out of it. So it would be ride him at home or go to a school and ride a different horse (we have no school so no lessons at home:))
 
It's not the standing in the stirrups that unbalances you; it's that you're unblanced when you stand in the stirrups. Try, at a stand-still, standing in your stirrups, then sinking your weight really low into your heel. Let your heel joint relax and just take all the weight. Don't push down though. Just relax down. You'll see and feel where your heel should be then.

Your stirrup leather may be a bit long, especially if you're struggling to keep feet in/heels down/ride the trot. Perhaps shorten them a bit, so you also have a bit more clearance of the saddle when you trot.

As said before, stirrupless work is invaluable. If you're worried about all the bouncing, put a neck strap on him (old stirrup leathers work great). That way, if you lose your balance, you can grab the strap, instead of trying to catch it pulling reins. I've also seen, which numerous horses, that when the rider grabs the strap and pulls back, the horse slows a bit and rebalances. It's because they're balancing from the body, instead of just tucking the nose in.

I use a neck strap on my horse and it has been a life-saver, for me and her mouth, countless times.
 
Aww, that's a shame. Having some lessons on a similarly built pony at a riding school does sound like a really good idea. You can learn loads at the RS then put it into practice on your own pony.
 
Xandoz said:
It's not the standing in the stirrups that unbalances you; it's that you're unblanced when you stand in the stirrups. Try, at a stand-still, standing in your stirrups, then sinking your weight really low into your heel. Let your heel joint relax and just take all the weight. Don't push down though. Just relax down. You'll see and feel where your heel should be then.

Your stirrup leather may be a bit long, especially if you're struggling to keep feet in/heels down/ride the trot. Perhaps shorten them a bit, so you also have a bit more clearance of the saddle when you trot.

As said before, stirrupless work is invaluable. If you're worried about all the bouncing, put a neck strap on him (old stirrup leathers work great). That way, if you lose your balance, you can grab the strap, instead of trying to catch it pulling reins. I've also seen, which numerous horses, that when the rider grabs the strap and pulls back, the horse slows a bit and rebalances. It's because they're balancing from the body, instead of just tucking the nose in.

I use a neck strap on my horse and it has been a life-saver, for me and her mouth, countless times.
Click to expand...

Just to add to this excellent advice, I always grab the front of my saddle if Lio spooks/bucks/does something to unbalance me when I'm riding without stirrups.
 
Thanks to both of you :)

I am unbalanced. I am more worried about ruining him with my awful riding to be honest!! I can stay on just not gracefully :eek:

I will certainly try some no stirrup work and dig out the neck strap and hope I dont bounce off. I mainly hack so never ride without stirrups really, maybe it is about time we ventured into the school. :eek:
 
- I cant seem to keep my legs/heels in the right position. My feet slip through stirrups, I cant seem to stand up in the stirrups without falling back down and it unbalances me. Maybe it is my stirrup length, could they be too long or short? How can i keep my heels down and my leg secure!? I am fine in walk it is trot and canter when it happens.
It may well be that your saddle isn;t doing you any favours. I felt a lot more secure in Joy's old Wintec VSD than I do in her properly fitting Thorowgood. The GP pulls my legs too far forwards.

Of course there may be other factors too and I wonder about you getting a few private lessons at a RS on their horses to give you a few pointers.

- I cant seem to get used to current horses paces. He is incredibly bouncy and trots so fast I can barely keep up. I often get left behind and this again leads to balance problems for myself. I often find i am on the wrong diagonal or bounce twice because I am left behind and it cant be comfy for him. Same goes for canter, I feel as though I am bouncing hard on his back but I cant stand and canter. How can i get used to his paces as at the moment im bouncing allover and feel as though Im ruining him :(:(
That's something I can really relate to. I was exactly the same with JOy when I first got her!

Joy's welshie trot is lovely and her canter can be very very bouncy.

Trouble is that if she is on the forehand or hollowing out then this makes the problem 10 times worse. I wonder if your new horse is as balanced and well schooled as it can be to make the ride for you that much easier.

Are you being aware of how your horse is going when you ride? The comment you made about him trotting so fast that you can barely keep up makes me think that your are being too much of a passenger. It is up to you to dictate the pace of the trot, not for you to try and keep up.

If you feel you are getting unbalanced then don't do prolonged periods in anything above a walk. Do lots of transitions as not only will this stop him powering off with you but it will help to keep him off his forehand and therefore make the ride more comfortable for you.

Would it be best to get some lessons on my own horse to get us both working properly, or would I be better off going to a school and getting myself back up to scratch before starting on my own horse. I feel like a complete novice (or someone very stupid who shouldnt have bought a horse so soon!
Well it depends on how you feel about getting him to somewhere for lessons and how your confidence is on him.

I personally found Joy challenging and my nerves were so shot to pieces that I chose to get lessons on a school master and someone professional to come in and school Joy a couple of time a week whilst I watched.

Then when I got to the stage where I was depserate to ride her again this person gave me lessons on her.

She wasn't the right horse to learn things on as she herself needed to have a rider who was capable of teaching her a few things.

We've got to the stage where she can do what I want her to. She isn't the best schooled horse in the world as I school on hacks in mostly straight lines and don't school shapes but we do ok and I'm very confident on her now. I've also taught her some lateral moves. No doubt about it she would be a much better and more comfy ride if she were regularly schooled on circles etc but I came to terms ages ago that this wasn't my thing!!!
 
yeah if your feet are slipping out tht easiy then your stirrups may be too long!! the old fashiond way of teachig wAs always keep your heels down but resurch shows that by doing tht it pushes the lower leg too far forward and clips the horses sholder and could also be contributing to your foot slipping out so try to keep the foot level! i would only keep my heels hard to the floor if i was riding a horse tht was not sound or reliable to stop me been flung forward in the saddle good luck it will all come back gradually p.s there is help on the market! its a little pouch tht straps onto the front of your stirrup so only your toes fit in and no more give it a go tht way your foot will never fall through and there is also a strap tht straps on to the girth and the stirrup to keep your leg in the correct place at all times your leg cant go too far back orr too far forward! i used to use one for jumping as my leg used to swing too far back and dont forget riding a cobby like horse is like sitting in an arm chair very comfortable and easy to ride but the finer breed has alot more spring in there step and yes you will find is alot bouncier its just a cace of giving it time and getting used to your horses paces
 
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i think a few lessons would really help you as you need someone from the ground who can see your position and observe whats happening. or if not lessons, how about a knowledgable freind.
 
Thankyou everyone.

We are both as bad as eachother I suppose. I cant ride and he has no schooling. These are his problems if anyone could offer some more help as to how i can combat these ?!

He is nappy. He will nap non stop on a hack until he is within seeing distance of home.
He is unbalanced and has never ever been schooled. He has no concept of aids and tends to move off the click of my toungue not aids.
He is lazy and dosent move off the leg easily, hence kicking and myself becoming unbalanced and stressed. When he does move he rushes.
He is no good with transitions and rushes into a faster and faster trot instead of breaking into canter when asked. He has been known to buck into canter.
When he is in canter he is very hard to pull up, impossible if in company he just gets faster and faster.

For example when I did try and school, he could not fathom the idea of bending, or circling and just fell straight out of any trot I asked for. As for canter I had no chance. He also spent the whole time egnoring me in favour of other distractions such as other horses.
He also does this when hacking, and will stare at other horses etc almost walking sideways to get to them and I have no say in the matter.

Now obviously I do think these problems are my fault. I am his owner and I should be correcting them, but I have no idea how or where to start with this when I cant even manage to correct my own positioning etc.

His tack etc have been fitted properly, he is miserable at the moment though due to having to have restricted grazing etc due to lami and i wonder if this has contributed to his bad behaviour?

I have made myself sound really stupid now but I am at a loss?:eek:
 
Oh boy you are in for some fun. I thought your situation sounded familar :D

In short (because I've got to dash) I did lots of work with my mare in hand getting to understand the principals of moving away from pressure because her instinct was to move into it. I then transfered these skills into ridden work. I used Parelli level 1 as my guide because I borrowed it. There is info online about this for free though.

When doing ridden work I stuck to what I felt comfortable and balanced at.

If moving onto trot I was aiming to keep that trot under my control. If I felt her powering forward then I go back to walk again. I started to realise that by counting steps and doing 5 steps of walk then 5 of trot I was getting better transitions and she wasn't racing off. I'd then work to increase the number of trot paces. If she felt like she was getting too bouncy again then I'd go back to walk as this was a sign she'd be going back on her forehand again.

I laid off ridden canter completely unless it was in straghtline on a hack and I felt I had brakes! I would however ask for canter on the lunge. Again I'd be looking for quality not quantity and soon as she was unbalanced then I'd bring her back to trot again.

If I didn't feel that I had brakes then I wouldn't do it until I reached the stage where I was confident to push her on for longer and faster than she wanted to go. She soon realised that bombing off meant harder work being demanded by me and that stoppped fairly sharpish after that!

Just a few ideas there. Cherry pick what you fancy but don't see it as the right answer for you as I don't know you or your horse ;)
 
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