Back in the Saddle (AGAIN)-Tips on Returning to Riding
Submitted by: Connie Warner
Phone: 804-721-0054
Email Address: warnerssporthorses(at)hotmail.com
Date Added: 1/26/2013
Maybe you rode as a child or teenager. Then life got in the way and before you know it 20 (or more) years happened and you haven’t ridden since. Or maybe a beloved horse died and heartbroken you stopped riding for a while. Or maybe you had a scary fall and even though you didn’t break anything, you stopped riding.
Then suddenly, out-of-blue, you get that urge to ride again. Maybe your young daughter shows an interest (what girl doesn’t like horses?) Or you drive past a few horses in the field and suddenly you want to jump on one. Or maybe you decide that you need to do something fun for yourself and riding sounds more appealing than taking a pottery class. Sometimes a non-horsey spouse is the one to get the interest going again…”hey honey, didn’t you ride as a kid?”
Once horses get in your blood, they never leave. They might be dirty and dusty, step on your feet and sneeze on you. But nothing is better than hanging around them, watching them eat or taking a relaxing trail ride on a fall day. So forget about forgetting about horses. Once you fall in love with them, it’s a lifetime commitment!
No matter what your reason is for leaving riding, take your time easing back into the saddle. Make your riding return a goal, and then break the process down into the following steps.
Find Comfortable Riding Clothes
Western riders have it easy, just jeans and boots. English riders have a lot more to think about!
I HATE breeches and tall boots. I know they look nice, but I daydream that someday, the powers that be, will declare jeans and half chaps formal show wear! But it’s not looking likely at this point. However if you’re like me, consider buying some riding pants (the higher the cotton content, the less the sticky cling) and wearing half chaps. Some half chaps look like tall boots. Or jeans and full chaps work too. Main point is to wear what is comfortable for you.
I like to save money as much as the next guy, but the 20 year old pair of breeches? Just donate them to a museum and get a new pair. There are so many different brands now and price points. I remember back in 1990, there seemed to be two, maybe three brands of riding clothes. Now there seems to be dozens. Find a local tack store and try several until you find something you like.
If you start up riding in the fall or winter, dress in many thin layers. Avoid bulky winter coats. They can easily get caught on the saddle horn causing a nasty accident. A t-shirt layered on top by a polar fleece jacket and a winter vest is usually enough for Virginia winters. Further north get a winter coat made for riding. These coats are tailored at the waist and flare in the back like coat tails.
It’s your choice, as an adult to wear a helmet, but I strongly urge you to wear one. Some stables require everyone to wear an approved helmet. Great advances have been made in helmets. I remember my first approved helmet. It must have weighed 5 lbs, was hot, had no air ventilation and was overall awful! Now they come in all different styles from traditional black velvet to wild colors and patterns. If you think it’s a remote possibility that you may want to show again, go for the traditional style. Many helmets even have adjustment knobs in the back so you can get a perfect fit. The helmet should move with your scalp when you shake your head. Try rocking it back and forth and front to back. Make sure you adjust the harness so it’s comfortable for you.
Gloves are optional. Some people can’t ride without them. If I never see another pair again it will be too soon!
Finding the Right Lesson Barn & Teacher
Next step is to find the right barn for you. Most barns have a mix of child and adult students. You may feel a little odd being the only adult riding with a bunch of kids. Generally speaking, children ride after school and on weekends. If you are able to ride during the day, you’ll be more likely to ride with other adults or better yet, have the place to yourself.
I recommended that you start with half hour private lessons. You’ll get the instructor’s full attention, will be able to work at your own pace and won’t become too tired. Then once you’ve gotten into the grove again, you may enjoy riding in an adult group lesson. But be aware those lessons tend to become social events with horses, which is good or bad depending on how ambitious your goals are. The advantage is you’ll meet other returning riders and can make new friends that will encourage you and keep you on track.
One of the best places to gather names of instructors is the American Riding Instructor Association’s website. Each state is listed and it is likely to have an instructor near you. The test to become an ARIA certified instructor is very demanding. When I took it, I had a very long essay question exam that had to be submitted beforehand and then a 4 hour written test at a testing location. If I wanted to become higher than a Level 1 teacher, I had to submit a videotaped riding lesson to the exam board. The written test consisted of essay question that were judged and scored by some of the top trainers in the country. (They won’t tell you who, but I always wondered if George Morris graded my paper!) I have met many ARIA instructors at the annual national conference and they are a very professional bunch of horse people. Chances are one will serve you well.
When you first talk to prospective teachers, let them know you are a returning rider. A good instructor will congratulate you on your big riding return, relate that they have had other returning riders and will detail a program for you that empathizes slowness and safety until you get your stride back. It’s important that you click with your instructor. Don’t choose somebody that intimidates you. It’s fine to ride in a clinic with a top (and usually unapproachable clinician) but your “everyday” instructor should be someone you feel comfortable asking questions of and you trust their judgment.
There are also basically two types of teachers; the Barking Dictator and the Friendly/Positive Conversational Type teacher. I personally have gotten my fill of the Barking Dictator for this lifetime, but that’s your choice!
Visiting Barns
In addition to finding the right instructor, you should look at the barn they operate out of. Try not to judge a book by its cover. I have been to plenty of beautiful farms that had the best of everything, yet the horse management and general knowledge was lacking. On the other hand, some barns are much more humble, but the teaching and horse management is superb. Keep in mind that horses don’t perform well if their home life is stressful. If the horses aren’t turned out to pasture much, if their feeding times are irregular, if they don’t get along with the horse next door or the other horses in the pasture, real stress can build up over time making the horse unsafe to ride. Try to visit a barn during feeding time. All horses will pace and get a little excited when it’s time to eat, but they should settle down quickly once fed. I remember one lesson barn I rode at as a kid. When feeding time came you thought the barn was going to come down! All of them started screaming, kicking the walls, pounding their buckets, rearing at their next door neighbor, pawing the floors and raking their teeth along the stall walls. They didn’t settle down after being fed either because they would be busy fighting at the neighbor on the other side of the wall. Avoid this kind of place!
Also consider the general atmosphere of the barn. Are the people friendly or are they snobby? What are the employees like? Do they seem content or are they stressed and hurried? The reason you should care is because horses pick up people’s attitudes. If the people around them are calm and happy, chances are the horses will be as well.
Is the barn neat and clean? Are blankets hung up? Are tools put away? Is the tack reasonably clean or do the bits have big green globs of fossilized grass clippings? Little things like this indicate how much pride the people there have in their work.
Your First Lesson
I know it’s hard, but try not to get nervous! This is huge step for you. In certain cases, this simple act of coming to your first riding lesson might be the product of years of wishing you could ride but being too frightened to. Or maybe your just plain excited to get back to what you love. Whatever the emotion, don’t eat a heavy meal before your lesson. Eat something light like a salad or some crackers. You could always chow down afterwards while celebrating your big riding lesson success.
Try not to get into the ‘past self’ versus ‘present self’ comparison trap. As adults we tend to glamourize our wild riding youth. You’re convinced that when you were a kid, you were jumping your horse over ditches bareback, galloping full speed across an open field and then lived to tell your parents about it! Reality is you were probably just jumping cross rails bareback and did a pleasant canter across the pasture. But if you fall into the trap of thinking that you’ve lost every riding skill and ounce of courage you had in the past, you’d be mistaken. Sure as we get older and have families are bodies aren’t as spry as before. But the head knowledge is still there and will only improve with age. Riding isn’t like ice skating. You don’t wear out at 30. Watch a Grand Prix jumping class on t.v. Sometimes they will list the ages of the riders. The older riders always kick the tails of the 20somethings! How cool is that?
Riding is about 20% body strength and about 80% head knowledge. It’s a good idea to take up a light exercise program off the horse and eat better, but it’s more important to work that muscle between the ears. You are the horse’s brain and he is the muscle.
In any case don’t think for a minute that you’re special or unique on the returning rider roller coaster. If you only knew how many riders are going through the same thing! There are multitudes of returning riders like yourself and there are riders who are returning to jumping or horse showing and are in the same mindset boat as you…uncertain, excited, nervous, unsure and hoping everything goes well! Lucky the emotional roller coaster stops and by the 3rd or 4th lesson you will be happy and back in the saddle again like you never left it.
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