Crazy Things Your 'Old School' Instructor Used To Make You Do?

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Cheshire Chestnut

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Mine was a strict older lady who we were all scared of so we did as she said... I can rememeber jumping with no reins, hands out to the side holding cups of water - we'd be shouted at if it spilled! I'd cry if I had to do that now!

Other things included jumping bareback without reins (hands out to the side again - no water involved this time), riding backwards (why?!), dismounting by doing a backwards roll (quite often like to think I could do this again, however I know it would end up in a head injury of some sort) and vaulting onto your horse.

All very mad but I think it's things like this that you remember from lessons as a kid and make you chuckle when you think back to them, these types of instructors are very rare these days - it's all about the sensible stuff and 'proper' riding now ;)
 
Yes I did most of those things atvthe riding school too, though we didn't have cups of water.

We also rode in the back of the horse box rode bareback on the roads, and bagged up shavings at a saw mill without a mask.

We used to have great fun riding up to the winter grazing after the lessons finished on a Sunday. The ponies wore a New Zealand rug and a bridle, we would be unaccompanied because the owner would drive the horsebox so she could collect us. She'd tell us to be sensible and just walk but of course we'd canter on any bit of grass ee could find!
 
At pony club camp, riding down a jumping lane with knotted reins and no stirrups, lifting my hat off my head whilst in the air over each jump as a 'salute'. Still, in those days my riding hat was made of cork and was totally flexible, with a bit of well chewed elastic under the chin to keep it on, so wasn't much use anyway.
 
Haha yes cantering down the grass verges was something we did a little too often! When we went on an 'escorted hack' with the instructor and she trotted, we used to hang back a bit so we could have a sneaky canter to catch up :D
 
The one thing that sticks in my mind from my old Dutch instructor, was being made to canter round with no stirrups, in a forward seat, in a lunge pen, until you basically ran out of strength and fell off.
 
I remember riding down jumping lanes with no reins or stirrups, arms out to the side, up above and god knows where else. Also jumping with my eyes shut - it always amazed me that you knew every time when the horse was going to jump! And riding with a matchbox under each knee to improve leg position - they had to still be there by the end!
 
My old instructor also used cups of water with jumping, but she started using them with trotting at first, to keep my hands still.
She also used to ask us to bring some 'spending money' in £5 notes. She'd stick them between the horse and our lower leg and tell us that if we dropped it, we aren't allowed to pick it up, it definitely made you keep your leg on the horse and keep it still, it also encouraged squeezing not kicking :) Of course the instructor used to arrange all this with our parents and would only ask them to bring the lesson money in £5 notes change and what we dropped she's collect and it'd be her payment for lesson anyway, then parents would make up the rest if needed, but at the time me and the others thought it was real and we were always really sorry that we lost mummy's and daddys money, but we promised we'd do better next time :)
 
alliersv1 said:
The one thing that sticks in my mind from my old Dutch instructor, was being made to canter round with no stirrups, in a forward seat, in a lunge pen, until you basically ran out of strength and fell off.
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I often think womens relationships with their riding instructors are like the relationships' of men who are that way inclined with their professional dominatrixs. Case in point.
 
PingPongPony said:
My old instructor also used cups of water with jumping, but she started using them with trotting at first, to keep my hands still.
She also used to ask us to bring some 'spending money' in £5 notes. She'd stick them between the horse and our lower leg and tell us that if we dropped it, we aren't allowed to pick it up, it definitely made you keep your leg on the horse and keep it still, it also encouraged squeezing not kicking :) Of course the instructor used to arrange all this with our parents and would only ask them to bring the lesson money in £5 notes change and what we dropped she's collect and it'd be her payment for lesson anyway, then parents would make up the rest if needed, but at the time me and the others thought it was real and we were always really sorry that we lost mummy's and daddys money, but we promised we'd do better next time :)
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£5 notes? It used to be a shilling or a brand new 10p piece (the big ones) ....... (crawls back under old pile of rocks)

Echo the grid jumping styles - arms in air, up & behind, waving hats, no saddles etc etc.
Also the stick behind elbows - and also seeing stirrups tied to girth to stop legs flailing.

Them were the days..... of pure mayhem :biggrin3:
 
The Fuzzy Furry said:
Also the stick behind elbows - and also seeing stirrups tied to girth to stop legs flailing.

Them were the days..... of pure mayhem :biggrin3:
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Stirrups tied to girths - yes I had that too! There's a post on here at the moment about legs slipping back when jumping and I kind of wanted to suggest it, then I realised we don't do things like that any more and changed my mind :eek: Worked though!
 
My friend being taught how to sit up. It worked, he couldn't walk for several days mind !


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Cheshire Chestnut said:
Stirrups tied to girths - yes I had that too! There's a post on here at the moment about legs slipping back when jumping and I kind of wanted to suggest it, then I realised we don't do things like that any more and changed my mind :eek: Worked though!
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I struggle with the tendons in my lower legs and when it flared last autumn I rode with stirrups tied to girth for couple of months. A friend saw me jump recently and commented how much my position improved!
 
we used to have to ride walk, trot and canter, holding the reins and a tray with mugs of water on. The aim was to not drop mugs or spill water. very very difficult but it teaches you to allow your hands to move with the motion of the horse, not jab them in the mouth or bob your hands around :)
 
I'm 22 and not so long ago (about 10 years ago) my instructor was very old school. She would make us trot/canter with no saddle and no reins with our arms out to the side, and would poke you in the armpit or lower back with the end of a schooling stick if you started to slouch or your arms started to lower or flap around! Best way to learn to have a good position!
 
Well, I AM an old school instructor and frequently ask my younger pupils to ride without stirrups (am gobsmacked that few people seem to do this any more?), W/T/C without reins and hands in the air (in an arena, obviously), one hand on the reins - especially for canter, etc. New pupils are often amazed that such things are even possible..........
 
Cheshire Chestnut said:
Lol to this. Did she every tell you what the point of the exercise was?!
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She was a he. Now you mention it, no he didn't! I just vividly remember a friend and me taking our horses up there for a week in the summer holidays, and that seemed to be one of his favourite exercises. My friend always caved in first. I don't think falling off was the point, although it did happen, but what the point actually was, I have no idea!
This would have been about 1985, back in the days of gripping with your knees. Dunno if that's relevant though.

undergroundoli said:
I often think womens relationships with their riding instructors are like the relationships' of men who are that way inclined with their professional dominatrixs. Case in point.
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I was about 13/14 at the time. I knew nothing of that side of life. Looking back though, I think he was a bit of a sadist, and could imagine him being a bit of a one...

cobden said:
This cracked me up - I mean, WHY ?
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I have asked myself this many times in the last 30 years or so!
 
I had a habit of folding too soon and getting in front of the horses movement.
My instructor once blind folded me and sent my very willing horse over a 3ft 6 (possibly higher?!) fence.

It did work! But terrified the living daylight out of me!
 
She used to always have a lunge whip in her hand and all the ponies knew very well not to stop at a jump if she pointed it at them. She was very accurate with that whip and would sting you on the thigh with it if you were wussing out at something.
 
This has brought back some lovely memories! It is funny how things can change in 18 years or so! Bring back the old days prior to some of the H&S rules!
I remember my favourite activity was to go jockey style! You put your stirrups on the longest hole, cross over then you have nice short leather! Pop your feet in and away 15-20 ponies galloped away across the field.
 
All the bareback, backwards, blindfolded, stirrupless, reinless etc listed above and one particularly bonkers instructor who made us stand up on the saddle and stay stood up while the horses (yes, horses, we were past ponies at this point) walked and trotted about.

One that I actually used yesterday after getting fed up with my hands dropping and thumbs rotating inwards - whip held horizontally under both thumbs. Works amazingly well to maintain an even, straight contact while keeping hands in the right place!

I do think it a shame that so few riding schools teach this sort of thing anymore (bar the standing up - that is not needed!). It is great fun, but also a valuable tool in making people tune into the horse and the horse not freak out when something goes hideously wrong and you end up doing the scissors when not intending too!
 
Love said:
I remember riding down jumping lanes with no reins or stirrups, arms out to the side, up above and god knows where else. Also jumping with my eyes shut - it always amazed me that you knew every time when the horse was going to jump! And riding with a matchbox under each knee to improve leg position - they had to still be there by the end!
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I used to do these too, always struggled with jumping with eyes shut and would always have to go round again until I managed it.
 
My instructor was an old cavalry man who used to make us take the saddle off while cantering round the school (just dumping it on the floor while still cantering round) and then going straight over a jump before which we had to drop the reins. Wouldn't want to try that now, although I can still take the saddle off while sitting on my horse at a standstill (putting it on the fence rather than dropping it on the floor though).
 
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