Reply to Horse riding as an activity

Forum Index » General Parenting Discussion

Reply to "Horse riding as an activity — yay or nay?"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous]OP, ignore the weird classical music knife fight that’s broken out in this thread and get your daughter on a pony!

Riding is magic. It teaches confidence, balance, the ability to tune out the outside world and tune into your body, patience, empathy, responsibility, and bravery. (Not to mention terrific posture.) Riders carry themselves like queens, but aren’t afraid to get down in the dirt — voluntarily or otherwise. And a girl or young woman who knows she can successfully pilot a 1,000 animal is one who takes no shit from anyone who has opinions about what her body can or cannot do, or what it should or shouldn’t look like.

Like any other sport or activity, if you want to, you can spend stupid money. But if your name isn’t Bloomberg, your daughter can have just as much fun riding in a once/week group lesson, which around here seems to run about $50-70. From there, as she grows, you can look at other options, such as leasing a horse, doing pony club, or joining an inter scholastic riding team. But to borrow from our classical music friends, don’t start thinking about the whole concerto just yet — try playing some scales first.

Any good barn will put beginners’ safety first. That means they have appropriate instructors, ponies with the patience of saints, and a culture that teaches horsemanship, not just what to do in the saddle. To help keep your daughter safe, get her appropriate footwear, some breeches or jods with suede knee patches for stickiness, and a helmet. The paddock boots and jods you can buy cheap and used (Middleburg Tack Exchange or another consignment tack shop can help you), but the helmet is like a car seat and should be purchased new. Again like car seats, they last about 5 years and should be replaced after a fall. (Having recently performed an involuntary demonstration of Newtonian physics myself, I strongly urge you to get her helmet fitted in person rather than ordering it online, and to consider the new MIPS technology. It really makes a difference.)

Good luck in your search. And don’t worry about not knowing anything. There are lots of non-horsey moms out there, trailing in confusion behind their bright-eyed, filthy children. You’ll fit right in, and can always ask if you’re not sure about something. Horse people are friendly and always glad to help. [/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics