How did you find your RI?

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Mythical

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Just what it says in the title.
How long did it take you to find them, how many did you go through that you didn't like and how did you know you'd found 'the one' (or however many it is that you have)

I absolutely adore my RI - she's just brilliant! Now she's dropping hints that I'm getting more ambitious than she wants to teach (though by no means am I saying she's running out of stuff to teach me - we've got lessons planned for next summer!!) I found her through pure luck and I'm dreading the hunt for the next one!!
 
Ask he for recs? Al found hers through someone she knows and who knows her very well recommending her. She's fantastic! The guy she goes to SJ clinics with is recommended by pretty much everyone round here too, and he is really good. He says essentially the same things as her instructor, but just having someone else confirm what you're doing/ how you're reacting is right is really helpful for Al.

She does seem to like the ones who are slightly more forthright in their opinions... :D
 
Thankfully my RI thought me before I bought my Mare, she freelances @ the yard.
Actually she is more of a coach at this stage as goes above what a general RI would do, She is straight to the point & very very understanding but doesn't sugar coat anything & i think that is a very important point in choosing a RI, you don't want someone telling you what you want to hear!
She has done wonders with myself & my mare as we have battled through confidence issues which are truely being swept under the carpet after our first outing yesterday where she came up to help with warm up & offer advice and was there for the duration of our outing..
WOM is a great way to find someone & try out a few different ones..
 
My instructor/trainer is an old schoolfriend who I met up with again after many years quite by chance and whose help has been invaluable with my boy. If it wasn't for her I reckon he'd have ended up in a dog-meat tin.

I've got her mare on loan at the moment; and the mare is a fantastic example of the way my trainer rides and handles horses too, so every time I get on her its a bit like a riding lesson!

IMO personal recommendation is invaluable when looking for an instructor/trainer - you have to have someone who can challenge you just enough, and push you (and your horse) beyond where you're at, without scaring the wits out of you so that you say "never again". Its a very delicate balance, and you have to have total trust in your trainer/instructor.
 
We're fortunate to have an instructor who does a regular clinic at our yard. I can only afford one lesson a month for myself, but her teaching style translates just as well to a reasonable rider like me as it does to my other half and our lad who are both quite advanced and have lessons more often.

My one lesson a month gives me loads to work on and has given me a much greater undertanding of how to communicate with our lad in a clear yet sympathetic way! :D
 
Did anyone not manage to find an instructor through word of mouth?
I have a few recommendations so far but none look like they'll be quite right for us. Part of the problem is I don't really have a fixed goal....I want to do EVERYTHING!

Anyone have a real horror story about trying to find an instructor? What's the worst that could happen??
 
I've had lessons with lots of different people. Some good, some useless. I like to watch/get feed back on lessons by instructors first (from other people), the ones I hate are the ones who just give directions, and no instruction - often to be found at riding schools I've discovered. I like lots of feedback & things to work on, and don't mind being told that I need to do more/am doing things wrong, as long as it's constructive.
I found my current instructor via the Enlightened Equitation website, as I got quite into their stuff, and she's fab :D
The yard also runs clinics with an eventer who has competed to 4*, who I think is ok for jumping lessons but I'm less keen on for flat. I think if I start jumping regularly again though I might look for someone who I feel I can talk to more, as I benefit more from a lesson that's more of a discussion than 1 way feedback. I feel it's rare that I actually understand & lock in info that's just told to me, whereas if I can talk it over & apply it to a situation verbally, I know I get it and it's not just a there & then, do this now kind of thing.
I also think that most good instructors should be happy to let you come & watch them ride or watch a lesson if you wish to, before you book your own :)
 
my instructor taught my parents to ride!!!

but she's the first to admit that no one instructor can teach you everything, and she encourages us to take lessons with other people. As she puts it, each instructor gives you different tools, you gather those tools throughout your riding career, and someday it'll come in handy.
 
I found mine through word of mouth. I'd had a few, one was pretty good but moved away so started looking for another. I was 14-15 at the time. I tried a couple. I had a whizzy little tb mare at the time and was mostly doing xc/sk so needed a good jumping instructor. I tried one who screamed and got all hysterical when my mare got a bit over excited over the jumps and had a little buck. So she was a no go! Tried another who was ok, but didn't really like the way she taught. Then I found my current instructor, who was at a yard only a mile away. She was fantastic, I saw improvements from the first lesson, and she worked absolute miracles!
A year or so later I moved to the yard she was at as ours closed down. And now she's a very good friend and more like my coach than my RI-comes to my comps, wanders in the arena when I'm riding to give me some tips, teaches me on her own horse if I'm struggling with anything etc. don't know what I'd do without her really, I owe her a lot!
 
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