Am I over reacting...?HUGE RANT!

M

MelanieBubbles

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16 February 2009
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The Lake District, Cumbria
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Well I'v been properly riding for a year and two months now and, well I havnt gotten anywhere, up at the yard we're always in group lessons and little children are always in mine, theres only ever been one lesson where there hasnt been some children just the girls that help out and well WE DONT EVEN CANTER! I have learnt how to canter from my friend and it's obvious i'm ready!!!And whenever we're out on a ride which I rarely do go out on everyone else but me canters and its stupid, and also I pay £25 to work their I dont get paid for mucking out, grooming or leading children round the school for about an hour, and im the only bugger that pays 25 other girls pay 19 and two girls work for rides, It's favroiteism but nonononoNO! My stupid mother says I pay that much because I go up and help out from 1till6 when the others go up from 9till6, I mean I shouldnt be paying to work for her. My friend who also works up there was at one time paying but not getting a lesson or a hack, when she left my instructor phoned up my friend and begged her to come back saying,"you could work for you rides like them two do!?" but when Carmens dad stopped paying, my instructor asked her Dad why he wasn't. I love going up to the yard and having my shxtty lessons but I'd much rather take up excersising an exmoor that my aunties boyfriend dad owns, because 1)I will finally get to do something! and 2)I wont have to pay megamonsterous amounts to muck out an effing stable, Iv had tons of chance and offers to ride peoples horses but my stupid mother keeps saying the same thing, "Melanie your instructors been brill with you dont you think you owe her!" OWE HER WHAT? MY PIGGY BANK

Humphhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Comments and Your views please?

Thank you gorgous people!
 
-is mindboggled-
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Breathe! You must be really cross, only one full stop through that whole rant!
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Maybe you should tell your instructor how you feel?
 
Are you paying for a lesson and then helping out after / before? I used to do this, its hard work and thankless but the experience is valuable! However, you shouldn't be being exploited and you should certainly feel that your lessons are progressing. Speak to instructor, definitely!
 
You PAY to be a skivvy?! You are mental! Do not give this woman another penny and find somewhere else to ride! I will bet there are plenty of HHOers in your area that would love £25 from someone who then does all the chores and give them a lesson!
 
some places do charge for a few reasons;

1 - you are being taught the fundementals of horse husbandary and stable management, lessons you would not get otherwise and as such are supplementing your riding

2 - insurance cost, i dont know how old you are

3 - age of the worker and hours worked. sometimes it is not feesable.

4 - in my experience, some people who think they are ready to move up a level, are not. you need to be absolutly balanced at one level, before adding another to the equation.

if you dont like it, vote with your feet and walk.
 
I'd say leave! I went through a similar situation at riding school. I used to pay £18 for an hours lesson. I would go at about 8am and because I was the most experienced i would fetch horses in and tack them up etc, lead in every lesson from 9 till 1pm (without so much as a drink) I'd then muck out atleast 5 large stables alone, look after all of the ponies pretty much alone, run the office/till i'd also help teach in a load of lessons as well as a load of other hard working likes shifting bales of hay alone. I would then get a 15 minute lesson max! I'd then have to sort all ponies and lead them back to field and leave anytime between 5 and 7pm. It was so unbelievably rediculous I look back on it now and can't believeaI did it, i should have left long before I did but unfortunatly I enjoyed being with the ponies. However after I left I got offered rides etc and am soo glad i did.
So i'd say definatly leave, they're just users!
 
Thats the think people, theres nowhere In west cumbria to ride, as I say I'v had offers but my mother stands by my instructor well I cant really call her an instructor just someone who commands me to walk and trot and change a rein nothing else. Well yes where was I my mother sticks with her and said If I want to go and ride this mans exmoor I'v got to have insurance, I mean come on!!!

Im a skivvy and my Mother wont even let me talk to my instructor because shes been good with me apparently yes, working from 1 till 6 with one measly hour in the saddle, yes totally being good to me!!!

I mean this friday just gone I went in the morning, tacked up un tacked groomed , was the only person that mucked out every peice of horse s**t! While the others gallovanted around eating their dinner, and taking pictures of the horses.

And she invited me down to do some jumping guess what I did, stood there and watched the other girls jumping barrels and having a howl, while i put away and put up bloody poles. Yet instructor had the nerve to ask for 25 squid, but thankfully wasnt around when I went home...

I also get treated like crap by a few girls there and i'm sick of it :@

x
 
It seems like a number of places are now charging for what we used to do as kids for 'free' and we were 'paid' with a lesson - a lesson for each day we worked.

If I were you MB, I would calmly and rationally explain to your Mum that by now you should be cantering and jumping, and you're going to go and work with other peoples horses.

When I was a whipper-snapper (okay, it was a long time ago) I rode everything that came my way - execising Polo ponies; showjumpers; race horses. Basically if it had four legs I'd ride it (I bounced so much better in those days lol).
 
WHAT????????????????????????????????????????????????
oh my god i couldnt believe this when i read it, your mad!!!!
if you want to stay at the same riding school, just go for your lesson then leave or move places and say you will work for your rides im sorry but its mad that your paying them to do work its crazy!!!!
please oh please go somewhere else i would deffo!!!
 
Thanks so much for all the support...

Theres been times Iv sat in the toilets and cryed then got told off for having a drink...!

I give far more then what I get back.

Keep coming in with the comments and such
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Its nice to know that some people know how I feel.

Ps. I cant walk out because Id be walking 5 miles down a fell :L... Im mebe gna tomoro if I get treat like crap again just phone my mother and demand to be picked up because I feel 'sick'.

Im might write a strongly worded letter to my instructor!! Haha.

Im 13 btw... Yes I know just a hormonal teen :L
 
Maybe you should show you mum this thread. And then change riding schools. Our local BHS approved school does own a pony or horse for a day where they ride twice morning and afternoon and play games on the horses learn to muck out groom properly tack up ect., and have a great time the whole day I believe costs about £25-30 a day during school holidays.
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I think you should definitely leave unless you enjoy it! (but from the sound of it you really wouldn't miss it) There are over 500 pony club centres in england could you not think of joining one of them if you look on the website www.pcuk.org there is bound to be one near you.
 
I work in a Riding School and whilst our helpers don't pay they don't get free rides unless they deserve them as they have been given the opportunity to come and learn more about horses than you do in a riding lesson and if one of the helpers becomes unhappy with not getting free rides then they are welcome to leave - there are lots of other young girls wanting to help out.

Our place tries not to take helpers for granted but our paid staff have to constantly run round after the helpers double checking tacking up and grooming etc and thus it is more work for the staff than if we didn't have helpers... only we need the helpers legs to run in lessons! It does cost us money to have an additional paid staff member to supervise the helpers of a weekend and there is paying for health and safety, first aid, child protection courses and insurance to keep our helpers safe.

If you hadn't have gone down to help would you have learnt all you have done?

On the cantering note, I'm sure your instructor will move you when she thinks you are ready - she is the one with plenty of experience and better able to make a more objective judgement - she won't be keeping you from cantering to be unfair.
 
It sounds like you are being treated differently to the other people which is really unfair.

You shouldnt have to put up with that. If you are not happy, stand up to your mum and leave.
 
can you look on the net for another school in your area and just book a lesson and get your mum to take you there say "i fancy a change"
 
The kids that help 8-1 at my yard pay, however most don't muck out or just do one stable and some sweeping/tacking up. However weekend afternoons they have full use of a "loan" pony. They all have a specific pony, which they are allowed to hack/school in the afternoon as if they have there own. The kids that help also get cheap jumping lessons during holidays and shows specifically for them.

I would leave your riding school, but some riding schools where people pay and do some work arn't bad.
 
Have you asked why no one canters?

If you already know plenty and you aren't gaining anything by being there then just leave while you aren't really tied to the place.
 
You don't need a horse to join PC. That's what PC centres are for. So that people can learn all the stuff you're supposedly learning by being a skivvy and without having to shell out all the money to buy one. I reckon it's worth a look. Can't be worse than what you're doing now. Plus your mum would prob like it 'cause they're a recognised organisation
 
To me, thats utter bollox.

"Come and be a skivvy while you learn, we will give you the opportunity, but if you feel we're taking this p*ss and leave, no worries, we'll soon get another mug!!! (we do need someone to run round with the ponies and help us run our business - but we'll leave it that we're doing you a favour shall we?)"

You have to pay another staff member to supervise? Well, looks to me like it's still saving you from paying people to run round.

Health and safety, child protection and first aid all have to be covered anyway in a riding school.

I'm thinking these kids are being treated badly.

OP, use your £25 to pay for a private lesson somewhere, and find someone who would like a hand with their horses elsewhere.
 
Kids at my yard used to pay to "loan a pony" in return would help in the lessons and help tack up get the yard tidy and such and then would get the afternoons to do what they wanted with the ponies
 
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