cattail210:

 

Thirdly, God knew what he was doing when he put long manes on Arabs!  Grab that sucker and hang on.  When my horse is fresh I will ride until I am sure he is settled with a tuft of mane in my outside hand.  I can still use my rein and move my hand, but if he spooks I am attached.  Don't let anyone tell you that only sissys grab mane.  If your horse does not have a long mane put a bucking strap on your saddle. 

LOL  Well put!  Also, very good description on riding balanced.

Amen!  I believe in grabbing mane, saddle, horn, whatever keeps you safe!

Wow!  That is sooo true!  I am so blessed to be able to ride comfortably, and feel able to listen to my horse, and my body, and do what I need to do, not what someone else thinks I need to do, even tho they may be a more skilled rider.  When I used to board, I could finally enjoy lessons because I felt no pressure.  Therefore, I could concentrate on what I needed to learn and if I messed up, so be it!  Try again!  I've seen so many younger folks who got really frustrated during a lesson, and seemed to get no enjoyment from it, or their horse at all.  Too sad!  I say, go for what you love, and enjoy it to the max!

Thaqnks Mary!  I'll give this one a try!

Lynda

What a great explanation!  I can really understand how alignment works, from my own riding.  I am actually printing out your email for my husband to read.  He is a novice rider, and my explanations that hunching forward is not helping him fall on deaf ears!  I think he will learn from your words of wisdom.  Thank you very much!!!!!

I really enjoyed reading through this thread, you guys are certainly showing your wisdom! 

As another over 50 horse obsessed rider I have also found that going slowly and measuring progress in little steps has helped me tremendously.  I do think you have to push yourself from time to time by setting goals and working toward them but they don't have to be big goals!

I also ride Arabs, and adore them!  Living art, with brains and heart to match.  Downside, they are quick, reaction time is fast, so you need to ride and anticipate every stride.  I like that though because it helps me be really focused.   One thing I do is lunge before I ride.  Not to take the edge off, but to allow them to get the bucks and fun out and to be sure they are listening to me.  When I can get walk, trot, canter calmly and from a simple voice comand, then I am ready to get on and ride.  I don't care if everyone else wants to jump on and go, I want to be in control. 

It is so wonderful to have all these mature riders who are so committed!

You are so right.  One of the benefits of being an older rider, at least with me, is having lots more patience, both with myself and my horse.  Which seems to pay off big time in understanding and enjoyment of my horse.  I considered getting a different breed before I got my present Arab, but just could not get interested in any I heard about.  I love all horses, but Arabs are just so dear.  Yes, they are quick, and smart as can be.  Which I have always thought is one reason some people don't get along with them.  Whether I am riding, or just hanging out with my horse, I love every minute and have no place I would rather be!

I am 50 and just got back into riding/showing hunters this past year after 3 decades away from horses.  There are numerous exercises and programs you can do at home that will give you the cardio, core and leg strength you need to help regain confidence.  I too never feared falling off (and did frequently) as I schooled young horses and galloped race horses.  Now I have a 5 year old mare (and an excellent trainer), that is very even tempered for a TB.  I try to be realistic about my limitations, but at the same time, don't let that keep me from pushing myself.  I have been pleasantly surprised at how much I still CAN do.  Pilates, Yoga, cardio work, plyometrics, and stretching are all excellent conditioning for riding and life in general.  If this is new to you, you might want to consider a personal trainer to help you get started.  Happy riding!!!!!

Both the trainers in my barn refer to the horn as the "Oh Sh** Handle"!  Love it!

Mary 

And a very appropriate name it is!  lol!  When I learned to ride, it was an unspoken that only "greenhorns" used the horn for balance, but as I've ridden more and gotten older, I tend to go by the other unspoken rule....whatever works!  Pride heals much quicker than limbs!

I think, too, it is important to let horses have their fun and romp time before expecting them to get serious and down to business while we ride.  For those who have the space and don't mind looking like oversized 8 yr. olds out in their pastures, my husband and I have a blast getting our two horses to run and play out there when they are fresh.  Assuming of course footing is safe, etc.  We take the lunge whip and a bottle partially filled with rocks that rattles a lot, and go out in the pasture and crack the whip and shake the bottle.  The horses love it!  They run with each other, buck, jump, and generally act silly.  Only takes a short time, and we all have fun and they settle down for work.

I am also "over 50" and only pursued my childhood dream of owning a horse a few years ago.  I had never ridden prior to age 52. I took lessons for a year, and then was determined to have my own horse, so purchased a beautiful and young Paint gelding that was way too much horse for me.  After he threw me a few times, and I healed from broken ribs, fractured foot, etc. I made the difficult decision to sell him. I now have a wonderful older gelding.  We seem to be a perfect match, as his favorite spped if "slow" and so is mine! However, the fear and uncertainty from my previous falls/injuries is not completely gone. I am a psychotherapist in Texas, and realized that many riders share a similar "story". I am almost finished developing a relaxation audio and guided imagery specifically for horse folks.  A wonderful local musician has provided  amazing background music.  We have added actual horse sounds and so the audio is very realistic.  If you would like, when it is complete I will send you information about where it will be available.  In the meantime, I hope you continue to feel more and more confident with your horse.  Take care.  Bonnie

I forgot all about the lounging part.  WInter has been to long.  When my children were young and in 4 H we always lounged their horses before they did anything with them.  My moto was a tired horse is a good horse.  I have young ones this year and yes, they will be lounged a long time before I get on them.  LOL

Everybody's had great comments and suggestions.  I'm 64, ridden since I was 10 and to put it not delicately at all I weigh a lot more than I did as a teen.  I second the suggestion that a few lessons might help if you find the right trainer.  I recently found that to ride over fences without making a "big move" that put me way too far forward and very insecure, I had to really shorten my stirrups - felt like a jocky but legs stayed put and I was solid throughout the jump and landing.  My point is that I would never have done it if a trainer haddent kept insisting til I gave it a try!  Also the comments about general fitness and condition I've sure found true.  I keep being surprised at what my 64 year old body will do - the more I do, the more I can do.  I think that's reaping the rewards of my riding and "horsing around" when I was younger.  I've sure found that it's never to late to (re)build muscle and aerobic fitness.  One suggestion no one's made so far (I think) is to reconsider your choice of saddle.  I've always ridden in close contact saddles with no knee pads, etc., but yesterday I tried a used all-purpose with a deeper seat and both knee and thigh blocks.  Boy did I feel extra solid in the saddle.  I haven't tried jumping in it yet, but for trail riding I think it will give me that little extra bit of security, which I can use because my mount is really timid on the trail, and the most recent fall I took was when he spooked out of a dead calm.  I think our resident arrogant coyote may have come up right at his hind legs.  One minute he was standing relaxed and still, the next he was about 2 1/2 feet off the ground and then kicked or bucked at the top of his leap.  Needless to say I did NOT retain my seat.  If it's any consolation to you, I've now had the experience of landing hard at 64, but was ok except for the wind knocked out of me.  So it is possible to live through a hard fall and not be hurt even at our advanced age.  Perhaps that's some comfort to you to know.  It's helped me to say to myself "well, I sure don't want to get dumped again, but I was ok before and I'll be ok again, and I'm not going to let it stop me".

Very best of luck in your riding, MaryM43

Hi Mary!  I am so glad you were not hurt in your recent fall.  I, too, am 64 and took a fall about a month ago now.  It was due to my stupidity, and not much else.  Riding a new horse, and thinking a huge tractor with a huge implement behind would not worry him.  Wrong!  Sadly, I wasn't riding defensively, but sitting like the well known sack of potatoes, when suddenly my horse jumped to the left and I went off to the right.  Not hurt, just felt dumb!  I knew  my horse was watching the tractor, but thought we could get by before it got close enough to be a problem.  You have some great ideas; I ride western now, but did ride English when I was younger.  I think learning to ride English is a good idea, because it teaches you such good balance and how to move with your horse.  These things stay with you, even if you ride Western, or whatever else.  For us Western riders, I found using a synthetic saddle was a big help when my beloved old leather saddle got a broken tree and was beyond use.  It fits my horse well, fits me well, and so much easier to lift on and off the horse.  I know many of you will cringe at this, as I did at first, but I am glad I tried it!