Being asked to get on the scales..would you be offended??

Wishful said:
12 stone weight limit would put most men out - of course if riding needs to be perpetuated as a women only hobby, that's fine. 12 stone would be borderline underweight for a 6'2 man - My OH at 6' is about 12.5 and about in the middle of the "Normal" line, and he's a very slim build with light bones. An average built man would probably be over at 6' tall.
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I have to say I agree with this. Where my horses are at present has a weight limit of 12 stone, I only know of one man who rides there on a school horse and I think many men would be over the limit.
 
I agree most men would struggle with a 12st weight limit. My son is 6ft 2in ans skinny yet even he weight 12.8st

A riding school near me used to have a 12st limit which in my view is too low. However they said they could not afford to keep a horse just for the occasional person that may be heavier
 
soulfull said:
A riding school near me used to have a 12st limit which in my view is too low. However they said they could not afford to keep a horse just for the occasional person that may be heavier
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This is a bit of a stupid view from the riding school imo....just because a horse is intended for heavier riders doesn't mean anyone under the weight limit can't ride it at all!
 
Guess I'm one of a limited few people who wouldn't be happy with it, particularly if I wasn't warned about it in advance so felt it had been sneaked in.

Even as a size 6 gymnast, I considered leaving a new club cos they had a policy of weighing every 3 months to "monitor your development" and it made me uncomfortable (not really sure why), so I definitely don't think my current state of blubberousness would stand it.

I don't think I would flat out refuse if it was a scientific issue to begin with (e.g. X horse can carry 12st and nothing more, Y horse will only take 8 etc.) the problem is that:
1) it isn't exact at all, issues like how your weight is carried, the fitness of the horse in summer vs winter, the experience of the rider and the activity being taken part in are all factors that can vary it, and even in that situation the amount of weight a horse should carry is a judgement call (which I have honestly seen experienced people make with an 8 stone gap between the two estimates) so I don't really see that it makes much difference if my actual weight is a stone either side of what my form said when I started riding somewhere;
2) I would much prefer that schools were making judgements on the above by how a horse copes with the workload of a particular rider and how the rider looks on the horse, rather than relying on the "well the horse looks out of breath after that short canter, but X is within his weight limit that we have scienced up for him, so it must be fine" type of attitude that the weighing concept can lead to. If a horse is always carrying riders up to his weight limit, that might actually result in more back strain than one that does a couple that would be over, but is mainly carrying very light people.
3) it seems that the rule only works when its convenient for the. stables; as soon as the kids have all quit for the winter and the ponies need exercising, weight "limits" seem to go out of the window.

Having said that, I do tend to be honest about my weight when I join a new place, and have previously asked not to be put on one pony again because whilst I am occasionally willing to do a bit of pony squashing if something needs a more experienced rider, I thought they were taking the mickey with this one.

If you don't want to go down the weighing route, I would suggest putting everyone on something a bit bigger than you would guess they need the first time, and then adjusting based on what their "riding weight" looks like when they're onboard.
 
no i wouldnt be offended at all, but im a skinny - does the 12 stone relate to men as well or is this just for women?

if people become offended then they probably arent the clients you want - at the end of the day the horse will have to carry them around for an hour and if they are novice they could be bouncing around like a sack of potatoes, which i should imagine is quite annoying for the horse with a lighter person on them but with a heavier person - it has got to hurt.

weight restrictions are a good idea.
 
No, I think it's a good idea, I don't know how much I weigh (would guess around 10.5 stone) and a lot of other people who don't happen to be on a diet are probably the same, so asking people will not achieve much. I agree that some people ride heavier/lighter so it's not an exact science, but it's a start.

No-one needs to be named and shamed, it can be done discreetly, and horses max weight limits calculations put up so that people can learn about how to assess whether they are too big for a particular horse.

Clearly if a horse is carrying 3x 15stone riders a day they will need more feed than if they are carrying 3x 8 stone riders, so this information will be needed even if the horses are all well capable of carrying the more generously built clients.

I do agree that people should be warned about it in advance though. That way if they really don't like the idea they won't come, but what you lose in income, you probably save in vets' bills...
 
You can't tell by looking so it's an excellent idea. I used to be skinny as anything as a teenager but was heavier than I looked. One of my bosses gave me a leg up once and 'bloody hell' he said!

I'm now overweight and wouldn't be offended as long as I'd been told the limit in advance and warned that I might be weighed. Then it's my responsibility to be honest/realistic, and if I 'fail' the weigh-in, I've no one to blame but myself. Best not to single people out though, try and be discrete. Ask them to step into another room in private.

I did get weighed when I did a parachute jump with a weight limit, and they were right to weigh me as I was bang on the limit (I'd dieted to get down to it). I was ok with them weighing but it was a bit embarrassing to be the only person pulled out of the whole group of people checking-in, in front of everyone. It's not so much that I was worried about the weight, but more that I felt accused of lying about it!
 
Crazydancer said:
Personally I don't have a problem, but can see how some people may be embarassed/uncomfortable....
Could you get scales that give only a weight band? Like a coloured section? That way it's not the actual number of stone/pounds, but 'in the yellow band/green band' etc, to match them to a horse capable of carrying that weight band?
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I really like that idea!!!

Earlier on its mentioned that the RS is aimed at children on ponies more, well, at that age they are very sensative about their weights etc. As a teacher, i have seen quite a few junior school aged pupils be under the hospital for undereating. I have never seen any be overweight to the extent that they were 12stones BUT.... if you weighed children/teens - it really is hammering it home that their weight is important and to be honest, could cause some to get into their mindset that they need to loose weight (when in actual fact - they are perfectly fine!) Hence i REALLY think that the RS also has a duty of care towards their younger clients and how impressionable they are compared to an adult you could take it on the chin. Hence scales without weights on would be FAB !


I have actually seen a lady once be refused a lesson (side saddle) due to her size, she was heartbroken and sat and watched her daughter in the lesson crying. I spoke to her afterwards as she was distraught, it was mainly the manner they had dealt with her, they were not that discreet apparently and made her feel like a really bad person! (the weight limit was 14 stones). The weight limit was clearly stated before booking the lessons. I dont think they weighed her though - i think they went off looks? (wasnt fat as such but she was tall). IMO the RS had some large horses that could have easily taken her, having said that, i was on an ex police horse who was 17 odd hands, i dont think she would have looked out of place on him but with every stride his joints clicked, i felt a right meany riding him and didnt get the most out of the lesson as i didnt want to make he do much (plus he had been in lessons all day, and this was the last lesson of the night).

Its a tricky one - and rather you than me that may have to tell some current clients that they can no longer ride there! :)
 
As a heavy rider myself yes I would be offended! I'm very aware of my weight, my horses are chosen with my weight in mind, and because I am very tall and therefore don't look out of proportion, I've often said to people when offered one of their horses "Thanks so much, but I don't think your X is up to my weight"!

AND, I know of several light-as-a feather riders who I would allow nowhere near any horse of mine, 'cos though they weigh 9 stone they have hands of iron, no balance, and sit like a lump of lead....

It also depends very much on what you are going to use a horse for. I would have thought any riding school owner worth the title would be able to judge what rider - or not - is suitable for their horses bearing inmind that horse's workload.
 
It's up to the riding school what the weight limit they impose and as long as they clearly make that limit clear either before or at the point of booking a ride then there shouldn't be any embarrassment as everyone knows where they stand.

However if i turned up somewhere and just before i got on they asked to weigh me, especially if there were others there at the time then i would be mortified!!!

I would no way fit in to the 12st group and in the past if i have ever ridden at a RS i have always found out the weight limits before hand as it has caused me to find a different school in the area.

My male friend has also struggled to find a RS with a limit higher than 13st which is a shame as it's meaning many people are being put off riding.

I understand that RS don't want to have a horse which can take a higher weight limit just in case a larger rider wants to ride once a week but it's a shame that the weight limits seem so low.

The horses at my local RS only work a max of 1.5hrs a day. In fact if you really looked at their working hours (not including the day off they have) they prob only work a few hours a week which is allot less than a privately owned horse. Not every person that turns up that rides a weight carrying horse is heavy. Sometimes i do think we worry too much about weight and how much can they carry etc
 
Light to average weight people wouldn't mind, but the heavier people are bound to be offended.

You have to match your horses to your clients so maybe introducing a couple of chunkies to the stable would eliminate the need to weigh your customers and avoid losing them
 
i wouldn't be offended but then i wouldn't lie about my weight either. when i was looking for a sharer i put a maximum weight limit for the rider, no heavier than me! after a couple of months my doctor weighed me and i found out i was heavier than i though, people ask me about my weight and are shocked when i tell them as i look so much lighter than i actually am. i weigh 11 stone but not fat at all and people think i'm 9 stone at most!

i like the idea of the coloured 'zones' on the scales. maybe also put a notice up saying which horses go for which zone, that way then if someone wants to go for a 'nicer looking horse' in the lower zone it would give them the incentive to lose the weight.

you could also always put a notice up saying something like, we may ask you to be weighed but this would only be so that we can match you to the horse more suitable so that you get more out of our lessons. apologies for having to do this but it means you would go away feeling you got something out of the lesson/horse rather than being mismatched.
or something along them lines, let people think that it's to help them get MORE out of the lesson and also do it in private rather than in public.
 
its quite common at a few riding schools around here, I don't think I would be offended, although I should think some people maybe?

Depends on the person (and their size) I should think some larger people may perhaps be quite offended - but not all before someone bites my head off!
 
Yes, I'd be hugely offended - as I think would most people.

If they look to heavy - then chances they are. You don't need to humiliate anyone by sticking them on scales (unless you want to loose business and staff.....)
 
Clippy said:
Light to average weight people wouldn't mind, but the heavier people are bound to be offended.
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I don't think this is entirely true! I am well within that weight bracket but have always had a 'thing' about getting on the scales - I hate doing it in private and there's no way I would do it in front of anyone else. I would very much mind being asked - not offended but very embarrassed and humiliated.
 
i found myself more embarrassed getting on the scales when i was lighter, i used to be just over 7 stone and people thought i was anorexic (i wasn't/not), i was skin and bone and found it very humiliating to be so light. now i'm happy to prove my weight.

just to put the spin on things, it's not just the heavier people who would be offended!
 
Not offensive at all.

Considering britain is climbing up the world obesity chart I think anything to motivate people to lose weight and save themselves is a bonus to me.

This is coming from a currently 11st person and doing-something-about it.com.

This time last year I was 9st7lbs - **** happens but you can do something about it rather than get offended at someone putting a limit on the weight their horses carry. It's only fair.
 
I wouldn't be offended. When I rode at a riding school we got weighed quarterly.
When you have so many childern and teenagers who are growing all the time you need an up-to-date idea of their current weight.
I'm an adult but still got weighed (as did everyone, so no-one felt singled out) - no issue was made of it and no-one else could see what your weight was.
 
Thanks everyone. Our max limit is 16 stone but we only have two horses that can carry this. You would be amazed as to how many people book that are heavier than 16 stone.
We would, of course, not weigh people in the middle of the office, we would do so in privacy.
 
charlie76 said:
Thanks everyone. Our max limit is 16 stone but we only have two horses that can carry this. You would be amazed as to how many people book that are heavier than 16 stone.
We would, of course, not weigh people in the middle of the office, we would do so in privacy.
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I think if you are going to start weighing people - you'd have to have a policy of weighing everyone once a quarter. That way you can't be accused of discrimatory behaviour.
 
I do think youd have to be careful though, id be devastated having to get on the scales and would probably stop eating about a week beforehand!!! Im a dress size 10 on top and a 12/14 on bottom and i weigh alot more than i look like i do. I weigh about 11 and a half stone!(im 5ft8) I would however refuse to ride anything smaller than 15.3 (unless its winnie (shes a chunky cob);) )

Especially cos you get a lot of students riding at HP, i do think that having to be weighed would really put a lot of girls off!

Really tricky situation as you dont want people that are too big riding the horses....

Ideally id invest in one of those mechanical horses, you get a rider up on that, tell them your looking at their abilities to put them with the right horse, and note down their weight as you do it. Or find some other cheeky way that doesnt involve actually knowing that your being weighed. Then if theres a problem you can say that there are scales in the horse aswell and im sorry youre too heavy etc. I know that theyre expensive though....though HP would defo benefit from one!!! or put a saddle on a saddle horse with sneaky scales in it and use it as a tool for position??? Or something like that???
 
I'm sorry Samantha, that's a load of soft soap but if you can't face up to how heavy you are (I'm talking hyperthetically here, not about you personally) then it's time to get in the real world and face up to life, not pussy foot about because someone doesn't like it. If they want to ride, they should accept they have to be weighed for the benefit of the horse; they should be sensible enough not to think it's a pop at them at all. The truth shouldn't hurt anyone as long as it's diplomatically given - which rules me out of course............
 
funny you should say about the mechanical horse, just enquired about one, they are £48,000 ex delivery. Donations accepted!!
 
I don't have scales, I think I weigh somewhere in the region of 10.5 - 11 stone (which on here seems to qualify as morbidly obese:rolleyes:). I am about right for my height, anyway, fit, healthy, slim etc - and no, I am not on a diet, shockingly:p. I wouldn't book a lesson or hack if I was going to be asked to get on the scales, not if the limit was 12 stone, since I'd take that to mean there were no horses of a decent height available!
 
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