Do fat riders make your blood boil?

well im overweight by about 2 stone, possibly 3 depending on what charts you use. however weight charts are totaly inacurate now. My weight problem is due to PCOS and no matter what i do i cannot loose weigh so i no longer try.
And to be honest id rather be overweight then underweight.
My 14hh connemara carries me perfectly and often sees fit to bugger off at a gallop up a hill.
Ive also ridden 13.2hh shp for someone else, now i wouldnt do it as an everyday thing but the pony was out on a hack and scaring the child rider so i swapped. The pony didnt even bat an eyelid at my added weight (far more that a 13.2 is supposedly able to carry) and continued to play up, jog and generaly be a prat all the way home.

Also its not about how tall the horse is its about the bone, how much bone and the quality of the bone.
Arabs have very very dense bone so are capable of carrying more then the amount of bone would say they could.
Also looking fat and actual weight dont go hand in hand. I know of one lady who weighs less then me however she carries it all round her middle and looks very large. i carry the weight better and look nowhere near my weight. (and yes if you want proof of how size is decieveing i'll pm pics to people.
 
i have an ex racehorse which ive known and ridden for 7 yrs of his ten yrs of life. i was heavier than all the lads but he always carried me up the gallops everyday with no problem whatsoever. i now have him and he has never struggled with me iam overweight but im told i ride light. ive always worried about my weight and love him to bits and do whats best for him. i cant believe someone started this post its horrible. but good on everyone whos stuck up for us bigger riders
 
goodness what a post, I have no problems with larger riders.

I think most people are sensible enough to ride a horse can carry them. If they know they are to heavy than no thats not fair

My OH is 6ft and weighs around 12/13 stone, he rides my 14.2 pony no problem because he rides so lightly. used to jump her no problem too.
 
I have only ever seen one person too large for their horse, and it was a 14hh old looking arab/tb type, it actually fell after a jump due to her being too heavy. It really wasn't on, haevn't seen her since but in that case, yes. IF the horse is happy, no.
 
I believed that I had to add to this thread as I am what am considered by society and the weight for height/frame guidelines as being overweight.
Originally I gave Kerilli the benefit of the doubt about her being ‘anti fat’ after reading her original post about overweight riders competing. However after trawling through 10 pages of responses in order to make sure I had read it all correctly ( in case someone tried to confuse my point in saying I had not) I can agree with several posters in that the op is indeed a 'fattist' in her attitude towards larger riders.
I could quote many replies to back up this claim but can't be bothered....... goes off and plonks her fat arse on the sofa for a wee while because that is all I'm supposed to do apparently lol.
Look back and find that comment (not aimed at me personally) but it was said about fat people check and you will see it post re #2374656 posted 18.13 27th September
What comment made me laugh was the reply to Shantor who admitted to being 12 ½ stone and riding out an 18h horse.
“I don't have a problem. you're fine on your 18hander, if you'd said you have a 13 hander I might be a little concerned. simple.”
Now 13 hander could actually include many breeds of ponies many of which are native types and typical weight carriers.
13 hander could include the following types and their crosses for instance connemara, dales, fells, Exmoor, highland, new forest and welsh section c.
I think therefore before making such a generalised statement about the weight carrying ability of a certain size of a horse/pony it would be prudent to firstly research the breeds which may fit into the bracket you are generalising about.
For instance the highland pony is able to carry far greater weights than 12 ½ stone which was being used as an example of concern aboard a 13 hands approx pony.
Perhaps reading information contained on the following websites may prove useful
http://www.highland-pony.demon.co.uk/hp.htm#usenow
and http://www.highlandponyenthusiasts.co.uk/highlandpony.htm

Imo weight is not an issue aboard a horse since many horses/ponies can carry more than the average weight of a rider as ‘dead weight’ i.e. packs/loads which can contain anything and in the case of the highland ponies deers weighing up to 16stone were carried by these ponies over extremes of terrains.
However when that weight is a moving force aboard a horse/pony and one whose weight may not be as evenly spread along a pony’s/horse’s back as say a well secured load then the weight could cause a level of discomfort to the animal imo.
If the moving force is being created by a heavy, unbalanced and very inexperienced rider and that person is riding a pony/horse which is carrying perhaps near to the limit of its capabilities then yes there would be a cause of concern for both parties really.
The original question and thread title was do fat riders make your blood boil?
My answer would be simply no and not least because if my blood was to literally boil I would in a sense be unable to answer the question as I would be dead.
As for the rest of the original post that accompanied the title thread, no Kerilli I do not think that the seriously overweight should be prevented from taking part in competition whatever the level may be.
Personally I have no problems with an overweight rider competing on a horse/pony except under the following circumstances:
The horse/pony is not suitably experienced at that particular level it is competing at and is showing due signs of stress and possibly making forced errors as a result.
That comment also applies to experience/ability of the rider as well.
However the final say should lie with the rider and the owner of the horse to commit to them taking part. If the owner is happy with the rider’s suitability to the horse/pony then it is nobody else’s business in my honest opinion. The only exception to my reasoning is when there are genuine grounds of concern for the welfare of the horse should intervention possibly take place. This intervention though should be conducted by a suitably qualified equine vet who should perform a thorough examination to ascertain whether any undue stress has been placed upon the animal and any injury (ies) have occurred or to discover if the horse is suffering in any way. If this examination reveals any injuries that could cause the animal discomfort or that the horse is suffering stress/exhaustion then the horse should be retired from that competition if deemed in the interest of the horse. Advice should be given to both the owner and rider and IF weight was deemed an issue then the horse's owner should consider whether the rider is suited to that particular horse.

Caroline
 
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