Horse/Rider size... UK vs N.Am

Maple Leaf

Maple Leaf

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10 October 2010
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Hey all-
as a recently relocated Canadian, I am curious to hear about horse and rider sizes compared to the trends in North America. I am fairly small (160cm), and I have always preferred to have a smallish horse (15.3 is perfect!). However, the trend in N.Am is totally opposite.. no one will even LOOK at a horse under 16hh. I see tiny little kids up on big 17hh warmbloods...
Is it very different over here??
 
IME it's not that different. You do tend to get a few people that think the bigger the horse the better. I used to know a lady who was 4'11 and used to ride a huge 17.3hh- fair play to her, she rode him effectively, but I'm 5'0 and I'll stick to around 15hh.

Also, I know there's been a thread on this before, but when I was younger and used to go to shows, a lot of parents used to stick their kids on 16hh+. Totally overhorsed.
 
I'm your height and own a 15.2hh, last horse was 14.3hh, next wont be more than 15.3hh!! :p Don't see the point in riding a huge horse when I'm small and slim... you get a bit of everything here though, including the odd pony squisher! ;)
 
Hi and welcome from another Canadian!! :) I'm from Quebec (but I'm not French!!) and used to ride hunters there, now here I ride side saddle only :D

I'm 5'9" and "back home", the range of horses I used to ride was 16hh to 17hh, most being around the 16.1 to 16.3 mark. I had the mentality that because I was tall, that I could only ride horses of the 16hh and up.

Over here it's MUCH more relaxed with LOTS of adults riding ponies and smaller horses. I had a 14.1 Arab on loan and she rode like a big horse, I used to forget how small she was and no one ever remarked on our size difference. My horse now is a 15.3 TB and I feel the same on her as when I rode larger horses but only there is a shorter distance from me to fall off from :D
 
I'm 5'6 (167cm) and Allie's 14.3hh, mostly because i've had her for so long that by the time I finally outgrew her she was 18 and I had a sudden horrible image of her being sold on and on as teenagers outgrew her and she got older and older :o I'm considering loaning Allie out and looking for something 16.3+ ... purely because i've seen a few photos of me on some of the middleweight/heavyweight hunters and we look good together, and I mean smart good.

People seem to ride anything though, depends whether they're competitive or just having a bit of fun. My beanpole of a friend is 5'11 and he rides a 12.3 welshie. Never seen anything that bizarre, yet they're such a perfect fit it's unreal.
 
I think it comes down to what height you prefer and what you can handle as such. I am about the same size as you and prefer horses around 16.1hh-17hh. Anything bigger is a bit scary for me!
 
I'm a British ex-pat, so am familiar with this American trend. Yes, there are Welsh ponies in the States, but in my opinion they're not of the same quality, and with Connemaras, Dales etc. all but scarce in the US, and in the absence of pony showjumping classes, it seems like children at twelve make the leap straight to horses.

I'm 5'7, 8.5 stone, yet barns will not put me on anything smaller than 16hh. It drives me crazy. An enlightened instructor let me ride a 15hh Morgan this summer, and I had a blast.
 
i love the pony-squisher comment!!! there are a few of those at my yard it has to be said! mostly mother-daughter shares where the mums seem to think that they can ride the 13hh pony even thou they are MUCH rounder than their 11year old daughters!

Im 5'5 and about 11stone (unfortunately), i have a 15hh welsh cob whos the love of my life and over the years hes seen my weight go up and down bless him and taken it all in his stride! I think height wise hes perfect for me but i just hope im not to heavy for him:-(. People tell me not to be so stupid cos hes super chunky and has lots of bone but i still feel bad just cos hes my angel!

I really dont understand peoples obsession with big horses, i swear some people think if they have a big elegant horse it'll somehow make them look like a decent rider!
 
In the UK I think it's seen as a lot more acceptable for taller people to be on diddy ponies, i'm 6ft and light and ride a 13.2 occasionally if there's no one else to ride him coz he goes nutty if he doesn't get out. Where as when i went riding in America I was limited to one tall horse at the barn because of my height.

Little ones are far more fun, and I hate to see kids over horsed :/ Although some of the little ponies I know are *****s and i'd rather see them on a safe 15hh instead. Suppose it's quite subjective in that case.
 
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