At 22:58:40 on 20.08.11, xXSuperSonicGinaXx wrote:

Ok so the riding school I'm currently going to no longer has a proper instructor so I haven't been having any proper lessons. Also the horses and ponies are rather small, 14.3 down and then the 3 proper horses they have are not for schooling :/ I live in the southwest of england(Devon) And I've been to all the riding schools local to me, all of them I will never go back to due to either having arguments with the owner :/ or they don't have a horse big enough. I'm quite a chunky girl, I'm not going to lie I aint no lightweight so I need something that isn't a completely nutter but is big enough to carry me. Anyway back to the point, I've been riding for 3 years now and I know it's not long but I'm starting to think about either loaning or exercising peoples horses? I know alot of people now are going uni and such and so they can't spend time with their horses so this is a perfect opportunity for me. The problem is that my 'friends' keeping telling me that I'm not ready, that I'm not a good enough rider. Now I'm not saying I'm amazing but I'm not a novice. I do however know that 3 years is not a long time to ride for. I'm also a bit hesitant because I can be quite a nervous rider depending on the situation. I am quite happy with a forward going ride, I'm not bothered if its a bit head strong but bucking and rearing really gets to me :/ also I'm not that confident with jumping. I'll jump 2ft 6 happily but no higher :/ Because of this I'm worried, I'm not a great rider so I don't know whether to put up an add or not. And if I do put up an add what I should put on there :/ Please help me! :) Here is a picture of me jumping a spread, nothing big just working on striding.

(Click here for larger view)

At 01:47:04 on 22.08.11, JessAndGrenville123 wrote:
Why not go for a nice been there done that cobby type i would know the perfect horse for you to loan if you lived in cleveland lol i would advise look for a small but heavyweight cob that will just small jumps and give you confidence, maybe a part loan would be good to start with, i wouldn't exersise peoples horses if you weren't confident cos half the time the reason they want the horse riding is because they are too scared to ride it themselves but if you are used to ponies i would go for maybe 14.3/15hh cob type my friend is well large and he is pretty tall but his 14.3 heavyweight cob carries him no problem and even me (i look wayyy to tall on him but i don't care he can take my weight) and i am 5'11/6ft ish so don't go for height just go for a horse or pony you think will give you a boost

At 12:12:05 on 25.08.11, Angelalain wrote:
Why not put an ad in your local tack shop etc for a share/part loan or just an offer to help out with horses. Jess is quite right, often people who want you to ride are actually scared themselves! But try an ad, you can always say no if someone offers you something unsuitable. If you get a reply you're under no obligation to follow it up!

At 16:27:30 on 12.09.11, xXSuperSonicGinaXx wrote:
Just updating, I put up an add and someone replied to it but I have found out the woman is currently in spain and when she gets back someone is comming to try out the horse :/ Feeling a tad upset since she seemed so eager to get me up there to try the horse out and now she's got someone else. She did say that if it doesn't work out then she will contact me :/ Still my add is there and hopefully someone will reply soon!
http://www.equineadverts.co.uk/3/17/108/42042.html

At 19:53:34 on 12.09.11, JessAndGrenville123 wrote:
Don't be upset, if it isn't meant to be it isn't meant to be, when i rang up about grenville someone was already interested and i was told they had first refusal so i lost hope but then a few weeks later she rang back cos the other people had found a different horse and did i want to go view him so sometimes thing are meant to be and sometimes they aren't but it will always work out in the end :)

At 22:01:33 on 21.09.11, xXSuperSonicGinaXx wrote:
Good news all! The woman spoke to me and we've organised for me to try out the horse this comming friday :D apparently the other woman decided she had to much going on without the horse and so now I'm in line for it ^_^ Here he is http://www.equineadverts.co.uk/3/16_Horses_For_Loan/106_14_2hh_and_over/42632_16_1_tb_available_to_ride.html

At 19:50:29 on 23.09.11, xXSuperSonicGinaXx wrote:
Just to update you all, I tried the horse out today :D what a beauty! Did a bit of school which was awesome, a couple squeezes and we were in canter, didn't have to do a thing to keep him going and just used a bit of light rein and a 'woooh' and we were back to trot, went out on a hack too and had a blast, his canter feels like a full on gallop! very exhilarating! :) going up again sunday for another test drive and then sometime again next week and then he shall be mine for loan!

At 21:33:57 on 04.11.11, NoraPieterse wrote:
congrats!! looks like you've got your cake and you're eating it ;) have fun!