How many ridden years do you have?

[Taffie]

@Taffie - ooph! thats a tough introduction to riding, I'm sorry to hear that, hopefully you gave the schoolmaster his nicest last year ever

Yes. I hope so. We went on lovely long outings; the last one was a social ride in the open hills the day before. We had a blast. She did love a hillside canter even at 24 years old. We also had her to stay with us for the whole summer (we have fields but no stabling) and all our neighbours loved and spoilt her. Stocky, hairy, Shire x Welsh Cob, my RI says in 40 years she has never met a nicer horse. We were very lucky

 

[Taffie]

Learned to ride age 10 or 11 when in Wales on holiday. Didn’t ride more than 5 or 6 times a year. Stopped when I was about 15. One last go at riding - uni equestrian team, never had any lessons- used to hacking out on the buckle and suddenly I’m in an outdoor school... and on the floor. Didn’t ride again for 17 years. Until September 25th 2016. Had a taster session at my current yard, fell in love with it.

Bought Flash June 2017. Not looked back. So all in all- probably under 2 ridden years. I’m 37. Almost 38.

My focus at the moment is mainly dressage- there are comps at my yard every month. Next one is Monday. The Monday after, better get my brave pants on, I’m show jumping.

2’3 & 2’6

Gulp.

Lol same amount of time as me, except you are two decades younger Good luck for Monday!

 

[MrA]

This is a lovely thread to read

Because my mum is horsey I sat on alot of ponies and some donkeys from a very young age, but just for a wander around the block rather than proper riding.

I started having lead rein hacks when I was 7 years old, the first pony I rode was Ozzy. I learnt to ride out hacking in bushy park which was super! I did alot of falling off though!! Lots of favourite ponies, Cloudy, Blackjack, Apatchy, Ted.

I had 6 months off when I had my big accident aged 9.

When I was about 13 that riding school closed (they've since re opened and I've been back for a couple of brilliant hacks!) And I moved to somewhere I had fortnightly lessons instead. These lessons were so great they did wonders for my riding and confidence. My two favourite ponies were Blizzard and Razor.

I started sharing when I was about 15 on the lovely Spring who I have very fond memories of, everyone else says she was a moo bag but I don't remember that! I was however so nervous I spent alot of the time on the lead rein hacking out.

I bought ale when I was 20 and we've had the most amazing times together and I've been sharing Brodie now for well over a year. And I think we can all agree he's Mr Perfect

Short answer is 21 years minus 6 months. I hope to be like my mum who's still riding twice a week (and volunteering twice at RDA) at 60. She's got about 55 years under her belt!

 

[eventerbabe]

31 years. Started at a riding school at age 4. First pony at 9. Youth/teenage years spent in pony club and showjumping. Got Toby when I was 13. Then life/university/being an adult got in the way a bit. Now got my herd at home and love it.

 

[Calder]

Somewhere between.. 4 and 5? It's complicated....

Started out with my University riding club, but they gave up on us beginners after a term... I then got on no more than half a dozen times for the next decade, followed by a couple of years of semi-regular riding.. then a few more very occasional rides until two-and-a bit years ago, when I recommitted to riding every week. It's not always convenient or affordable but I've (mostly) stuck to it. In the last year I've done my first dressage tests and have, finally at the age of 45, started to feel like a rider. Still lots to learn, but I'm in no particular hurry. I slightly regret not having 'given in' to the passion when I was younger.. I always felt it (since my teens) but didn't really know what to do with it alongside all the other ways I was trying to work out how to make my way in the world, while it never seemed the right time to really commit to this expensive, difficult, dangerous and rather addictive activity.

It's OK, though: this feels like the right time, while for a long time it didn't. In that time, I read up and kept in touch with the horse world that way (including through this place!).

 

[Star the Fell]

I used to go to a livery yard near home. The livery girls would charge us £2.00 (I think) hoist us up into the saddle and turn the horses loose in a field. I was around 9. Every holiday we went on I insisted on a ride somewhere, usually hacking sometimes a lesson. We regularly went to a caravan park in Wales, and if we had the last ride of the day, they used to let us ride the ponies bareback, back to the field. I loved that. No riding then from say 15 to 30 when I decided to have proper lessons, once a week. Bought Star as my first pony as a 40 thbirtgday present, and have now, 11 years later got Mylo. So around 20 years regular riding, mostly hacking and dressage these days, but loved jumping at the riding school, so trying to pluck up courage to do that again.

 

[selside]

In theory it should be 50 years - but it's not in reality. Started at a local RS when I was about 8. Rode at least weekly until Uni/exams/ living in London got in the way, Moved back up North and started again in my 20's. Stopped when we moved. Started again in my 30's. Stopped. Started again in my 40's. Stopped after a bad fall. Started again as I approached 50. Hacked, had lessons, shared and borrowed RS ponies for 5-6 years. In between times I rode on holiday here and there.

Stopped after Mum got dementia and life got complicated. Presently overweight and unfit and haven't sat in a saddle for 18 months. I guess if you add it up it's 20 years or so. Probably only amounts to 2 - 3 years of owning and riding daily!
r

 

[MrC]

30 I started riding when I was four. My dad rode and trained racers, I got ponies from the sales and other people’s cast offs.

I’ve pretty much done most things, I enjoy backing and bringing on babies the most though.

 

[Bodshi]

From age 7 to 15 at riding schools, then a 30 year break followed by 6 months of lessons at a RS, one year of loaning at same RS then taking the plunge and getting my own horse nearly 8 years ago now. So actually 8 years of riding schools as a kid, which at the time seemed so much more than the 8 years I've had with my own horse. I still feel like such a newbie to horse ownership.

 

[HaloHoney]

Somewhere between.. 4 and 5? It's complicated....

Started out with my University riding club, but they gave up on us beginners after a term... I then got on no more than half a dozen times for the next decade, followed by a couple of years of semi-regular riding.. then a few more very occasional rides until two-and-a bit years ago, when I recommitted to riding every week. It's not always convenient or affordable but I've (mostly) stuck to it. In the last year I've done my first dressage tests and have, finally at the age of 45, started to feel like a rider. Still lots to learn, but I'm in no particular hurry. I slightly regret not having 'given in' to the passion when I was younger.. I always felt it (since my teens) but didn't really know what to do with it alongside all the other ways I was trying to work out how to make my way in the world, while it never seemed the right time to really commit to this expensive, difficult, dangerous and rather addictive activity.

It's OK, though: this feels like the right time, while for a long time it didn't. In that time, I read up and kept in touch with the horse world that way (including through this place!).

Gosh that all really does sound familiar!

I found something the other day. I found a plastic hoof pick. A school friend had given it to me when she got it free with horse and pony mag because she had loads, they came free with every horsey mag going.

And I held onto it in hope. I still have it because I always dreamed of having a horse, but I never thought it would actually happen. I found it the other day and it gave me the most massive grin. I really wished I could send my teenage self a postcard from the future, and let her know that she should keep holding onto that dream. And it will be worth it.

What’s the saying? Hold onto what you love, and if it tries to buck you off, hold on tighter.

 

[RayRay]

Only one and it stated off not that regular I'm still very much a beginner

 

[orbvalley]

I really wished I could send my teenage self a postcard from the future, and let her know that she should keep holding onto that dream. And it will be worth it.
[/QUOTE]

Thats so lovely it nearly brought a tear to my eye!

What’s the saying? Hold onto what you love, and if it tries to buck you off, hold on tighter[/QUOTE]

Never heard that!

 

[orbvalley]

@RayRay - it doesn't matter if you've got 1 or 100 years under your belt we're all still very much beginners

 

[An_Riz]

Gosh I loved reading everyone's stories

I have been riding since April 1st 2017 (April Fool's day which I'm trying to find the irony in, it's there somewhere) just before my 20th birthday in May. I learned to ride on a 16.2 irish cob at a livery yard near my house. Because I had the summer off from college it was perfect timing, I would go to the yard 2, sometimes 3 times a week and was taught straight away how to tack up and clean the horses. I was going on hacks with the yard owners about a month into lessons, I was really thrown into the deep end! But I learned a lot quicker because of it. Rode different types of horses and they placed huge importance on knowing how to properly tack up, lead a horse, clean tack, groom, etc. So it's been nearly a year now and I've been jumping and hacking on busy roads and on beaches and doing some basic dressage in my lessons and just having a ball really. Today I went for a hack at a new (for me) equestrian centre near my dad's house in another county, and they had 70 acres of open fields. It was soooo(oooooo) glorious .

So I have started late in the game compared to most of you but am excited about where I am going in my riding life. ❤

 

[GaryB]

I'm not sure how I ended up with my first horse. My GF had a horse and there was a badly treated young Anglo Arab at the yard and then one day he was mine. I didn't have any lessons - I just climbed on (a rising 5 Anglo!) and went. (I fell off a few times). After about 18 months I decided it wasn't really for me and gave up (we kept the horse and my gf rode and competed him).

After a break of nearly 30 years I went on a hack as part of an adult activity group - then came weekly lessons, a share horse, and finally my own. So I guess that's about 5 years worth.