Well I'm just curious because I want to see what other people's lessons are like. I'm not really 'satisfied' with the barn I go to. The people are really nice and all but I don't feel like I'm learning anything new...
Here's how mine goes:
*In the summer we ride with saddles (western), in the winter we ride bareback.
- At 5:25 leave for the barn.
- Get there, and then get Breeze the mare I always ride.
- Groom breeze, then put on her bareback pad and put in her bridle.
- At 6:00 the lesson starts. Get on Breeze.
- Walk around the arena for 3 minutes.
- Start trotting for 10 min straight, 5 min each way.
- Slow down to a walk, walk for about 2-3 minutes while trainer sets things up.
- Pick up the trot, depending on the day we either work on Cavaletties, barrels, circles, jumps etc. For a while. Sometimes we play a game.
- Pick up the canter; canter for about 2-3 min each direction.
- Trot a little more then start cooling them down.
** Okay the rest is all just blah but you can read it if you want**
Now I've been riding for 4+ years at the same barn. The first few years I learned a lot; trotting, using my legs, bareback, cavaletties, posting, 2-point, 1ft jumps, cantering, cantering bareback, etc. I've been working/volunteering at the barn for about 3 years helping with the lessons, feeding, grooming, tacking, cleaning stalls, riding the horses, witnessing horses get sick/colic, injured, euthanized, and I helped in the process of training a filly. etc. So I know quit a lot.
The thing is I'm starting to get bored.... I just think it's time for me to try something new. I first rode private lessons, and then I went on to riding with 3 other girls. And honestly, I like private lessons better then semi-private, I get a chance to be just one-on-one with my trainer and I don't have to constantly turn in circles because the horse in front of us is slow.lol. But my mom wants me in semi-private lessons because it's cheaper ($35) and I can ride with other girls. Well the girls are like 3-4 years younger than me anyway and I'm more advanced than them. And another complaint of mine is that I can't seem to find the 'right' horse to ride... I've probably rode over 12 horses at this barn... only 1 was a really good match for me but.... she was sold 2 months after I started riding her and I was heartbroken, I have never been so attached to a horse like I was with Piper %26lt;3 Anyway it's also harder for me to find the 'right' horse because I'm 5'8 1/2 tall... And my trainer only has one horse that's over 15.3hh and that's Red..... I rode him for a year and he is a brat!
So finally! For the questions.....
- I have been dying to ride English for about a year 1/2! I really want to go into jumping, X country, and dressage. The problem is; the only nice jumping and dressage barns around my house tend to be in wealthier areas so the lessons are about $60-$100 and the board is $850 a month!!! I just about had a heart attack when I saw that.... LOL. But I don't have to worry about boarding a horse. Do you think if I paid half and my parents the other half, be fair? And I would probably go only every other week cause the barn's are about 40 min from my house.
- What do you think I should do? I would feel really bad and find it tough going to a different barn because I've know my Trainer/the owner for awhile and she's given me a lot of good opportunities I wouldn't get at another barn. And I've been a ton of help to her.
Anyway I know this is kind of all over the place and random, sorry about that...
- %26lt;3 Breeze %26lt;3|||Maybe it is possible for you to work out a deal with the owner of the english riding barns. By this I mean you could possibly work there and do things like cleaning, feeding, and things in exchange for lessons. This way you could probably pay less for lessons and still get them. Maybe do something like getting dropped off in the morning and getting picked up later after your lesson.
If that is not possible, then you could go to a lesson every other week and the weeks you don't go there, go help out at the other barn. This way you are not completely abandoning the other barn but you get to try something new :) You could pay half for the lessons and your parents would pay the other half to be fair.
The barn you ride at sounds good especially since you get to ride bareback which helps many peoples balance and position. Ask if there is anything else you could do like enter shows or join a pony club near there with your barn, something to keep things interesting.
My lesson is on Saturday at 2:30 pm, here's what happens:
1:15 = I leave for the barn
2:00 = I arrive and get out the horse I am riding
2:00-2:15 = I groom my horse, and put on the martingale/wraps
2:15-2:30 = I tack up my horse and do a double check making sure everything is in its keepers/tight/in the right spot
2:30-2:40 = We do a warm up with some halt transitions and circles at the walk
2:40-2:55 = We do trot exercises, learn something new at the trot. We practise two-point and sitting posting trot. We do transitions, poles, and other things like that.
2:55-3:10 = Canter time! We go both ways, do circles, over poles, two-point and other things like that.
3:10-3:20 = Jumps. We take turns going over jumps practising crest releases. After we do a small course in the arena.
3:20-3:30 = We cool out the horses, let them have their head and give them a BIG pat.
3:30-3:50 = Un-tack. Brush them down very well, and give them a treat. We put on their blankets if needed, and we return them to their field or paddock.
3:50-4:00 = Read the notices, sweep up our spots, return everything to its place.
4:00 = Return home
I have a group lesson with 1-4 other people. It is $40 per group lesson and $50 per private lesson. It is 45 minutes away but since we live in a big city I think that is fair.|||At my school beginners start on a free-schooled horse or on the lead-rein (even adults) to help gain confident and lay the foundations for a good seat. Children are normally taught in small groups, adults privately. As they improve they are paired with similar students and finally put into a group of 4.
There are also set, pre-scheduled group lessons which are run a bit like clinics, separated by level and child/adult. The group lessons start at Novice 2 (there are 2 beginner lessons and 4 novice levels). The group lessons normally run according the the level rather then the individual riders ability. These lessons are much cheaper, normally taken by a student instructor and are designed to be taken in addition to private or semi-private (2 or 4) lessons.
This worked well. New concepts were introduced during the group lessons from a kind of set syllabus, and individual problems are worked on during (semi-)private lessons.
Lesson format:
The students are encouraged to groom and tack up there own horse - compulsory for owners on their own horses.
Students novice onwards are expected to check their own tack, mount and begin a gentle warm up on the loose rein on their own.
Once a contact is picked up the instructor will call out walk/trot/canter/halt/rein-back in quick succession and we are expected to follow. At my level we sometimes only 1 or 2 paces of each gait. This really gets the horses listening.
Then the lesson proper begins.
For cooling down the horses we take them for a quick hack around the tracks. Only the most novice riders cool down in the school.
After the warm-up for each lesson the aims for the lesson is explained to us. This aim may change by the end of the lesson, but I think it helps us focus and makes it clearer at the end of the lesson what progress we have or haven't made. For myself and my horse I keep a training log with our problems and aims. It not only focuses my mind on what we should be working on but also allows me to see progress made which is a great motivator.
Something else that we do is get together in a group of similar level riders, watch each other ride and critique - basically give each other lessons. It's much easier to spot another riders errors, and I think it helps you to spot your own. This is of cause much easier if you have your own horse, you will have to ask permission.
Personally I wouldn't stop going to your present stables, if they give you a variety, but that doesn't mean you can't go o the other stables too. Maybe drop a lesson once a month so you can go to the other place instead.
Make it known that you want to learn more and feel stuck in a rut. Make a list of all the things you would like to try. What about ground training, like long-reining or lunging? Get some books and DVDs and look for ideas.|||Parents willing/supportive, would it be possible to lease a horse, finding a close local barn with a place to ride, and have a trainer come to you? I used to pay $25 an hour for GOOD private lessons, moved to a new area and was astounded to see group lesson rates at $80 an hour. I've heard of some people that are great trainers, that will come farm to farm.
Stick with it and don't give up. I've been at that same point! It's frustrating, but it makes you a better horse person.|||Hrmmm.... No lesson is totally "typical" for me. :') But most of them go something like this:
3:30: Go to stable
3:40: Groom a random pony and pick a few sets of hooves
4:00: Help out with Hipotherapy lessons
5:00: Check in with receptionist
5:01: Give Rusty (the schoolhorse I ride) a quick brush down/take blanket off and chat with boarders
5:15: Saddle time!
5:20: Get into the ring, adjust stirrups, tighten girth, double check boot placement
5:30: And I'm off!
6:15: Lesson ends. Say goodbye and cool Rusty off.
...Yep. Exciting, I know.
As for your barn troubles, I'd say check your yellowpages to try and find a closer, and possibly more inexpensive one. If all else fails, I think splitting the cost of the lessons with your parents and going every other week would be fair, just know you won't progress very quickly. And if you ever want a horse, the drive to and from would be brutal so don't be expecting parental approval.
It's your choice to move or not. Put your feelings for your trainer aside and focus on what you desire. good luck.|||I think it is really nice that you get to ride bareback in most of your lessons, because that helps riders tremendously. I would ask your trainer if she knew about any shows in the area that your barn could go to. These are fun because you get a nice change in scenery and you get to compete against other riders on your level.
Since you want to get into dressage, jumping, and cross country (also known as eventing, which is what I do) I would try to find a trainer for that. Are there any other trainers at your barn that could help you out with that or is it all western? For the expensive barns, maybe you could work out a deal with the instructor. You could offer to clean stalls, groom horses, turn out horses, etc. in exchange for riding lessons, or a discount. If you feel that you are not learning anything, this is what I would recommend.
Hope this helped and good luck! If you have any questions let me know :)|||My lessons differ greatly depending on how my mare's doing, and how we're progressing. I event, so it also differs if we're having a dressage or a jumping lesson. My mare's only five though, so our jumping lessons stick below 3'3, and we primarily just work through different gymnastics and such. When I have a dressage lessons, we work on the same things as at the start of the jumping lessons, just slightly more extensively. Keeping Cadence straight, even, supple, and on the bit is a full time job at this point! Oh, and keeping her calm and slow. We generally do some work with serpentines and circles, all the basic figures. We're also introducing some leg yielding. However, I don't think comparing my lessons to yours would be very much use, so lets move on.
I am 5'9, and my mare's 16.1 (or just over) She's right on the verge of being too small for me, but unless you're doing any serious showing it shouldn't really matter so long as the both of you are comfortable. I still school my 14.1h pony, but I am under 115lbs, so he can easily handle my weight. Also, riding difficult horses or horses you don't like is part of learning how to ride properly. You should be able to get on any horse, whether he's poky and calm, or hot and forward and produce the same results. I rode a horse for two months that would either stand stalk still in the middle of the arena, or bolt. However, by the end of that time I could keep him going at a nice forward pace right from the start and anticipate and stop all of his bolts. He was a really beautiful and comfortable horse once you learned how to ride him in an effective manner. Shortly after, I was put on a rather hot and sensitive ex dressage horse who had been relegated to the life of a schooling pony when her hocks couldn't handle the level of training her owner desired. She was never trained to jump properly, and had a habit of bolting around courses at top speed. After three months of riding her, we took her and schooled over some XC jumps. I was told that it was the nicest she's ever jumped, let alone on an XC course. However, I think she was just glad to have a rider she could count on instead of another different child. She was my favourite horse at the barn, and I still think of her. However, a time came when I found that I just wasn't learning as much at my schooling barn as I used to. I was also part boarding a pony at the time (at a different barn) so I found a coach to come out and give me some lessons on him. After a few months with my new coach, I felt I'd already learned more than I had in the whole previous year at the schooling barn.
If you feel that you aren't learning anything, are you really saving money by taking lessons at that place? Paying the difference may be the solution you're looking for. However, perhaps you could ask to work out a deal with the new barn to work for lessons? $60/lesson is what I pay for a 1 hour private from a coach whose ridden at Rolex and been on the olympic team. That said, I own my own horse, so I don't have to pay for the horse like you would at a schooling barn.
Good luck, and I apologize for the long winded answer.|||depending ont he time of the lesson. lets say my lesson is at 1:00pm on a saturday...
11:30-11:45 leave for the barn
12:00- arrive at the barn
12:00 get my horses food bucket (only way to lure her from the pasture)
12:15 get back in with my horse from the pasture
12:15 brush and tack up my horse (Fancy)
12:30 start my horse's warm up/do any extras i might have to do (help a friend, set up jumps, ect.)
1:00 lesson starts/start cantering fix any position problems
1:05 start grid work and what not.
2:00 end lesson
2:05 go outside and practice what we learned w/o trainer
2:45-3:00ish cool down
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