Adults who ride Ponies

Me and daughter riding ponies...(pls excuse riding attire..I wasn't expecting to ride):
Grey is 13.1hh with me on (I'm 39 and 5'7")..palomino is 13.2hh and daughter was approx 5'5" att:
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My opinion is that if is a weight carrying pony or the adult is small legged or just short then great ponys wernt just bred for children, i at 5.8 have always owned horses but i no a 22 yr old with a 14. hand pony hu looks fine if the pony can take the weight and is happy and the rider is happy hu cares what you look like horses and ponys are bought for us to enjoy and take care off have funn riding what you want but welfare comes firstxxxhope this helpsxx
 
Adults on Ponies, Nothing wrong with that at all.

People that are too heavy on ponies, that's just cruel & I cant believe people do it. This goes for both kids & adults.

Surely you know if your too big or your child is too big for your pony?
 
The other thing is it's easier and quicker to groom a pony than a horse and easier to reach putting bridle/tack on ect, plus it's not so far to the ground to fall off or get on and off for bad gates when hacking.
 
I think its should be down to personal choice, if your light enough and not too tall then why not, Personally i love tiny ponies and huge 17hh hunter types, have the former now just looking for the latter but might just settle for another larger pony lol
 
Good point. The disadvantage being that if you ride a pony you tend to always be the one getting off to open tricky gates!
I'll ride anything that is happy to have me on board and can do the job I want it to. I happen to have ponies and a 14.3hh Arab now, but I did have a 16hh Arab before. When I chose them height wasn't a major deciding factor.
 
I'm, 5'0", I ride a 13.2 pony who's never been ridden by kids and probably never could be - at least not the way the kids ride round our way.

I see far more short-ish people trying to look cool on 16.2 giraffes that go round with inverted necks and martingales holding their heads on because they can't get them to work through their backs properly...

So I'd say it's like dogs, cars, computers... the people with the smaller egos need the bigger prop.
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those of us who are better balanced (!) are fine on something that fits our size.

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I'm 18, very nealry 19 and I'm 5'5'' and my boy is 14.1hh and seems to cope with me fine, I've had him 6 years. He's 18 and still manages to have a buck and kick out hacking and is still the speed merchant he always was to jump!
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I'm short and would look stupid on a 16 or 17hh horse! My pony is 14.2hh and I also ride my daughter's who is 14.1hh. I have also ridden her 13hh on occasion, although I wouldn't jump or do heavy work on her.
 
I ride a pony, he is a 14.2hh New Forest and belongs to my wife who also owns a 14.3hh NF mare. I ride him because I am a novice rider and because we feel safe together. He is stocky build and is more than capable of bearing my weight.

I have previously ridden a 14.3hh Welsh Sec D which was forward going bordering on bonkers. Lovely nature and not a bad bone in her body, just no brain. There is no way that she is a 'kids' pony.

I also read that the US cavalry used to ride horses / ponies between 15.1 and 15.3hh, as they were the most versatile animals with endurance, a good turn of speed and capable of carrying a soldier, all his gear and up to 100 lbs additional load.

I'm happy to ride a pony and when the time comes for me to buy my own, I doubt I will go over 15.3hh.
 
I ride ponies all the time, I'm 5'7, most of it leg but I only weight about 8st 4 so I end up sitting on all the tinies at my yard as the other girls are heavier.

Below about 13hh I do start to struggle cos I dont' know where to put my legs anymore - and I can't stay balanced if they rodeo! Anything above that, especially if it has a deep girth, I feel fine on. I love ponies and I backed a 12.2 exmoor last year and still sit on him occasionally if he is being cheeky.

I do feel more of a 'rider' on a horse though, riding ponies always brings out the over excited 12yr old inside me and I only really want to charge round having fun.
 
I'm 16 in March so not an adult yet but I did most of my growing when I was 10ish (About a foot taller than everyone else xD now everyone's caught up with me)

I'm round about 5 foot 9, 11 stone (and losing!) and ride a 14.3hh (almost a pony! But like 1 in every way) welsh section D - I've just posted a post about her. I love her to bits and truly think shes my once in a lifetime pony, she's got the talent to take me anywhere I want and a blimming huge stride.

But she's also very difficult, no way could a kid handle her, I've had her since I was 14 and still have my work cut out but someone who is lighter and smaller simply won't be able to hold her, but she's also SO much fun.

I'm constantly paranoid about my height/weight on her but I've never felt too big when I'm on her - although a pony in every way, she feels much bigger when I'm on her.
 
Here i am looking silly then !! I am 5ft 2, age 21 on my 13.1 pony - don't really care what your opinion is or anyone like you who thinks adults looks "silly" on ponies - if they genuinely aren't too big - who cares.

My pony is one in a mill and soon wipes the smirk of anyones face who dares look down their nose at us, including a retired top SJ'er who was holding clinics for our riding club who made me feel very unwelcome in the lesson (unsurpsringly the only adult on a pony) my pony went on the out jump with more style and grace, and made the horse distances better than ALL the horses in our class including the ex aff.
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What would i want a ruddy great big horse for?! they cost loads in feed, hay and use more bedding, their rugs are more expensive, for someone short like me they are a pain in the arse to mount without something resembling a ladder, if they misbehave or get silly it can really knock your confidence, if they stand on your foot it hurts a damn sight more too, oh and its further too fall. BOO HISS BOO !!

My pony cost me £500 including all her tack rugs and a month feed - so i'm quite happy with looking silly
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she keeps up with all the event horses out hunting and has a lovely fun cheeky character, since i bought her 2 years ago she has turned her hoof at everything (except dressage) and done well at it, if i ever get another i will go for another pony but admittedly a slightly bigger one

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I'm 5ft 8" and my pony is a 14.2hh Welsh D. I'm somewhat too leggy on her but to be honest she is built like a brick outhouse with a leg at each corner and would happily cart a 16 stone bloke out on a day's hunting and still be full of beans a the end of the day. The bigger British native breeds were all bred for adults to ride anyhow.

She is simply not suitable for a child to ride. Not that she is in any way naughty, or unschooled, she is just too strong for a child to keep together. On occasions I even feel a little overhorsed on her so
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I do worry about being too tall for her and I do watch my weight just in case, but like Ahrena says she feels bigger when being ridden - she grows several hands when hunting
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Oh I'm a pony-phobe's worst nightmare. At 5'5", there's no denying I look a t*t on my 12hh exmoor, but really, if anyone has a problem with that, then it's their problem. Henry certainly doesn't seem to mind, as he tries to tank off around the bridleways...
 
I don't think height or age really matters (except with the extremes). I'm 5'8'', 33'' inside leg and i think i look just as good on our old 14.2hh cob as my 17hh WB, i think it's the build of the pony that really makes the difference:

14.2hh:
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17hh:
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The first link "Saffron" Is of me on my gorgeous 13.1hh arab x welsh. I am 22 and 5.6 (ish) I weigh arond 9 stone. In this particular class, we wiped the floor. I down graded from a 16.1hh IDxTB "Tilly" to Saffron as I think ponies are so much more fun.
Saffron

The second Link "Tilly" is me and my IDxTB whom I sold to buy Saffron. (I know i look as miserable as sin, but it was pouring with rain and she had spent most of the day on 2 legs)
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Tilly
 
I have a 13.2hh Welsh B x Arab (I'm too heavy to ride her at the moment) who is not suitable for a child as she was a rescue case.
I also have a 14.3hh heavy weight Welsh cob (not quite a pony) who will happily carry most adults and ride a 14.1hh Irish cob.
Most of the larger native breeds can happily carry an adult and smaller cobs and breeds like Highlands are real weight carriers.
I feel more comfortable on a cob type between 14hh and 15hh. I prefer ponies and cobs to horses and I think as long as the pony is capable of carrying a rider then other people shouldn't judge those who ride ponies.
BTW I'm 5 foot 2.5 and currently over weight (but on a diet)
 
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Just to tempt you a little further, here is a 'serious' rider riding Jasper the highland (it's Mat B)
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Jasper is so gorgeous, I don't suppose you fancy trading him for one of mine?
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I dont see any problem with it if your small enough, or ride your childrens, or ones you compete driven or something
Rahter see someone small on a pony, than great big horse just because their an adult
My mum rides my 14'2, she could ride a 16hh horse, but we dont have one, so we share crysta, well she hacks her out every now and then
 
Im currently riding a 4yo 13hh/13.1hh pony. Im 5ft 8 with 34" legs, weigh approx 9stone and Im 23. i thought Id look and feel stupid on him and that there'd be no neck in front of me, but having seen some photos, I dont think I do! Also have been told I dont look too big on him.
I backed him over xmas and we are now jumping 90cm courses. Hes jumped 2 shows over 85-90cm (dbl clr each time ) and is working nicely on the flat.Hes recently been registered SJAI and my neighbour's kid(who is 11) is going to jump him in a few 138Ds/CDs over the next few weeks. Hed be a grand pony for a kid of 11/12ish looking to step up from 12.2hhs as is very honest, quite forward going but very responsive and light in front. He also has a big scopey jump and would definitely jump 138ABC courses. He rides like a small horse to be honest.
I do wonder though, am i really too heavy to be jumping courses on him - bearing in mind, if a child or young-teen was riding him, hed be carrying maybe 6stone of less? TBH I do feel a bit guilty riding him, but its the weight Id be concerned with - not my height or age. Still,will be selling him in the early summer I hope so not much longer. I LOVE ponies though!
 
My NF pony is 14h and I am in my 30's and 5.2ft and 8st. He is the perfect size for me, I am smaller than lots of the teenagers at my yard and they ride ponies so I don't see why I should not! I don't look silly and he can do everything the big horses do and look cute at the same time.

I would look sillier on a 16.2 and I would struggle to put the saddle on and groom and put rugs on as I would not be able to reach. It would be hard to get on without assistance.

I think my pony and I are the perfect match.
 
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