New to Showing - advice please

[helen.e]

I ride at a yard well-known for producing ponies, particularly M&M ridden. They have a 10 year old Dartmoor mare for sale. She has been a broodmare and has ony recently been broken so hasn't been ridden for that long. She has a lovely temperament, is lovely to hack and is making good progress in her schooling although she's still quite novicey, which is understandable.

I'm interested in buying her. Please could anyone advise me on the pros and cons of a pony of this age - how long could her showing career be? what questions should I be asking about her? are there any problems associated with a horse of this age being broken late? do ex-broodmares make good show ponies?

Any advice would be very much appreciated

[Mehitabel]

her ridden showing career is not likely to be terribly long - generally once they are mid-teens they do start to be beaten by the 5 and 6 year olds who are up and coming, look younger and sparkier. you could go on and do veteran classes but it;s not quite the same as the serious ridden M&M ones. if showing is what your heart is really set on, you may be better off getting either something this age but established so you can get on and gain experience on a horse who knows its job, or something younger who you have time to learn together with.
general riding, no reason why she shouldn't go on well into her 20s at least - 10 would not be a concern for me for general riding.

i'd ask why they have stopped breeding - it may be her foals were just not that good, it may be she was awful to ride as a youngster so bred instead and they are having another go, it may be a medical reason that only affects her for breeding.
has she done any inhand showing? if she has just been a stay at home mum, she will be bvery green and not used to the sights and sounds and excitement of a show ring, which might be an issue for you. horses who've led a very sheltered life can be harder to acclimatise to hustle and bustle if they are older. but if she's done a lot of showing herself and with her foals, then she'll know the atmosphere and know about performing in the ring.