Riding IRL

What is your riding history/experience with horses?

I ride Sundays, Mondays, sometimes Wednesdays for the summer, Thursdays and some Fridays. I have two instructors, one is for a private lesson on Sundays and the other is for a group lesson. I ride both English and Western. I started riding Western a little over two years ago. I joined a program at my barn last year called the "Trainee Program". During the school year, I work a four hour shift on Thursdays for 3:30-ish to 8. I have to take care of my barn's over 40 horses and 5 ponies. It's really fun and every 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Friday of every month, we have a Trainee nights. I started riding English because of the Trainee Program because one of the Trainee nights is an English Ride night where we have an English lesson. One of my favorite horses is named Mitten. He's a bay with gorgeous coloring and an ugly face (not going to lie). He's absolutely perfect and he's one of the few horses that can do a flying lead change (and his flying lead changes are so subtle and easy to sit). Tbh he needs a crop because he's really lazy otherwise. This summer, I'm doing some riding camps and I have and English camp next week and I'm so excited.

I started riding seriously when I was... seven? I worked at the barn, learning how to be responsible and care for horses in exchange for lessons. After I got my own horse in 2011, I lived and worked at the barn I boarded at. Learned a bit of dressage, cared for various geldings, mares, stallions, and a foal. Moved him twice and now I'm going to start riding him again once I purchase a new helmet (someone stole mine at the previous barn). He is literally perfect.

I ride since 4 years and have one riding lesson per week.

Since three lessons I ride a Haflinger named Chyntia and she is just a naughty girl. Today we had to go faster in trotting while switching hands, so I gave that command and my girl starting gallopping fast instead of staying in trot. Also she does not like the left gallop and only gallops very fast out of control on that side in the wrong gallop. I managed to get her back twice and ride her in a slow calm trot and managed to get three gallops in the left gallop, but yeah, she likes speed xD

I have been riding since I was 6? I ride roughly 4-5 days a week, bout an hour each. I ride in IEA now, joined this year. I have trained and gentled many different horses, and I am currently studying to be in the fascinating career of Equine and canine rehabilitation and therapy. I have shadowed and worked alongside many vets, including breeding and foaling. I luckily haven't had to euthanize an animal myself yet, but I have experienced multiple. I ride hunter jumper, but have done a little but of everything with the wonderful foundation of dressage. :)

My...fourth birthday I had a horse-themed party, and we rented a gorgeous black gelding for all the little kids to ride around. I think that was when I really first got into horses.
After that, I was obsessed with them. Absolutely obsessed. I owned horse toys, stuffed animals, and I even got a Silver Buckle Stables PC game (which I still have to this day. Still play it sometimes, too). I started riding regularly when I was in second/third grade and we moved out to the country. We always had two horses on our property, usually one broke and one green/not broke at all, so I was always on the back of a horse. My mom even used me as the dummy for training our Quarab mare. She'd have me carefully slide up onto her back and stay there for her to get used to it. Anyway, after we moved into town, we went out to a friend's house and rode her horses every once in a while. But it wasn't until recently that I've started wanting to really get into, like, gaming and stuff, and lately I've been trying to ride as much as I can, but not owning your own horse is kind of an issue. In the past few days, I've learned how to run barrels, and I'm pretty impressed with how far I'm come, riding-wise.

Sorry. Got a little long-winded there. :)

I have been riding since I was 3, though I think it is kind of funny to say that because really what can a 3 year old do on a horse? I did mostly western pleasure lessons until I was about 13 and I started going to my current trainer. It was that year I also aquired my current horse. I had had horses before, but none of them were actually "mine". My grandmother had horses all her life and so she bought ones for me to show, however after my last horse she had for me was injured in a stable accident and as a result had to be put down, I moved on to better things.

My horse is now 6 and I have trained him myself! With the help of instructors of course, but I am the only one who has ever ridden him. I ride mostly english, am part of the United State Pony Club, and 4H. I qualified for 4H state fair this year in dressage and am very excited to go! In addition to dressage I also am starting to school 2 foot jumpers!

The image is very large but if anyone is interested here is a link to a picture of me and my horse, an Appaloosa/Standardbred cross named Apollo Justice, doing one of our dressage tests.
Picture here

In addition to owning my horse I have worked at my barn 3 days a week for the past 5 years and had an actual stable job for a few months earlier in the year at a boarding facility. I have also conditioned and trained a few horses. I worked with an arab/pinto gelding for barrels for a lady, trained a paint mare for showmanship, and have been riding and conditioned an Icelandic gelding to do ponyclub games with.

I also am on my 4h state knowledge compeition teams and Placed 3rd overall in Hipology this year!

Last edited on 2016-06-23 at 10:22:48 by Crystal Creek