Adult working in riding school for free lessons?

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katiper

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Hi all,

As I am an English teacher, I a lucky enough to have 6 weeks off during the summer. I know young kids work and get free lessons at riding schools and yards, so I was wondering if it would be strange for me to do the same? I want to get experience riding different horses so that I can test myself and so that I can ride everyday. I currently ride a friends horse, she is a lovely shire x tb who has been there and done it all at a high level. I just want to be able to ride everyday, and also learn a lot more about stable management before I eventually buy my own horse. I would class myself as a confident novice: I am comfortable in all four paces, including circles in canter. I haven't quite got the outline yet though. I have done cross country schooling and jump regularly. I live near Edenbridge in Kent.

Does anyone think this would be possible?
 
I would imagine so but I am sure you will have to be competent in the usual horse care etc including mucking out. I think it will simply be a matter of you contacting the riding schools in your area. Good luck!!!
 
its_noodles said:
I would imagine so but I am sure you will have to be competent in the usual horse care etc including mucking out. I think it will simply be a matter of you contacting the riding schools in your area. Good luck!!!
Click to expand...

Ok...well I do help out with my friends horse, mucking out, cleaning tack and tacking up. I would like to know more though.

If anyone knows riding schools in my area...are there any you would recommend?

Thanks :o)
 
I'm thirty-eight and I do a morning a week at my local RS in exchange for riding (and the occasional helpful pointer:)) I turn up first thing for am feeds and do all yard duties. The riding is a bit of 'schooling' (more for my benefit than the horses' I suspect :D), plus warming up horses for lessons and cooling off after the real riders. I'm lucky though in that the yard has decent schoolmasters - minimum of lateral work and flying changes, a couple piaffe/passage. I'm not the only adult helping there, either, some more advanced than others. Go for it, you've nothing to lose :)
 
Glad you posted this OP cos I've been thinking about this recently too. As soon as I'm out of uni and have a grown up job, I'd really like to share or loan my first horse! But I'm very out of practice with riding and with stable management stuff. Riding can be dealt with in lessons obviously, but did wonder how I'd get back up to speed with everything else.

It's a shame really because I did some of the ABRS tests when I helped at a riding school when I was at school. I used to know all the different bits of tack and what they were for, now I'm more like "martin-who?!" :o:rolleyes::D
 
I think it's a lovely idea, OP.

When I worked at a riding school, there was a retired lady who came and helped every morning.

She 'adopted' one of the older horses while she was there :).
 
I know what you mean thinking it might seem unusual, but think about it as an employer, would you rather a teenager/child you are effectively providing daycare for, and at the whim of parents bringing and picking them up, or an adult with reasonable skill who is actually prepared to work for the experience?

Try not to sell yourself short though, and make sure you do actually get some riding in return (there are times when it doesn't materialise because no one thinks about it or can be bothered to organise!) I think it's a great idea!
 
I think it could be a lot of fun but you may want to consider some practical issues:

- how many lessons would you expect in exchange in return for how many hours' work? The typical complaint in such situations is that the worker puts in hours and hours of mucking out but the YO turns out to be too busy to offer lessons that day/week.

- what happens if you are injured while working? Will you be covered by the employer's liability insurance? Will you be able to cope with the loss of your regular income if you are injured?
 
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