Does anyone else have a horse way out of their league?

[scrumpygus]

I thought i would ask as i find myself in quandry - does anyone else have a horse they feel is way out of their league? My horse is now 12 i bought him 3 years ago to give me back my confidence and do some local shows - the lady before me wasnt too confident so schooled him alot and not much else - local dressage etc. Since regaining my confidence this horse i have been doing BD up to Elementary, BSJA up to Discovery and did my 1st Pre-Novice last week were he was literally unstoppable round the xc and did a perfect showjumping round- he literally doesnt bad an eye at anything - no matter what height or whats in it and although i am doing these shows i feel this horse could go so so far with a better rider on board and hes already 12 - do i push for him to go further or do i just enjoy and be happy with what im doing - i just cant help wondering where he could get to - i have been to quite a few xc scholling venues and im yet to find a fence that phases this horse ( they phase me quite alot and he still carries me over!)

 

[jules89]

Yes. My horse is truely amazing and I have to pinch myself everytime I sit on him. I do wonder whether I should just ship him off to a professional but I want that kick of producing him myself even though my current results are rubbish

 

[humph]

I had a horse that was way better than me. I was delighted to get pregnant but gutted that it meant I missed out on competing him myself so sent him to a friend to compete and they did brilliantly together (not solely down to my horse by any stretch, the friend rode him brilliantly cos he's quite a challenge). Once i had our daughter I realised that he was never going to fit in with my life of parenthood so I sold him.

Having said that, if you have such a brilliant horse just enjoy him rather than send him off to beat the world. he has no ambitions so will never be feeling self-piteous and dreaming of winning badminton. To me, the expense of getting a pro to ride is prohibitive, whereas the buzz of doing brilliantly well at a level that is challenging to you is priceless.

 

[wench]

My horse is very well bred, but that rubbish at everything hes just right for me!

 

[hoggedmane]

It's alright he doesn't know!

 

[hannahkirkhill]

Keep on enjoying him at what ever level you want to, you both being happy and having fun is what is important

 

[Golden_Match_II]

My pony is amazing, but never too good for me. She can do up to BE Novice XC, and can ping over the same height SJ. She does up to Prelim-Novice dressage, with some scores at 76%. She's brilliant, but I know it's because we're a team. I got her when she was 14, and she'd never done a dressage test, and only ever competed at XC twice. She's never SJed over 2ft3-6.

It's always satisfying when we do well, as I know I produced her to be a fab mad thing!

Love your horse, however brill. I'm sure you'll soon realise that you're just right for him too!

 

[dixie]

Don't see the quandry myself! Just enjoy him and have fun - horses like that are difficult to come by, and its not necessarily just him, he must have confidence in you too.

If you can't do that, then send him down my way !!

 

[silverbreeze]

I have a 16 year old ID gelding that I have owned since he was 4. He is absolutely amazing, nothing phases him (xc or sj) and he absolutely loves everything he does. i don't particularly enjoy BSJA as I don't like the atmosphere but he could go very very far in that world, he never stops at anything or questions any terrible decisions I make.. he just gets on with it and carries me over.
I tried to get a professional rider to compete him once as I was worried he was being wasted but he would not jump a stick, he was very unhappy and very stressed. (granted he may have been different with a different pro but it upset me so much I vowed i would never do it again)
He quite simply loves his mum and no one else

and wants to make her happy.
I used to worry about it but he loves whatever he is doing and as someone else put it really well; they have no ambitions! I think this is a definate example that it can be the partnership that makes your horse special! enjoy winning all the classes you are doing at your leve!!

 

[Amaretto]

Don't stress, enjoy him. You must be doing something right, give urself sum credit! Don't sell, where would u find another one like him? Plus, as already said, as long as he's well looked after, he won't care if he doesn't get to go round Badminton! Chill xx

 

[glamourpuss]

My horse is very talented, in his first season eventing when I thought I'd 'have a bash' at an intro to se how we would do he ended up storming around Novice events and thinking about intermediate.
My trainer was really excited by him and said that horses with his talent/attitude don't come along very often and that I should push to see how far we could go.

I then got pregnant and despite several offers from some very good riders I didn't want him to go to a professional yard.

After my baby we never really got back to where we were before and now we mostly pootle around local shows. He's 14 now so its too late to think about doing anything with him.
Do you know what though I don't regret a thing with him and I would do the same again. He is my horse I love him to bits and I know he has the best life I can give. That means more to me than any rosette or trophy

 

[scrumpygus]

Your so so right im sure he doesnt sit in his stable dreaming of winning Badminton either - its just strange sometimes i feel like im in awe of the things he does and im desperately trying to ride properly so not to let him down - how odd is that. What really makes me laugh is when people say to me - oh have a go on my horse when they see me doing well on him and i have to explain that the horse makes me look alot better than i am! Also on all my dressage sheets they ALL go like this - What a Super horse now you have to improve on xyz - always me - never him! Poor sod - ill catch up one day!

 

[KLMSportsHorses]

if it gets to a point where you really think he is too good for you and you think you would like to see how far someone else can get him and perhaps cannot afford a top pro there are lots of amazing young riders including myself that are in desperate need of good horses to get their careers in full swing. Often for the right horses people (i) would not charge, just ask for help paying for show entries, petrol etc. So please if you do decide to look for a rider consider us kids! We would be much more greatful K xxxxxx

 

[sachak]

i wonder everyday how a numpty like me ended up with a horse like ches but then i just savour every moment - and to be honest if i ever thought i was hindering him then i would prob send him to a pro or back to his owners but "for now" we are ok and he is starting his career just nicely x