Will I Remember?

[dmooney]

I started riding when I was 4yrs old & was lucky enough to have my own pony by the age of 9. My pony & I took regular riding lessons together with a bhs qualified instructor until I was 13. Due to my fathers redundancy I had to sell my pony & have'nt ridden since. I'm now 25yrs of age and able to finance a horse myself. My question is, will I remember how to ride? Will it all come back to me quite naturally or will I need to start my riding lessons as a beginer? I was quite a competant rider and even though I was quite young, I grasped the concept of stable management & horse care with ease. Could anyone let me know how easy it is to get into the swing of riding again after such along break?

[Snowyboy]

I had a 20 year break - too me about 2 seconds to get my position right - all those years of being screamed at by an overzealous DC in PC worked LOL

I was cantering after about half an hour

I'd get a couple of private lessons as SO much has changed in the last few years and see how you go from there

[carrimclaren]

I had nearly the same break as you, started again at 23 and found it one of the most difficult things to do. I was a pretty brave kid but at 23 i def. found a new meaning to the word fear. I got frustrated because it wasn't as easy as i thought it would be. But to be fair i was thrown in at the deep end as the place i started again was not a riding stables and was someone i knews livery yard. The horses were not ideal for novices. 90% had quirks, were young and green or older and had habits. I fell off more times than i can remember, mainly when jumping. But c'est la vie it did me good :rolleyes: I don't think you'll be a beginner, i was trotting and cantering in my first lesson (albeit like a proper bumpty numpty) but what i found difficult was the "proper" side of riding. I'd never learnt about collection, lateral moves and working correctly when young.

So i guess what i'm trying to say is, it could be easy, it could be hard but i think no matter what you'll realise how much you've missed it :) Make sure you get a good place to start back again and good luck.

[amandal]

I had a 13 year break and yes I did remember quickly, but god the muscles hurt afterwards :D

[Dak's Mum]

Im another who had a break of around 20 years, and yeah it all came rushing back quite quickly.

[dmooney]

Thank you so much for your comments. I guess it all depends on the individual, how much you learn't before & how fit you are now. I'm really looking forward to it & suppose I shouldn't let the 'not knowing' stop me. It's nice to see so many 'older' people getting back into riding I feel like i've missed out on so much!:(

[noumenon]

I started riding again in my late 40s after a 20 year break and bought my own last year aged 50+. I remembered how to ride again pretty quickly but getting back to anything like reasonable fitness took a while and even now my knees hurt like mad if I've been out jumping! My balance isn't so good and my reactions aren't as quick and my nerve is nothing like it used to be but I have been show-jumping my mad little mare regularly and even went x-country schooling at the weekend and lived to tell the tale despite lots and lots and lots of fly-leaping, bucking and half-rearing! If you've been a regular, competent rider before you still will be - just need a little time for your muscles to catch up!

[ANN H]

Have a couple of refresher lessons - that's what I did. I used to ride aged about 10, on and off until I was in my early twenties, then started again aged 40. Got my first horse at 43, and now aged 50 its the best move I've ever made. Book yourself in at your local RS and good luck.

[KateH]

I returned to riding aged 43 after a 24 year gap. In my first half hour assessment lesson I was cantering and jumping a small grid. The only real problem was driving home with legs so stiff they didn't want to move between pedals.

Go for it! You'll soon recover your skill, and are young enough not to have lost all your core stability.

[Rach1980]

I had a 12 year gap and remembered most things straight away, i stopped riding at age 15 and started up again this year :)