what would you expect from lessons?

[ThatVikRinA22]

just wondered really as i had my first lesson tonight, i used to ride as a child but ive not ridden for over 30 years.

the first school i had booked with were very lax and when i showed up for my lesson tonight they claimed they had tried to phone me to say the instructor hadnt made it in - they had not tried to phone me and i told them that - then they changed their story and the man said he couldnt ring as had locked himself out of the house, and said they would be in touch. Still no call from them, not even an apology.

so at short notice i booked at another school and went for my lesson tonight.

i told them id not ridden for a very very long time and would need to be treated like a total novice.

it was an arena, a very placid horse and i really had a wonderful time, but i just wondered how lessons normally go?

i found i couldnt concentrate on technique because i was trying to keep my horse going, he was lovely and an old hand but in trot he wanted to stop....is it a good idea to learn to control the horse and learn technique at the same time?

im pleased i was let loose to some extent and i think i will learn quickly - alot of it came back to me tonight though i will need tons of practice and im sure alot of this cant be "taught" and has to be learnt on the job as it were.....but i know my balance is awful and though i was told id done really well, it all felt a bit clumsy and i dread to think what i looked like!

how do first lessons normally go?

[Booboostoo]

Apologies for the YRC recommendation, just looked at their website and they seem to have moved away from RS work and be doing more competition training. The other suggestions should be more relevant.

[Nicecuppachar]

How does she get the children to ask the ponies to go forward if she doesn't let them kick them? Leg is vital in all riding disciplines.

[Mirage]

I was wondering that too.Especially the PC kids .I'm having visions of a school full of PC chidren on Thelwell ponies,not being allowed to kick.It'd be like musical statues without the music .Dpony would quite happily stand all day if you couldn't kick her on.

[CalamityKate]

Especially if crops aren't allowed either!

[Pixel]

Well to be fair the NF my RI gives lessons on certainly doesn't need kicking, or a crop. However even a well-schooled horse may need the occasional kick as a reminder. For instance, when I read Vicar's post about not being able to keep the horse on the track because he was following the RI, my first thought was he needed a good boot with the inside leg and a growl to 'get up' to stop him taking the 'P'! Even though a good rider will always try to give the lightest aids possible, they are big animals and sometimes you have to take charge.
Vicar, I agree it's good that your RI is teaching you the proper aids without kicking but if you want your own horse you will have to accept that there are times when it's necessary. Sometimes knowing when to kick on and mean it can get you and your horse out of a dangerous situation.

[ThatVikRinA22]

She teaches pressure and release - and kicking only as discipline if horse is ignoring you asking nicely with a gentle squeeze - she was the first out if the 3 I tried that told meyou only have to squeeze your calves- not kick. Shed dies allow crops but would have something to say if used incorrectly. I'll look at those other recommendations. Ta.

[CalamityKate]

FWIW I agree with Pixel. It's all very well and lovely to have a no kicking rule but IMO there's a balance between doing it "right" and being effective.

[saintmerryweather]

I dont have any qualms about kicking when needed. a couple of weeks ago my horse wouldnt walk over a tiny little bit of leftover snow on the track. shes an old girl, she knows her job inside out and back to to front but she likes to try it on at the start of every lesson. she walked up to it and stood there staring at it, then turned away from it. i let her, then thought shit, hope my instructor didnt see that. i walked past that sodding snow about 15 times in total before she would walk over it (she kept bananaing right round it snorting at it!). i achieved it in the end (got fed up of her taking the piss) by giving her a bloody great boot and a smack with the whip. Miraculously cured of her fear! Shes about 16.3, i dont want to have to deal with an even bigger strop when ive let her get away with something already. theres a time and a place!

[Nicecuppachar]

Vicar - do you watch dressage and jumping at high levels? Do you watch their legs? Trust me, they are not merely squeezing and applying light pressure. And they all wear spurs.

[ThatVikRinA22]

I've said that she does allow kicking as a discipline -i.e - when horse doesn't do as asked when first asked nicely. But she doesn't teach to routinely kick. This was news to me as all the other schools here didn't teach that riding is from the ankle up - routinely. That kicking shouldn't be the
First option. RI explained that horses can feel a fly on them. - so thee is no need to routinely boot them. I feel like no one is actually reading anything I say anymore and simply jumping to the conclusion that RI is useless and that I shouldn't be looking to own - someone up thread said I'm spending unreasonable amounts of time looking at owning. I'm feeling rather deflated. I'm a learner and I've never pretended otherwise.

[Floralnomad]

I think what people are trying to say is that rather than jump in and buy a horse now that may or may not turn out to be suitable just because your chosen RI has nothing suitable for you to learn on is probably not the most sensible option . It makes more sense to expand your riding experience by finding a school where there is a better variety of horses ,or going on a weeks course somewhere . I'm fairly certain in years to come , when you've owned your own horse for several years you will look back at your RI and find lots of faults and things that you do differently to her . That's just experience .

[issyocean]

Vicar if you are happy with your tuition and being around the horses is making you feel better then don't worry too much about it just enjoy it

However I do think that if you and your DD could go somewhere where you could hack out together it would be a nice experience for you both and break things up a bit so to speak.

[Booboostoo]

OP, to be honest I think you need to re-read your own posts and accept that at least some of the responses you are getting are because of what you are saying in the first place. If you were perfectly happy at your RI people would have no reason to say otherwise, but you appear, in at least some of your posts, to be unhappy, therefore people are trying to advise you on how best to deal with the situation.

I think I will bow out of this discussion now as it is a little bit too fraught with emotion for my liking. Best of luck with your riding!

[ThatVikRinA22]

i had a talk to RI instructor today about my progress. She says i am no different to any beginner (ie - no worse) - i talked to another one of her ladies today and she said it was just like deja vu, that listening to me was funny because she had been exactly the sam and said the same things - and she had lessons for over a year before getting her own. She also watched my lesson and saw i was getting annoyed with myself - she was really reassuring - she said once i get the correct position and technique it clicks and i will keep it from then on. she watched my lesson, and i watched her lesson after mine. She gave me hope that one day i will get my position right and my seat and balance will get better.

i didnt think i was getting any better but RI says i am. Maybe i am just expecting too much too soon. She said she will video me so i can see. My position just goes to pot when i trot or canter but, it is getting better. She is correct in saying i need to develop balance and my seat - i have to keep re -positioning myself and i think i have put too much pressure on myself to be perfect. Sometimes i think im just trying too hard instead of just enjoying it.

Also RI said today she had been thinking about what i had said regards getting my own pony and she says im not ready - she thinks i would pamper it too much and told me horses have to learn respect and manners. But she will give me the nod when she thinks im ready.

today i tacked up and had a really good lesson. I was back on usual pony. She went way over the time i paid for to be honest, I also tacked up for 2 other lessons (with supervision)

i apologise if i have given the wrong impression - sometimes i have felt that she perhaps forgot that im there voluntarily and that im there because i want to learn more than just riding, but i was too quiet and didnt say anything. Now i just ask. She is very forthright and i just need to be the same and it is paying off - and i do really enjoy being there - ive just had moments where ive thought i was being an idiot and she was taking the mick a bit....but to be fair she only ever suggested i go in on Saturdays when she has all the other volunteers on the yard - the fact is i tend to help out on the day of my lesson as well, and sometimes other days too - in truth its those days that i learn more as saturdays are too busy. As soon as i go back to work i will be back on shift so means if i do go down to volunteer it will be just a day or so a week, when i have my lesson and likely wont be weekends.

I meant to ask about hacking out today, but completely forgot. I will also look at perhaps doing an intensive course somewhere (if funds allow) or even look into a riding holiday.

i do appreciate the advice offered. I am not ignoring it, but obviously being there has made a difference as i can now do a full muck out in 20 mins, i can do rugs, i can put on a head collar, tie up a horse using the right knot, groom, pick feet and now tack up.I know how to safely turn a horse out into a field, and how to catch a horse from a field, I also can tell the difference between differing hays, i understand what laminitis is and how to prevent it taking hold at the first signs (and know what those signs feel like) and a little about feeds. My riding is improving, but ive not got past that point at which it all clicks.

ive only been going in to help for a couple of months, and i know way more than i did when i started.
and ive only been riding 4 months,which when i was working it wasnt every week, so i think ive just been expecting too much from myself tbh.

im going to try and relax a bit about it all and enjoy it more, even when im not perfect.

[Littlebigbum]

Have you thought about getting some one to video you because ri says sit up straight and you think well I am, you can see what she means.
I would be so nice if one of us was closer

[Zazzles007]

Vicar, I think you've made a good realisation that you are probably putting too much pressure on yourself to learn and progress. With horses and riding, it is very much a journey, and not a destination . In no other area of life will you get "one step forwards, two steps back" shown to you more distinctly . And remember, when you get disheartened, remind yourself "a bad day with a horse is still better than most good days with people".

Hope this helps.

[mrslaughan]

I think vicar - this is where a gentle hack is a great thing to do - you don't have to trot or canter - but just getting out of the school can be very liberating and help you to realise the progress you have made, and just enjoy a ride - for the simple pleasure of a ride

[lovebeansontoast]

I agree with mrsl above. Also, what is the first thing you will want to do with a new horse once you buy it? Usually go out for a hack. So it's not a bad idea to build it into your current work.

[NotGoodNotBad]

I haven't mucked out a stable in about 20 years! In fact, I've probably only done about 4 in my life.

Hacking out is a much more important skill!

[ChoccyWoccyDoDa]

Agree hacking very important skill (once you have got the basics in the school).

Hacking will teach you to ride on rough surfaces, up and down steep hills and banks, and how to deal with unexpected situations.

It is amazing how many things you come across when hacking which you would not notice in 'normal life', but when hacking (especially on a more sensitive horse) you suddenly become aware of every barking dog, horse in field, livestock, cyclist, noisy car etc etc and have to be ready in case your horse reacts (although when first hacking you should be riding a very safe and sensible horse, of course).

Also horses can be very different out hacking to in the school - my own share pony is generally very lazy in the school, but out hacking she gets a certain sping in her step!

So assuming you intend to hack when you get your own horse, I think it is essential to learn to hack safely as well as ride in the school.

Also, please make sure you buy a nice bright yellow high-viz jacket for hacking - not enough people wear them!

[Mirage]

When we bought dpony,I had never mucked out a stable in my life. Ours live out and when we had a pony on trial that was stabled at night I didn't know what had hit me and I realised why people worried about smelling of horse wee.I did not enjoy the extra work and getting up early at all.

choccy you are so right about hacking.Dpony loves to hack,our instructor saw us out hacking one day and couldn't believe how much more forward going she was.I agree about scanning the horizon for cyclists,buses,pheasants jumping out at you too.Dpony is as bombproof as they come,and is rarely bothered by anything,and I'm used to letting DD1 ride on ahead without worrying about what they might meet.But our new pony had never been hacked before and I find myself looking out for anything that might spook him.I've started doing it in the car too!

[ThatVikRinA22]

i think i am going to go on a heather moffet seminar and have a play on the equisimulators.

could incorporate it into my family hols i think.

looks like it could speed things up a bit for me!

[LittlePushka]

Evening vicar! Not been on in a while, nice to see you hanging about with the horsey set!!

[LittlePushka]

I mean I havnt been on in a while...!

[EMUZ]

Highly recommend a course/holiday.. I did a week at Talland and had lunge lessons, flat lessons, jumping lessons and side saddle
I couldn't walk well for a while but it improved my riding no end especially the lunge lessons