Ponies Rule!

[tarkia]

I hate children who have a big 16hh expencive thoroughbred that is too big for them, why do they always seem to show off, there is a little girl around eight and she has a really tall nice looking throughbred gelding, yes he is good but she can't handle him, she can't get on him without someone LIFTING her onto his back. Its crazy, shes fell out with her best friend because she said her LITTLE pony was too small for her. The pony isn't too small the little girl was also eight and the pony is around 13.2hh, just the right size and at least that little girl can handle her pony.

It looks so stupid though, the saddle is bigger than that little girl the thoroughbred is confused because her legs are hitting the side of the saddle and her reins are too lose! Its mad I don't see whats so 'cool' about having a big thoroughbred horse that hates you and won't listen than having a well mannered pony that you can control!

[maverick927]

I agree with you. Ponies rule.

People go on at me constantly about how I should buy a horse, because I am overage and Maverick is 'wick' anyway. That annoys me so much. i look just right on Maverick and I rarely compete so who cares if I'm overage, and Maverick is not wick. However i have been known to ride ponies to small for me ie. I broke in a 10.2hh welsh when I was 13. All i can say was atleast I can control him which is better than if I was riding a big horse.

[Lightfoot]

Completely agree.

A small girl on a big +16hh TB looks absolutely ridiculous in the show ring, and its positively dangerous for hacking out if its much too big and strong for her to control. And if the riders legs don't go below the saddle flaps the horse can hardly be blamed if it "misbehaves" because it will difficult for the horse to understand (or detect !) what the rider wants.

And like Tarkia, I've girls on horses so big they can't even get on without yelling for their parent / friend / groom to come and hoist them up.

I know its been mentioned before, but I am sure that in Britain all this "must have a big +16hh horse" is encouraged by childrens TV series, films and horse/pony stories. Actresses and book heroines ride big horses and don't have any problems so it must be all right seems to be the theory.

However in the Adventures of Black Beauty the actresses had to stand on a box to get on 16.2hh Beauty - but this was never in camera view (except when they got the editing wrong once). And the old pony novels often had incident in the stories where a girl who normally rides a pony has to ride a great big 16-17hh horse in an emergency. And she usually even manages to tack it up and get on from the ground without even lowering the stirrup.

In fact, back in my younger days (!!) I don't remember reading a single story where a girl had difficulty getting on a big horse. Anyone here remember one ?

[kathyt1]

The "jill" series by Ruby Ferguson was far more life like! In it a girl called Susan Pike (i think!) used to ride horses to big for her and usually used to end up swinging on their necks!

[Weekender]

I agree. Very realistic. Remember Jill had troubles getting on tall horses (needing a push onto 16hh) but she never said how Susan got on her too big TBs.

But lots of books not realistic. Jackie series she climbs on 17hh steeplechasers and 16.2hh showjumpers even when they won't stand still. The american saddle club series all the girls seem to be riding 16-17hh TBs, but the only time they use a mounting block or leg up is when they try out sidesaddle.

Its the same in "adult" books. In Riders small girl falls off 17.2hh in cross country course, and gets back on without dropping stirrup when stewards won't give her a leg up. Theres several Zane Grey westerns where young women own tall TBs and train them to kneel so they can remount if they're alone out in the prairies and no mounting blocks for miles

[Jay.o]

you say about the unrealisticness about it all, when they can mount there 17hh horses with out problems, well i can mount my friends 17.2hh TB with no aids and the stirrup as normall !
i used to dance so a bit more flexable than most !
i know some 7 year olds down the riding school that have 16hh horse that cannot mount with their parents and it does annoy me because they think that they are 'oh so cool' and they have a big horse and they are much better than me !!!

[Cochise]

aww I agree! I stayed on ponies for as long as I could! Although as you may know, I am quite competitive and the silly rule about not being able to ride ponies when over the age of 17 competitively really sucks! So I had no choice to move onto a hack, but it was worth it for finding Cheeky :P

[Lightfoot]

Cochise,

Sympathise with your dilemna (is that the right spelling ??), fortunately we don't have that silly rule in England.

However, in your case sounds like it was all for the best as you found a splendid horse !

[Fraggle]

It's always been the same.....

Young kids want to ride big horses because they think it makes them look good. It's the equivilent of wanting a Porche.

When you get a bit older and wiser you realise that there's no point in have a Porche when you really need a 4 X 4 to get over the more interesting ground.

Get a pony - get a life!!!:D

PS. I'm 5 feet 9 inches tall and ride a 14.2hh Dales pony.

[$@R@H]

hmm, I'm 12 and 175cm tall(about 5'8). I love riding ponies, there so niffty,I only wish I had started riding when I was much younger and shorter so I could get to ride the speedy lil ponies.lol, mY riding teachers nice though, she lets me ride the smallest thing possible for me! But, when some of the lil ponies are being lil monkys Us bigger riders are aloud to ride them(hehe, I rode an 11hh pony!):D :D

[apache37]

hi l quite agree with you all, l ride ponies and wouldn't ride horses, my friend who is about the same hight as me,has a pony of 14hh and is always going on about getting a horse.and that she thinks she looks silly om her.But l keep telling her that she looks good on her.l think it's just trying to make some kind of statement
Ponies rule ok

[kyanya]

I love ponies. 14.3 is plenty big enough for me. I'm 15, but I don't want to ride more horses. Give me a fell, dale, highland, welsh D or connemara anyday. Keep the thoroyughbreds, they just aren't for me

[Black Velvet]

I agree with what your saying that it is stupid for kids so young to have such bit horses but for me Horses Rule!!! I learned to ride on a horse(15.2hh even though I was only young) and have always ridden horses. I never feel right on ponies. I got my first pony two years ago and he was 14.2hh which was at the time the smallest I had ever ridden and I just could not get on with him. I found his stride to short and I just fell off when he jumped because there was no horse under me!! I had to sell him after a year as it was just not working. I then bought a 16hh TB X Cob ex racer and even though I'm only 5ft(I'm 16 though) he is the most amazing horse I've ever ridden and he was only three when I bought him and had only raced and I wasn't particually experienced but he has never put a foot wrong. All my friends that are taller than me have 13-14hh ponies but ponies are just not for me. I don't mean to be bitchy I just had to defend horses as Horses rule!!:D

[sazzle10]

Yep i agree! Infact i was talking to someone the other day and he asked me how big my horse was and i said 14.2, he goes 'ah thats tiny, how boring, i have a 15.3 thoroughbred' and i simply said, ' well cheyanne can do everything a 15.3 thoroughbred can and at least i know he respects me.' And that was the end of the conversation!

[Black Velvet]

Why would the horse not respect him just because it was big??? My horse is far more repspect full than any pony I know!! What have people got against horses, in my oppinion there far better than horses any day but I don't go around putting horses down because of it!!!

[sazzle10]

Noo! i wasnt implying that horses were not good! All i meant by the respect thing is that i know his horse plays him up alot and knows that he can get away with a lot because he doesn't have the power to handle him! Im not putting horses down!! plz forgive me! :rolleyes:

[Black Velvet]

I'm sorry I didn't mean to have a go at you I'm having a bad time at school at the min so I'm a bit fed up sorry to anybody if I snap at you!!:(

[jackie95]

crimson large


Hi
I agree that ponies rule i myself have a 13-2hh newforest x welsh who ive had 18yrs.I have done every thing with him from
dressage,x country ,jumping.working hunter and showing.
A lot of people think its silly riding a pony after a certain age but i think if your ok on ponies why have something that costs more to keep,and if you own a native you can ride in affiliated shows even if your an adult.When i get another pony i will get something bigger probally 14-2hh and probally full newforest as they are my fav breed

Jackie

[happyhorse]

HORSES RULE 2!!!!


i agree that sticking a 8 year old girl on a 16hh horse is silly and dangerous as there is no way she could control him. However i think at the end of the day its down to what you like. When i went horse /pony hunting i wasn't looking for any particular breed or height , just something thatb i liked. i looked at ponies and horses and very nearly brought a 14.1 thb x. i ended up buying Ev (evert) who many of you have seen pictures of, he is 16.2hh dtch wb and the most perfectly manner and well behaved horse, i am only 5ft 1 but can ride him as effectivly as anyone else can, with complete control. My friend actully had a 14.1 pony that was harder to control and ride than ev eva is.

So what i geuss i am trying to say is

HORSES AND PONIES RULE!

(just depends what you have!