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Horse riding: Any equine fans?
I've recently (around a year ago) taken up horse riding as a hobby.
Although, at this point it's crossing the boundary into sport, I still think there's plenty of hobby to discuss.
Have you ridden before? If so how long? If not what's stopping you?
Do you have horses or ponies? Please share!
I've not ridden but my girlfriend has horses and is encouraging me to start! Any tips for an older gentleman (post 50) looking to start out?
My parents have both ridden for a long time and have just started (complicated family).
Best advice I'd give is make sure you are on a very safe horse. I'm sure your girlfriend already has a horse in mind for you, but it could be very uncomfortable for a new rider on a fiesty horse or a horse with unreliable brakes.
Depending on your situation, you might benefit from a 30 minute lesson at a nearby riding school. They always have safe horses, they'll (literally) teach you the ropes of go, turn, stop and it might take some pressure off your girlfriend.
I'm no expert though, I'm only speaking from my own experience!
Don't start lol
Wife and I rescue equine and livestock, we have currently 50+ and around another ~150 animals on the farm. It's a ton of work, but my wife loves it and I love my wife. I love the farm life, but it's a ton of work with horses and rescue.
Been doing this for a little over a decade now.
She only has three but I love looking after them with her. Getting outside more often, exercise, horse cuddles, all of it! Good for the soul.
50+ though, wow! How's many of you are looking after them all? 3 is a hobby, 50 is a career!
Absolutely is, it's a lot of work but I get a lot back out of it as well.
Just the wife and I. We own a large farm so it helps to have large pastures during the summer, and automatic waterers for the winter/summer. Mostly it's building and fixing that takes up my time. Chores can be done in about an hour or two. We're not a 501 so I cover everything, and do not have volunteers, liability is just not worth it.
As mentioned in the topic, I've been riding for around a year. I have been refining my trot and starting to learn to gallop.
It's hard work, I really need to work out more (or ride more!) to keep up, but it's great fun when we get going.
My girlfriend has 9 horses, most are coldblooded trotters, but she's just got herself a lovely warm blood mare.
It's my intention to go hacking and trekking next year both at home and abroad. It seems like a great way to explore the world!
I've ridden before! Though I haven't done too much riding, my enjoyment of it has increased with age. The things stopping me from doing it more are my height (I'm one whole Joe Rogan) and have trouble getting my leg over, I'm overweight and I don't want to hurt a horse, and I don't have very much expendable income. But two of those things I can change when I want to explore equestrian archery one day.
Agreed with the enjoyment has increased with age. When I was younger it really didn't appeal to me, I didn't really get the point. But I've come to appreciate the sport more.
I hope you do manage to change those last two regardless!
What got your interest in equestrian archery in particular?
Well, the pandy certainly put me in the mindset of exploring things that I'd wanted to try but never got to in case I die. And one of my favorite games as a kiddo was Zelda. That was my initial inspiration for much of my projects. So I got into leather, archery, rediscovered woodworking, and did a deep dive on equestrian archery. I wanted to know, what is it really like? I've yet to completely answer that one for myself, but I've had many of my questions answered and I've been in contact with an equestrian archery trainer. Turns out, it's much better to lean forward on some large pommels (with feet situated properly in the stirrups of course) than sitting directly on the saddle while drawing the bow and loosing an arrow, because the motion of the horse can screw up your release.
I did some occasional riding when I was younger. My grandfather kept horses, which I rode when I visited him, and I regularly attended summer camps with horse riding.
However, I actually found that I preferred interacting with the horses face-to-face over riding them. I particularly enjoyed grooming them, petting them, and just generally bonding with them. Riding was fun, but no more so than riding a go cart, and it kind of felt like it ate into the time that I could have otherwise spent more directly interacting with these cool animals.
As an adult, I have no particular interest in riding, but I would consider adopting a horse or two that could not be ridden. However, I have to say that after years of interacting with assorted farm animals, it's actually cattle that have taken my heart and would make for my ideal paddock pet.