13h2 with a 5"6 rider.....

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Smallhorses

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Hi there! I'm new to the forum and wanted to introduce myself :)

I am currently horselsss :( but hoping to find the horse of dreams very soon! :) I don't have allot of confidence riding and therefore looking for something that will suit my ability. I rode something this morning which has made me very excited!! The only problem is he is 13h2 :( he's a welsh Section C and could carry my weight fine but I worry whether I looked silly! I am 9st9 and about 5"6. He is for sale at the moment but will probably be sold soon as hes a little trooper :) He certainly doesn't look small and I didnt feel too underhorsed when I was on him.

Usually if a horse spooks or something like that I have a little freak out but with this little man I was having the time of my life! Now I'm not sure what to do!

Tell me to walk away! :D
 
benson21 said:
Why? You obviously like him, looking for another one, you say you dont feel to big for him, so whats the problem?:rolleyes:;)
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I know I know he is a little treasure. I do worry what people think though. Plus, would I restrict his ability to jump etc? The owner told me she was selling him because she is too big for him and she is smaller than me!
 
But if you are comfortable on him, and you are happy with that, then does it really matter what other people think?
 
I'm 6'1" and I ride a 14.2hh New Forest.

If a 6 foot bloke can ride a 'childs pony' you'll have no worries with a Sec C.

Never mind walk away, I say Ride with Pride.
 
I'm 5'9 and ride a 14.3h, she has got horse strides as opposed to pony strides so although I do probably look a little silly I'm quite comfortable on her and it's not so far to fall! :D
 
If he takes your leg well, I'd say you won't look silly, so as long as he's fit and sound, with conformation allowing him to carry weight well, go for it I think:)

If you go on the 'Weight carrying New Forests' thread, there are lots of pics of adults on ponies, including a link to NeilM on his NF, I can confirm he does not look underhorsed.
 
I am 5'6 and although a little heavier at 10st I feel a little big on my 15.2hh horse!!!

Ask yourself seriously if you feel too big on this pony.. and not just trying to fill the gap.
 
Spudlet said:
including a link to NeilM on his NF, I can confirm he does not look underhorsed.
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Thank you, that's very nice of you to say :p

OP, I DO know exactly what you are feeling, as I was recently told my pony was 'struggling' to carry me (I'm 12 1/2 stone). His breeder saw recent photo's and said we were a perfect match, so trust your instincts and if everything 'clicks' then buy and enjoy.
 
I used to hunt my 13h2 and I'm 5'5" and weighed and 9 1/2 st at the time. We didn't used to bumble round the back either, we were up front and jumping everything.

He was awesome :D.

Didn't give two hoots what people thought about us and still don't now I have graduated to a 14h3 :).
 
Go and buy the pony if you really want and like him..Who cares what others think,its not upto them what you ride.I used to ride a pony and Im 5ft 4 and then owned a 13.3hh and I then weighed 9.4 stone. I gained a bit of weight over the years and now own a 14.3hh cobby and hes here for life. IF you feel hes right for you,get him,dont leave it too long before making the decision to buy or he might be sold then you will regret not getting the pony.
So go get your pony and enjoy him.
 
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I have a welsh D but she's 13.3 - so an overgrown C really!


i'm 5ft 3 but somebody rode her the other day who was 5ft 7 and she weight 9st 7 i think, pony had no problems at all and as she's chunky she took up the girls leg and they looked alright together.

(except my naughty pony was purposefully naughty with her :rolleyes:)

I say STAY dont walk away!
 
I'm not suggesting you'll be too heavy as those Welsh cobs are sturdy little buggers but without sounding like a boring old trump, but you're 5'6'' and although not heavy by far as you're obvioulsy slim but it's not like your 5ft and 7 stone wet through is it?...sorry I'm just being real here.

I mean I'm all for ponies, love them but there is a difference between a 13.2 and a 14.2 when it comes to your size and as much as you may love the pony, really think about it first, wouldn't you prefer something a little bigger, even if its just a 14.2?

There's plenty of bigger ponies out there that are wonderful confidence givers and what if you want to start jumping or doing faster work, beleive me you'll feel more secure on something a little bigger as you'll be better balanced and not under horsed, not only that but you also have to think about the saddle, your going to have a smallish saddle on a 13.2 pony compaired to your size surely? at 5'6 (same height as me) I can't imagine riding a 13.2 pony on a daily basis, I feel large enough on a little 15.1 TB and she's build like a cob!

End of the day it's not what people think I know, but don't rush into this, perhaps you should ride a few others that are a little bigger and then make a decission, there's nothing worse than riding a smaller pony and worrying all the time about your weight and silly things like that, which I know us girls/ladies do at times :)
 
Just remember that if you want to compete at some point jumping, you may have a problem! You will be pretty much unable to show jump a pony unless you are under 16... Dressage would be fine though. If you want to compete in time, it may be worth you looking for something bigger? However..... ponies are awesome :D
 
Smallhorses said:
Hi there! I'm new to the forum and wanted to introduce myself :)

I am currently horselsss :( but hoping to find the horse of dreams very soon! :) I don't have allot of confidence riding and therefore looking for something that will suit my ability. I rode something this morning which has made me very excited!! The only problem is he is 13h2 :( he's a welsh Section C and could carry my weight fine but I worry whether I looked silly! I am 9st9 and about 5"6. He is for sale at the moment but will probably be sold soon as hes a little trooper :) He certainly doesn't look small and I didnt feel too underhorsed when I was on him.

Usually if a horse spooks or something like that I have a little freak out but with this little man I was having the time of my life! Now I'm not sure what to do!

Tell me to walk away! :D
Click to expand...

I ride a 13.3hh Welsh section D and I am 5 foot 10 and 9 stone 11. Mind you, she is not mine and yes, I do look silly! But I have to ride her as part of my job is schooling her. I love riding her though and even though I know I look ridiculous, I don't care. I think at 5 ft 6 you will be fine.
 
As a 5'5'' person who has ridden (briefly, at owner's suggestion, I was their to look at the 14hh...) a similar size pony to the one you describe when slightly lighter than you I'd say walk away. You're confidence will grow, the pony won't. And you'd feel awful if it ended up with back/other health issues carrying you.
 
i know what its like to struggle with your confidence :) got mine back with the help of a wee pony this summer not entirely sure how big he was but under 14.2 and he happily used to jump the moon with me on board no problem at all, i'm 5'7 and his rider normally was the same height as me but younger and she used to compete him up to 1.15 i think
to be honest i didn't care if i looked ridiculous because i was having a ball and so was he and isn't that what horses are all about
 
At 5'4" and nearly 10st I've been abusing my 12hh exmoor for 14 years. He's never had a ridden-induced injury/back problem in all that time. At 19yrs old, he's as fit as a fiddle. I recently had some horsey know-it-all say I was 'almost' too big for him. Not sure what 'almost' means, but when she found out his age and how long I'd been riding him for, she seemed to change her tune.

A pony will soon tell you if you're too much for them. Honestly, the number of times I've been tanked off with by my pocket rocket is embarrassing and you're never going to look as silly as me! :D
 
If it helps I have a 13.2hh Welsh Sec C who I have just backed and I'm about the same weight and 5'5".
He is mainly for my 2 girls but he is ok carrying me too.
If the pony is the right character and what you are looking for when riding and you don't feel he's too small when riding him I would definately go for him.

Good Luck x
 
In my pictures, the one on the left, is me on a 12.2hh Welsh. I'm 5'5". He had been really nappy so I offered to have a go with him and I ended up riding him for a few months (as well as my own Horse). We did loads of pretty long hacking, schooling, my first ever dressage test (I hate dressage) and some jumping. I reckon he could have gone a long way with a competitive child as he had a fair pop in him. He never felt hindered in any way by me and we had great fun. He then went on loan to a young rider, last I heard they were doing great at PC stuff. I was really chuffed about that.

I read in a book I used to have about Horses backs that reckoned native ponies were easily capable of carrying more than you might think. I wouldn't even question you being too heavy for a Welsh C - definately not.

I would have a think about what you ultimately want to do both now and in the future. If the size isn't going to affect what you want to do and the Pony is definately what you want then there's your answer. One thing I would say is at the same place I also used to ride a 14.2hh Welsh. There's a massive difference and whilst I wouldn't have had the 12.2hh for my own I would have had 14.2hh. However, if you can try a few different sizes and shapes (!) you'll get to know what you like best. The main thing is jumping as there's not much in front of you on a small Pony!
 
Hi Smallhorses
I am 5'6'' too and in my mid 20s but I've been hacking, schooling and competing ponies as small as 11 hands high for the last five years or so. I have also backed and schooled a number of Shetland ponies! I couldn't give a rat's backside what people think I look like on a pony, I enjoy riding them and I ride them well and that is what matters :) People often ask me to school their ponies for them and regardless of what we look like they are not disappointed by what I can produce. 5'6'' is not tall, 13.2 is not small and a Welsh Section C is not going to snap underneath you!
 
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