Calling Pony Club Mums - the height debate??

Lisamd

Lisamd

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Looking for a pony for a 13 year old who I teach. We've just sold her 13.3hh who she had outgrown. Her parents want a 14.2hh but IMO she needs a 15hh at least for the next few years. I think they are thinking of BSJA and the likes but TBH she hasn't even done her first clear round yet so i'm keen to get something that she can have for a while and build a relationship with

What are the pony club reprocussions of having a 15hh instead of a 14.2hh with regards to competing/classes etc?

I just need some 'insider' info on this as I never went to PC and am not a mother!
 
My daughter used to take our 17.1 DWB - mind you she was 15 and tall (5ft 8)

As PonyClub goes up to age 25 there is not really a height issue. The only problem I can see is if her friends are only riding ponies she may not be in the same classes. Ask your DC they usually give good advice
 
There are very few PC things that are restricted to ponies, like everything in life there will be some things you miss out on.

If child has outgrown a 13.3 then a 14.2 won't last her long.

Having said that my daughter did all PC open teams on a 14.2/15hh and was never excluded because pony was too small.
 
When I was in pc many moons ago, I had a 14.3 from juniors right through, and it was a torture to me to have to compete HC all the time - I mean we wouldn't have won much anyway:o but when we did we never got a rosette to show for it :(

At 13 she has a few years to go before she is technically "in to" something bigger than 14.2 - unless there is a real height or weight reason to go bigger, I would tend to go with the 14.2.

Even if she's not competing at the level her parents would like atm, speaking as a pc instructor (and pc mum) it's not easy teaching a ride where you have ponies ranging from 11.2 to 16.2 :D - we have one in our pc at the moment who is riding a horse in amongst children on 12.2s because she is at the same level of riding as they are, and I think everyone finds it stressful.

She might find it more comfortable and feel she is conforming more if you don't go too big.
 
There shouldn't be an issue with height in the PC as classes/rally's are generally done by ability.
Personally, i would prefer a child to be slightly underhorsed and to really gain confidence as they may feel more in control rather than buying something to 'grow into' which can prove too much. A 14.2 will give more scope as if and when the time comes they can still do junior bsja.
Although my daughter did her first PC rally on my 15.2 cob mare, she was 8!! She did look rather funny in amongst the 12.2's but still managed to do everything.
 
There's no height restrictions unless some pc clubs run friendlys that are for certain age/heights. Area comps are for any height & at our club we have a few very tall 13yr olds on 15hh+. My own daughter grew out of her 12.2hh at 12 & tbh she wasn't bothered about doing 138 Bsja classes so we went for a 14hh pony to then last until she goes onto horses next year, she is small though! If she had outgrown a 13.2hh at 13 I probably would have got her a 15hh ish or a wide 14.2hh!!
 
I've lost count of the number of taller children I've seen moved on from 13.2hhs straight to horses who've lost confidence and given up as a result. I appreciate what you're saying about the 14.2hh height limit for competing not being an issue but from the other side I wholeheartedly agree with the comments about feeling out of place on a larger animal in the right ride for her ability.

Pony club DCs tend to know when good 14.2hhs are about to be outgrown and may be put up for loan. The good ponies literally have families queuing up for them so if you make it known she'd be looking for a schoolmaster for 1 - 2 years you never know what luck you might have, then she could move happily onto something a little bigger when she'd learned the ropes.
 
For PC height isn't an issue as it is all to do with the childs age.

However if she wants to do local shows etc these are based on pony/horse height and she would be restricted to horse classes. Especially in the winter when local venues have SJ competitions she wouldn't be able to compete with her friends as round us it is normally horses in the morning and ponies in the afternoon, and sometimes on different weekends !

Could they not look to loan a 14.2 for a year or two ? Or failing that get a 14.2 with a bit of bone as if it is a little chunkier it will probably take her leg up a bit more.
 
I over human my pony! At 5'8 on my 13.3hh boy I have much more fun than I did on my 15.1hh mare :)
If they are looking at a stocky 14.2hh pony then s/he may be with them a lot longer than you think, as others have pointed out better to be ona slightly smaller pone and having fun overcoming any problems.
 
I'll go against the grain and say I think go for taller, but then I'm softy and can't bare to sell :rolleyes:
When I was 13 and had outgrown by 13.3hh I had 15.2hh on loan for three months. Unfortunately it didn't work out for various reasons and we ended up buying a 16.1hh :eek: Admittedly it took me some time to get to grips with him but after one summer we were out happily competing. It meant unlike my friends I didn't have to change again in 2yrs time and I got to keep my beloved horse forever.
I guess it does depend though on ability and mindset. If she's more novice and happy to sell in a year or two it is probably advisable to have something smaller. Also it depends how tall said child is!
 
I would say to go with a pony or a horse that the child feels comfortable with is more important than it's actual height. However I'd look for a stockier one, one that is deep enough in the girth and round in the barrel enough to hide longer legs (and means child won't knock down poles with her own feet when jumping over 2ft3).

As she's yet to do a clear round, then I would agree with her parents to go for 14.2 so as not to exclude her from local shows childrens classes, and to give her the confidence to start jumping clear! agree with other poster better to be under horsed than over horsed. It will also take her 6 months to a year to get 100% in tune with new pony and for them both to have total confidence in each other, but better be a bit on the bigger side for the pony and ahve control than to be ineffective on top of a taller one.
 
If she's a bit novice-y, or lacking confidence, I'd say a nice, solid 14.2hh. Especially if she's slim. I'd far rather see her feeling borderline cocky than a bit nervous of a horse who she'll need to be able to 'see a stride' off. Plus, at 13, she'll do camp and all that stuff and a 14.2hh is far easier for things like pony swaps and the likes!
 
Have a similar issue as 12 year old daughter outgrew her 13.2 buddy. Bought a 14.2 which has been a huge step for us, confidence took a nose dive but after 9 months we are starting to improve. Better to be confident and slightly big than lose your confidence altogether and give up. Unfortunately, this does mean changing ponies on a regular basis as kids grow but they will learn so much from each pony.
 
Unless its changed I don't think pc have height limits. When my daughter was 13 she was about the only one on a 13 hh pony, all the others were on 15.2 and bigger. It never caused a problem, apart from the fact that some of the taller riders on the horses couldn't ride daughters mare when they swapped mounts. She also competed in teams against horses (and generally beat them :D) without a problem, and when she moved on from pony went straight on to a 15.2, mainly because we seem to keep everything and it was one less to have round the place if she missed out the 14.2. ;) At most other shows the horse classes are usually for over 13s so it wasn't a problem there either.
 
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