I need some advice....

pinkcauliflowercat

New Member
Jan 19, 2023
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I need some advice, I have been riding for about 6 months at a riding school, however since it is based in the woods it's always hacking as they do not have an arena. Since it's quite busy with people and dogs walking around I spend most of the lesson walking and stopping then walking again. I get about 1 min of trotting per lesson and I haven't done anything more than this. I do feel like I am picking it up well and my instructor says so too but I don't know what to do.

I've had about 16 lessons! Surely within this time I should be progressing a bit. I am 23 years old and I am 4ft10, they have also started putting me on very small horses. They even told me they are the horses they take out for the kids rides which made me feel a bit awkward as I am paying a fair bit for these lessons!

Should I be looking to learn in a riding school with an arena instead? I am not sure if its possible for me to progress here.
 
I would definitely book some lessons somewhere with an arena, you aren't going to progress when you only get to ride in walk and the woods are too busy for anything else. Hacking is good fun, but even if you have hacking that allows for faster work it's hard to learn the more technical stuff. Even the corner of a flat dry field would do, though a school being more contained is easier.

Being put on small horses or ponies isn't anything to feel awkward about. They can be just as well schooled as the bigger ones, and the ponies often have a cheeky side to their nature which means you have to be one step ahead of them to get a good result, they'll teach you to be a rider not a passenger. Many of us on here love the smaller ones for that very reason - they're fun, challenging, and a great partner n crime once you get them on side!
 
I would definitely book some lessons somewhere with an arena, you aren't going to progress when you only get to ride in walk and the woods are too busy for anything else. Hacking is good fun, but even if you have hacking that allows for faster work it's hard to learn the more technical stuff. Even the corner of a flat dry field would do, though a school being more contained is easier.

Being put on small horses or ponies isn't anything to feel awkward about. They can be just as well schooled as the bigger ones, and the ponies often have a cheeky side to their nature which means you have to be one step ahead of them to get a good result, they'll teach you to be a rider not a passenger. Many of us on here love the smaller ones for that very reason - they're fun, challenging, and a great partner n crime once you get them on side!
I am going to look into this as I am really enjoying and think I can progress! Tbh I don't mind being on the smaller horses but a few people pointed out to be that I even looked too big to be on it and I am only 4ft10! But I do agree they can be quite a fun ride and quite nippy so I suppose I should just ignore what people say as I can't help being small LOL!
 
If it's tracks through a wood, I don't really follow why you would keep stopping.
Coming back to walk from a trot yes, but stopping no. That sounds like the instructor doesn't really trust the horses, or the space isn't big enough.
You are not actually having lessons, you are hacking. You don't have someone looking at what you are doing so they can't teach you anything if in front or behind.
 
If it's tracks through a wood, I don't really follow why you would keep stopping.
Coming back to walk from a trot yes, but stopping no. That sounds like the instructor doesn't really trust the horses, or the space isn't big enough.
You are not actually having lessons, you are hacking. You don't have someone looking at what you are doing so they can't teach you anything if in front or behind.
Its a public woods with a few paths of bridleway if that makes sense. Sometimes we have to cross over the woods where there are other walkers/dogs etc and since there are lots of dogs off lead around us we are told to stop if the dogs comes near us. I agree with you
 
A hack can be a lesson. I learned to ride out hacking, but not in a group. To learn to ride while hacking you need to go on a private ride with an escort and then it is like having a solo lesson.
We did teach the horses to halt. Some horses find it scarey to halt out in the open on their own. We would do an exercise in which I halted and the other (RI) trotted ahead , then stopped. I then trotted up to and past the RI and halted again farther up the track. Regularly riding ahead prepared me later to hack solo.
 
@Skib if, after 16 lessons the OP has been kept in walk apart from the odd minute or two of trot then it feels like these hacks are not lessons and there's little scope for progression. Hacking well is a skill, but it's one that needs a secure foundation if the rider is to be capable of controlling the horse and that foundation is easier to obtain in an arena.
 
@Skib if, after 16 lessons the OP has been kept in walk apart from the odd minute or two of trot then it feels like these hacks are not lessons and there's little scope for progression. Hacking well is a skill, but it's one that needs a secure foundation if the rider is to be capable of controlling the horse and that foundation is easier to obtain in an arena.
I never been on a proper hack but it doesn't feel like one! We walk for about 15 mins out then 15 mins back and that's about it
 
If the woods are that busy in the winter that you can't trot, there is little scope of doing much else come Spring and Summer!
People should be calling their dogs back so they are not around the horses legs!! 😡
If you run a stables in that location though I would still expect you to keep going. My experience is dog walkers and walkers usually wait for me to pass anywhere narrow, we carry on and pass, or I wait if I am nearest somewhere to wait.
 
People should be calling their dogs back so they are not around the horses legs!! 😡
If you run a stables in that location though I would still expect you to keep going. My experience is dog walkers and walkers usually wait for me to pass anywhere narrow, we carry on and pass, or I wait if I am nearest somewhere to wait.
I wouldn’t automatically say you keep going, some walkers wait for us, some definitely aren’t going to, not all call their dogs away. We have to read the situation and act accordingly so I can understand if you take novices out routinely why your blanket instruction is to stop if the dog comes close, it makes the situation more manageable for the ride leader.
 
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OP here, Just an update...I had an assessment lesson at another riding school yesterday! It had an indoor arena and I was very impressed the instructor was amazing and I think I learnt more in the 5 months I've been riding in one lesson lol. I am defo going to persue riding there now, it is a bit more expensive but I think it's worth it. I'm so happy, she was asking about my goals and how far I wanted to go so we will see! Thanks :)
 
I learnt more [than] in the 5 months I've been riding in one lesson
This may not be entirely the right conclusion. You probably ;earned more than you realise.
I spent my first year of lessons doing almost nothing. Plodding round an indoor arena with a bit of trot - always with other riders. It turned out I had learned good balance on a horse both on the straight and turning corners and could steer by directing my gaze and also avoid faster riders on the outside track.
I was learning with my body, I guess rather than with my mind - no vocabulary and no skills. Just the feel of it.
It was clear then and later that I was being bullied. One is right to find a teacher who will help and support one. But I dont regard any of my horrible first year as having been wasted.
 
@Skib can we allow that @pinkcauliflowercat can make a reasonable assessment of what she's learned and when? Finding you balance is useful, but it rarely takes 5 or 6 months to learn it in walk, in fact I suspect many people get it sussed in the first lesson. It sounds like she's finally getting a proper lesson rather than a pony ride, let's be happy for her.
 
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