Riding instructor help please

tazzy-anne

tazzy-anne

New Member
Sep 27, 2007
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North Staff's
i need a riding instructor but i'm not really sure what i want...

i'm into NH/Parelli type stuff, and Xander has been started by Dave Stuart (ex 5* Parelli). However i'm not convinced that i want a Parelli instructor as *sometimes* they can get so hooked up on sorting problems from the ground that you pay for a riding lesson and dont actually get a riding lesson... i can check out my dvd's/parelli website etc etc to work on my groundwork, i dont want to waste time/money on a groundwork lesson when i need to work on my/our riding (as Xander is very fresh & green).

but i dont want a traditional BHS instructor either...

can anyone name me a style/type of NH riding that will just let me get on with it and ride?

or someone who might be classed as a bhs instructor but who is easy going and liberal with the way the student wants to learn?

i'm in Stone which is North Staffs, so can consider people West Mids, Staffs, Shrops or even south Cheshire or this side of east mids if they are willing to travel a little if i pay them mileage.

i know what i want but i'm struggling to put it across and i'm not sure there's anyone out there to cater for me except very expensive people who tend to run clinics rather than come out to do lessons!!! :redcarded:

:help:
 
My mother showed me a poster of a bloke who is situated in Powys who is western/NH type minded,he's doing clinics in the Powys/Shropshire area but he might travel to you?
 
Shame you're not closer - I think you need someone like this

http://www.upbeatequestrian.co.uk/

Ruth is my instructor, she's fab. She isn't allowed to say on her website but she trains police horses and riders as a day job. However, although she's BHS qualified she's very much into a flexible approach and has worked with Mark Rashid, which really impressed me. To be honest most of the way she teaches me is non-BHS style.

There must be other instructors like Ruth about, I found her by going through our local arena website. Good luck with your search.
 
Your Ruth sounds EXACTLY the kind of instructor i want :) but yes, shame i'm too far :(

No Angel do have a name or anything i can work with to try googling? i'm interested in any that sound ok - i can have a play about and try several people before settling on the one i like, so doesnt have to be THE perfect person first time.

But yes - if anyone knows of a 'Ruth' that's more local to me i would be very happy to hear!
 
Tazzy Ann -
My geography is a bit hazy and I cant immeidately give the name of any near you, but I think you will find, once you start looking, that there is quite a network of independent teachers who are influenced in one way or another by the various schools of Natural Horsemanship.

My first introduction to NH was via riders - the dressage rider, Lucinda Macalpine and the Natural Horse Gathering.
There was a thread recently about Natural Horsemanship magazine , run by Lorraine and Mark Stanton. You may find it good to subscribe to network with people near you. Or at least look at the website links.

Mark Stanton is himself a classical teacher, very interesting on the history of dressage. There used to be someone on NR who had been taught by him, I think.
He is in Wiltshire but may well know of a like minded teacher near where you live.
http://www.nhmag.co.uk/index.php/links
http://vowleyfarm.co.uk/index.php/contact

Other names that come to mind are Adam Goodfellow and Nicole Golding, part of the IH organisation.

I hope you find someone - There is no one particularly close to where I live either.
 
Just ask around locally!

I would class myself as basically BHS with overtones of Sally Swift and Alexander ideas although not trained in them I use then and have found them helpful. I have worked successfully with a rider who also has a parelli trainers...they worked with her horse ...I worked with her on my schoolmasters. Daughter is equally BHS and conventionally trained in France has all her horses freeschooling and ground tying!!

Don't worry about 'labels' ask who friends like!
 
I've tried that but don't know that many people in the area :( we haven't been here that long.
The yard I'm on is quite small & none of them have lessons. The one girl who I know used to have an instructor I was asking this question to, said she doesn't anymore because they had a big row about what she was trying to tell her to do...
And our local tack shop has just closed down. I haven't been in ages but went a few days ago especially to look at the notice board to see if I could get any numbers, and turned up to find the unit just a shell - don't know when that happened!

So that's really why I'm struggling - I know the best way is by word of mouth but I have no mouths to ask :(
 
If your horse is newly started I would use the person that started him. It may not be your personal best choice but would give the horse some continuity.

When we get horses in for schooling we insist the riders come along as well so they go home 'knowing' each other.
 
That's not an option either I'm afraid. We had a 2 day clinic at the end of the 4 weeks start, and I would love him to be my regular instructor, but it's never gonna happen! He's too far away fir regular trips and he's one of these too on demand for lessons. He spends the summer doing young horse starts & does 2 or 3 day clinics round the country every now and again, then goes off to Dubai then home to Australia... So he's really not an option at all. It's almost like getting pat parelli himself to come over & give me regular lessons ;) !!!
 
tazzy-anne said:
That's not an option either I'm afraid. We had a 2 day clinic at the end of the 4 weeks start, and I would love him to be my regular instructor, but it's never gonna happen! He's too far away fir regular trips and he's one of these too on demand for lessons. He spends the summer doing young horse starts & does 2 or 3 day clinics round the country every now and again, then goes off to Dubai then home to Australia... So he's really not an option at all. It's almost like getting pat parelli himself to come over & give me regular lessons ;) !!!
Click to expand...

Perhaps he'd be willing to recommend someone, though - have you asked him?

I'd suggest looking for a centred riding instructor; the one I'm working with is brilliant - she knows a lot about Parelli, and clicker training, and classical dressage and groundwork and probably plenty of other things too. I don't expect they're all like that, but they will all be talking about riding first, and balance, and quietness and your relationship with your horse.
 
I was trying to get an ee Instructor though have found someone through yard now. She does parelli and stuff withrichard maxwell... But mainly teaches conventionally. Though gives me flexibility if she is unsound as we can do ground work instead
 
I've been trying to find a centered riding/rwym/ee style RI to teach me but can I find anyone to travel to my yard... NOPE! Having to teach myself at the moment which is slow at the best of times...
 
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