Worst lesson or instructor or school whats happened to you?

gracey said:
:confused: I don't see a problem with a hour long lunge lesson? ..I think lunge lessons are fab and the very best way to improve position! .. i think i might be on my own with that opinion by the sounds of it! :)
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Yes might be ok for you, but lunging a poor horse for an hour is very hard work - lunging is harder on the horse than riding is and ideally should not be for more than 20 mins! I take it you don't own your own horse?
 
The worst lesson I had? I was catapulted into a fence and shattered my elbow as a child when instructor let another girl come up behind my (highly strung but VERY capable JA) pony and crack it one across the arse!

I continued to ride there and then worked there until I was about 18 :D accidents happen, people make mistakes, SOMETIMES lessons are a bit crap. Get over it, you can't expect the moon on a stick every week.

Also, re the arthritic show jumper - my lad is an ex SJer and yes, he can look bloody awful to begin with as he is a bit stiff when it's cold/he's been in, but work him on and he will produce some fantastic work - one of the best horses I've ever (and probably ever will have) sat on.
He will also throw in a stop 'for no apparent reason' if you don't bother to ride him to a fence and expect to be a passenger. Only I am allowed that privellege as I am the food bringer, so he puts up with my crap riding :D
 
I've given lunge lessons that last an hour without any problem. The clock starts when the horse is presented to the rider to mount. Adjusting stirrups and girth takes a few minutes, then there is the preliminary discussion about what we are going to do and why, the warm up period for rider at standstill, warm up for horse in walk on both reins. The main part of the lesson with regular reinchanges (allows the horse to rest while you reattach the line). Stopping to make corrections and explanations, stopping to give the rider a break especially if there is work without stirrups, then the cooling down period, further discussion of how the lesson went, how it made the rider feel before, during and after and how they improved. That's an hour gone, no problem and neither horse nor rider are crippled.

You just have to use your imagination and plan the lesson properly in advance. You don't have to be whizzing round in endless circles to benefit from a lunge lesson or any other sort of lesson for that matter. I've never ever given a lesson that I didn't know what I was going to do before it started, and also had a plan B if there was a problem.
 
I've had some pretty bad experiences at riding schools, but I have been at 4 different ones, or 5 if you include college, and I'm only 21 and started riding when I was 9.

At my first place it was wonderful, I had a fantastic instructor most of the time. Once he was ill and the other instructor took his place. I was on a fizzy little showing pony who was being a bit of a git and not wanting to go very forwards. Said instructor got a lunge whip and smacked the pony up the backside with it causing it to take off across the school petrifying me, I'd probably only been riding a year or so at this point. I made sure I avoided that instructor after that, but continued at the school having fantastic lessons until it closed to solely RDA.

At the second place they had a school at that probably 60 x 20m, they'd squeeze two lessons into this, even if one was a jumping lesson, so regularly you'd end up with people from the other lesson in the other half of the arena. They had a few nutty horses, one in particular I rode for about 5 minutes before saying I didn't feel comfortable and could I ride something else. Thankfully they let me or I think there could have been a disaster! The instructors weren't brilliant, I never felt like I learnt a lot. What really did it for me was when we went into the jumping field once, I was riding a 13.2hh pony who in the school was fine. Went out and started warming up, when for a canter, next thing I know I'm being smacked into the floor as the thing had put a huge buck in and I'd gone flying. They then told me the pony was known for bucking in the field! My friend and I then had to share the horse she was riding for the rest of the lesson, I don't think I did more than have a trot round.

Third place was downright dodgy! Run by a dutch couple who were very odd. Started off okay, I rode a few different horses. It wasn't very big so they only had a maximum of 10 horses. I did have fun there, we had own a pony days and did mini competitions. We even did a little xc schooling in one of the fields. Although the horse I rode did take off across the field but he was also a known bucker and bucked the other girl who was riding him off several times just before I left! I improved a bit and so the owner decided to put me on one of her horses, a 16.2/3hh dutch gelding, possibly a showjumper but I'm not sure. We started off okay, did some walk and trot, went up to canter, he rounded his back to buck and I plopped off the side. Still don't know why to this day! I don't remember any of it really, but I bruised my spine and couldn't ride for a while. I lost a lot of confidence then, the horse was too much for me really. And when I came back the owner then put me on a very sensitive TB that she'd acquired. I was very nervous as you can imagine after my fall, the horse began to play up making me worse. I got off after about 20 minutes and the owner let me ride her big schoolmaster who I loved. On one own a pony day she got one pony and let everyone ride it bareback, even two people at a time in canter. This was only in 2006 or so, I don't think she had a clue about health and safety! She then decided I should part loan the horse I'd done xc schooling on, this was fine although I just walked and trotted as I was still very nervous to canter. All going fine until one day I go to ride him and he's not there. No-one is. The owner had upped and left, all the horses were gone. Turns out she didn't have planning permission to run a riding school. I saw an advert from her the other week, she's got a new place somewhere else now. Hopefully it's more legit, but she was still a pretty nasty lady..

Fourth one is a very well known equestrian centre in the area. I had some fantastic lessons there, I got moved into the advanced ladies group and usually rode good horses. Sometimes you'd get stuck on the cob that barely moved but you'd deal with it. I had some lessons there before I went to college with their top two instructors, one who owned the place. They were so good, when I went to college they assessed me as a BHS stage 3 flat rider, which I am not at all! I had some wonderful lunge lessons too. I had a fall in one jumping lesson but my instructor was so good about it and showed me what I did wrong that I got straight back on and did it again. Although only once as my back injury had flared up again! Sadly my instructor for the group moved away and the lady that took over wasn't as good. I learned less and in the end stopped going.

I then went to college. I got put in the top group because of my assessment but they quickly saw I wasn't confident enough for that so moved me to the middle group. We were in a jumping lesson one day, I was on a chestnut TB mare who had already started playing up as we were warming up, doing mini rears and hopping about. This made me nervous so when it came to jumping I didn't want to do it. The instructor then began to scream and yell at me to get over the jumps. I sat in tears in the middle of the arena whilst the others rode around me. I think eventually I just got off and left. I got moved down to the bottom group after explaining the riding co-ordinator I wanted a new instructor. I had loads of friends in this group, we all got along so well and had fun. We could all be a little unconfident so we really encouraged each other, it was lovely. Our jumping instructor was absolutely fantastic, she writes some stuff in Horse and Rider magazine sometimes now. I loved her, she made me feel so confident and that I could actually ride! One day we had a different instructor for jumping but she was also lovely and I ended up jumping 90cm, the biggest I'd jumped at the time, as the second part of a dog leg, we were meant to continue round and down a grid but I was so excited I totally forgot the second part! My flat instructor was also my course tutor, who was lovely but a bit rubbishy as an instructor. I lost my decent position and was put on an ex 2* eventer once, who I think someone on here owns now actually! But I went to canter round and he took off, I literally had no breaks and nearly crashed into several other horses as he careered around. Eventually I managed to stop him but I was shaking so badly and crying. I wanted to get off but my instructor told me I had to keep going, and canter on the other rein. Well guess what, he did it again! I stopped him a bit quicker this time but got straight off, shaking so badly, and took him back to the yard. I was told I'd never ride that horse again thankfully. We'd been in the main arena with the classrooms above and some of my friends had seen what happened and found me afterwards saying my instructor should never have made me do it again, they could see how scared I was. I had several lessons where I would just walk the horse around after that, I wouldn't trot at all, and if the horse made a sudden movement at all I'd burst into tears. Thankfully I found one horse I trusted, a little 15.1hh coloured mare, the one I'd jumped 90cm on. She did buck a little but it didn't scare me somehow and I eventually got some of my confidence back. I had one other horse I trusted, a bit 17hh chunky Irish gelding who could be strong but was super safe and I loved him. I had a fantastic jumping lesson on my own with the great instructor on him but I'm not sure college did me any favours in regards to my riding.

I did go back to riding school 4 for a bit after college but again, felt like I wasn't learning anything so found a share horse and left. The share horse did me wonders, I galloped out on hacks, I did some good schooling including attempting flying changes and also jumped 3'3 on him. Unfortunately he injured himself and had to have 6 months off so his owner moved yards and he was too far for me to go after that.

Looking back at this it makes me realise why I'm like I am now with my riding! Apologies this was so long! I'm looking into getting lessons on my current share horse with my first instructor who is now freelancing. Fingers crossed I can become a decent rider again!
 
The very first riding school I went to was rubbish in terms of learning (I can't comment on the quality of horses as was very young).

Each lesson was the same, and I mean exactly the same, every single week. I can still (25 years later) remember the first exercise 'lead pony move from walk and trots to the back'. Often there would be up to 15 in a ride, each one following the other, nose to tail!

Parents weren't at all horsey so really didn't know any better!
 
:o 'back in the day' my old instructor (please don't make me count the years :o) used to make me do one hour of lunge lessons a couple of times a week .. she was big on them .. it was her own horse that she used, but it was broken up i.e we would have time in the center of the school where she would make me do loads of excercises .. i don't ride anymore :( but I do remember those lessons well ..
 
I don't think I've had that many bad experiences thankfully!

I did have quite a strange experience once though where I was looking for a new riding school after my original one had closed down. I was about 10 and at this riding school for the first time. I was told my pony was called Sammy. What I wasn't aware of at the time was that there was more than one pony in the lesson with the name 'Sammy'. The instructor would shout 'Sammy, trot (or canter, or walk or whatever)' and not realising I was not on the only 'Sammy' in the lesson would obediently do what was being asked. Then I got yelled at for not listening or not being in control (poor pony was doing what I asked!). Eventually I got put on the lead rein. Never been more confused in my life! It was only after the lesson had ended that it was explained to me that there was more than one 'Sammy' in the lesson.

I never went back but I did find another lovely riding school where I stayed for more than 8 years so in a way it was a good thing as I never would have kept looking otherwise :)
 
Re: Lunge lessons, a 'lunge lesson' to me is an hour, but it is not a solid hour of lunging.

It is first 10 minutes, rider on, quick chat about ability and expectations whilst adjusting grith/ stirrups/ perhaps basic position.

If CAPABLE - rider walks horse round for 5 whilst chatting to let horse stretch out. If not capable, either walk beside or straight on lunge.

20 minutes / half an hour lunge work la de dah stealing stirrups / reins and creating beautiful independent seats and beautiful still hands, or secure jumping positions....

That takes you to maybe 40 minutes, whip them off the lunge and make them do it independently, do some movements, tidy up positions / niggly things whilst off lunge.

Give them back stirrups etc if they haven't already, lengthen them a bit if need be, and work with them for 5 minutes.

Cool down, feedback etc. But NEVER a full hour on the blimmin lunge! I get dizzy enough teaching lunge lessons for 20 minutes and that's even walking about :D

Bad lessons, one riding school used to always put me on the nutters / new ponies. But I think that's how I developed my 'SuperGlueArse' as people call it ;)

Re: Colleges, many might be awful but I will fly the flag for Barony and the instructors / Tutors (only 2 with a student one once a week mind you) I had there. I came away not and amazing rider, but a GOOD rider with solid foundations on which to build on. Jackie Irving is a brilliant instructor and I wish I could still have lessons with her! The ponys / horses there were always varied and interesting term to term with some permanent loan ones. My favourites were my lecturers horse and her sons pony - who noone else liked to ride because he always decked people.... mostly me then :D
 
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