What would you like to see from a riding school- new ideas for 2011...

Hey had a look, do you do male only lessons at all? Know this may seem a bit odd but I know several men who haven't wanted to have conventional riding lesson because they think it will just be a mothers meeting.
Also would be ideal to be taught by a male instructor so they can talk in their man code of "I don't feel pain but I keep cracking my nuts on the pommel...help?". :eek:
Don't know if there would be a market but I should think in the evenings after commuter time would be reasonably popular.
 
Please could you start running BD, on a weekend, scheduled not to clash with Checkendon! It would be most convenient :)
 
How about a mechanical horse, I would love some lessons on one of the advanced ones that can tell where your weight is etc and would be great to improve position
 
I think you should market an exceptionally rare 'Boss experience day' where people can come and admire the grey beast's exceptional ability to take chunks out of you whilst putting on a cute face, spend half a day removing the mud from him and then get taken around an xc course for an exhilerating experience ;)
 
Ha ha!! thats a good one!! He is currently turned out for a couple of nights having done the wall of death round the arena whilst he was supposed to be jumping a 2ft fence! he now thinks he is special having now become the proud owner of a prestige optimax and a new bridle thanks to his number one fan! ( who was supposed to be jumping the fence!!)
here is winning the mini xc:
http://www.rpeevents.co.uk/gals/260910/c4/pages/page_22.html
 
Lol!! January always was the 'funnest' month with Boss. Tell him off from me, threaten him with coming back home.
He looks like he's having a ball in the pic- it's nice to see him keen and full of enthusiasm!
 
He is brilliant, you can't have him back!! He likes it here- he esp like threatening the other horses when they pass him on the lesson!
 
I think you need to set up near me the only riding school I would sent someone to is nealy an hour away the others are shocking. One has 13 year olds teaching and purposly dosnt help people progress so they keep coming back :o
 
I echo the idea about the mechanical horse.

You would get lots of horsey-owner types like me in for practice on that.

It would also be useful for adults learning to ride. My husband is vaguely interested in having a go at riding but says he doesn't want to bounce around in the school, looking like a plonker in front of the girls, while he learns to do a rising trot.
 
What about some Trec training/competitions? Not my cup of tea but by far the biggest earners for my riding club, they're really popular.
 
The issue I had when I sold my horse and gave up riding, then decided I wanted to get back into riding again (after a break) was that all of the horses at the local riding school weren't good enough to challenge me. I am by no means a super rider, but I have affiliated in showjumping and dressage and found the riding school didn't have any horses who were good enough for me to continue where I left off - had to make do with jumping smaller and not being able to work on my dressage (think a dodgy shoulder in and turn on the forehand was as much as you could ask from them). I know a riding school I went to as a kid (now closed down) had advanced horses and schoolmsters saved only for the more advanced riders. No where like that near me now. Would have loved to have gone for a weekly lesson, but ended up buying my own horse again (now have 3 of them!) and really struggle with time. Was nice to have time for myself and family and just have my weekly lesson, but it really didn't challenge me.
 
Read briefly about a course, run midweek, aimed at adults wanted to get more involved with horses. Each week had a group lesson followed by some stable management and theory, or some hands on?

Along the same lines, what about stable management courses aimed at parents / first time horse owners?
 
following on from above how about a course to help people considering buying their first horse. Teaching them the things they will need to know and what to expect at viewings and vettings ect.
 
Your riding school looks really good!!

A couple of ideas (some nicked from the riding school i go to!) ...

occasional evening jumping competitions just for clients/very novice owners - nice if you are just starting out competing and don't want to be up agaist loads of people with their own horses who compete all the time

mix and match sessions where you swap between different styles, e.g. bareback, racing saddle, double bridle i.e. more unusual things most riding school people wouldn't get a chance to try

a course on lunging - theory and practice, i did one of these and really enjoyed it and found it useful, 4/5 weeks long

a variety of one off clinics/workshops e.g. lunging, long reining, clicker training and i've always thought one on conformation would be good

:)
 
Way back in the iron age when I was doing my AI & Intermediate we did 2 x evening lessons a week for adults only - on Weds & Thurs evenings in the indoor school.
Both 7.30pm they were fully booked every week.

On a Tuesday we split the school & did 2 or 3 x half hour sessions as 1-to-1's, mostly lunge lessons, and only for adults from 7pm.

You do need dedicated staff tho in the yard for prep & after care, but often the adults from the group lessons would be encouraged to take their mounts back to stables & untack & rug up after.

Good luck :)
 
Sounds really silly, but i know a lot of people want to know more about horses, aswel as just riding them!! A lot of people in the uni dont own their own and one lovely friend of mine didnt know what hoof oil was or how to put it on!!! I think something like that, if made fun enough, would get people in and make money....i would ahve done something like that!!

I think hacking could be upsold a little more too, one of the best rides ive had at hp was when lexi was sound galloping through that field with some friends out on a hack...people never really think of hp as a hacking place but theres actually some pretty nice rides around you!!! And when you think of the uni, allthough lots of people do want to learn, alot of us are young and foolish and love nothing more than full pelt through a field :)

Just some thoughts :)
 
I've been for SJ comps, and rode at Hall Place as a child (many years ago!). The comps are always popular (takes ages and ages to get through each class there's so many people!), so more of those? I like the atmosphere when we go, and the warm-up and lorry park, but the arena isn't big enough really for the larger classes - jumps end up too close to the fence/each other, and with youngsters that's no fun.
 
More mini showjumping, my daughters 6 and shes just going off the lead at shows and starting real small 1'3 to 1'6 the shows i go to are always heaving with those sorts of classes as theres not many that do real mini shows. One i went to in the summer had mini pairs mini horse and hound ect.:)
 
following on from dafthoss post, have you thought about leasing horses out to people for a period whilst continuing to stable them at the centre? This is great for people thinking of getting a horse for the first time as it gives the experience of having one but in the same environment where people have learned to ride and the riding school would be able to help and maintain supervision over what was going on.
 
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