I never asked my parents to buy me a pony. But then again, I grew up in LA and I don't think horses are allowed on Wilshire Boulevard. Asking for a horse wouldn't have made much sense back then so I made do with my hamsters.
Since I've moved to London, I see horses everywhere. The cops ride them around, and I frequently heard the clip-clopping of hooves down Chancery Lane outside of my old office. All of a sudden, horses are an option, and I decided that learning to ride would be my kind of fun.
Seeing as how I've never ridden one before, I decided a taster may be in order and I signed up for an hour-long ride with Hyde Park Stables.
Silly me, I showed up an hour before my ride was to begin, so I walked around Hyde Park for a bit. The weather had definitely cooled down quite a bit, and the park was deserted.
No one swimming in the Diana Memorial this time around.
Anyway, I returned to the stables, and they fitted me with the proper boots and a riding hat while I waited for my horse. I should mention that I was probably the only grown-up there - I was surrounded by eight year-old girls smartly dressed in jodhpurs and chaps. There was quite the variety of horses - I had my fingers crossed for a mid-sized one if not a pony.
And then they brought out Monty. He wasn't huge or anything, but I still needed a mounting block and a big hop to get in the saddle. But not before he let out a bucket of pee all over the cobblestones. Nice.
Once I was up there, I became super aware of the fact that there was nothing to catch me if I fell. And it felt pretty precarious perched up there, but I quickly got used to it and riding at a walk was pretty easy once they had my stirrups adjusted and I figured out how to hold the reins properly.
Cameras aren't allowed while riding, so you have to take my word that it was pretty sweet. I rode around Hyde Park with an instructor, who held my horse on a line, and we were followed by another instructor who was riding a spooky pony. And by spooky pony, I mean that he was scared of everything. He had a major freak out when he saw two ladies rolling luggage along and we had to avoid a big orange fence, but other than that, the ride was pretty mellow.
A lot of the ride was at a walk, but my instructor was keen on trotting so trot we did. I was told to hold on to the saddle for dear life and stand up and down with the rhythm of the horse as it trotted along. Apparently, this is the English style of riding, and it's a lot harder than it looks but I managed to nail it after the first failed attempt. Two days later, and my forearms still feel like noodles from grasping the saddle so as not to fall to my death.
As fun as it was, there wasn't much, if any, instruction during the ride, and I definitely want to learn properly. I've done some looking around, and it looks like there's a stables down in Wimbledon that's more like a proper school and a bit cheaper. Their weight restrictions also aren't quite so strict as to limit the riders to children or munchkin-sized adults.
I do hope their horses are a bit smaller...
Since I've moved to London, I see horses everywhere. The cops ride them around, and I frequently heard the clip-clopping of hooves down Chancery Lane outside of my old office. All of a sudden, horses are an option, and I decided that learning to ride would be my kind of fun.
Seeing as how I've never ridden one before, I decided a taster may be in order and I signed up for an hour-long ride with Hyde Park Stables.
Silly me, I showed up an hour before my ride was to begin, so I walked around Hyde Park for a bit. The weather had definitely cooled down quite a bit, and the park was deserted.
No one swimming in the Diana Memorial this time around.
Anyway, I returned to the stables, and they fitted me with the proper boots and a riding hat while I waited for my horse. I should mention that I was probably the only grown-up there - I was surrounded by eight year-old girls smartly dressed in jodhpurs and chaps. There was quite the variety of horses - I had my fingers crossed for a mid-sized one if not a pony.
And then they brought out Monty. He wasn't huge or anything, but I still needed a mounting block and a big hop to get in the saddle. But not before he let out a bucket of pee all over the cobblestones. Nice.
Once I was up there, I became super aware of the fact that there was nothing to catch me if I fell. And it felt pretty precarious perched up there, but I quickly got used to it and riding at a walk was pretty easy once they had my stirrups adjusted and I figured out how to hold the reins properly.
Cameras aren't allowed while riding, so you have to take my word that it was pretty sweet. I rode around Hyde Park with an instructor, who held my horse on a line, and we were followed by another instructor who was riding a spooky pony. And by spooky pony, I mean that he was scared of everything. He had a major freak out when he saw two ladies rolling luggage along and we had to avoid a big orange fence, but other than that, the ride was pretty mellow.
A lot of the ride was at a walk, but my instructor was keen on trotting so trot we did. I was told to hold on to the saddle for dear life and stand up and down with the rhythm of the horse as it trotted along. Apparently, this is the English style of riding, and it's a lot harder than it looks but I managed to nail it after the first failed attempt. Two days later, and my forearms still feel like noodles from grasping the saddle so as not to fall to my death.
As fun as it was, there wasn't much, if any, instruction during the ride, and I definitely want to learn properly. I've done some looking around, and it looks like there's a stables down in Wimbledon that's more like a proper school and a bit cheaper. Their weight restrictions also aren't quite so strict as to limit the riders to children or munchkin-sized adults.
I do hope their horses are a bit smaller...
English riding is such a pleasure. When you are trotting, some people find it hard to find the proper timing to match their horses pace, and it is so much fun once you have mastered that!
ReplyDeleteIt was a blast, and it's a lot harder than it looks! I'm still waiting for my arms to stop feeling like noodles. =)
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