How Did You First Start Riding Saddle Seat?

[kittymom]

I thought this might be an interesting and helpful topic for riding programs-admins., if this isn't in the right place, I apologize.

When you first started to ride, how did you decide to do it? Did your parents see an ad in the newspaper? Did you drive past a farm and wander in? Did your friends at school talk about it and then you wanted to ride too?

Also, how did you convince your parents that it wasn't cost prohibitive if they thought, at first, it was?

You don't need to be specific with names or places-just in general might be a help for those either starting or growing a riding program.

[JohnDeere]

I was 4 and my brother was 2 when we started riding Saddle seat. My mom and a girl who was my friend for about a year came up with a list of places to go look at for lessons. I was extremely shy and my mom wanted me to get into a sport, and she had had Shetland ponies as a kid. We went to a few HJ places; didn't go over well. One told us there was an old pony out back that we could ride if we wanted to bring it in and clean it up. The other wouldn't take us because we were too young. I don't know how we found my first Saddle seat barn but thats how it worked out. :)

[KatieEq]

My dad's parents (Dorothy & TJ Bartlett), whom I never knew, raised horses back in the 60s & 70s. They showed fine harness & had several horses in training with Don Harris when he was in western KY. They stood Starheart Victory as well. Therefore my dad grew up with horses, but was never very interested (supposedly because he wasn't very good).

Fast forward to 1989. My dad's sister lives on a farm in LaGrange where she ran a camp every summer for the kids in the area. She had ponies. I have photos of me on Sundown, Spot, & Oreo, sitting in shorts in a little western saddle or in a bathing suit in the lake with the pony. I started asking for riding lessons. Mom found someone in the area who taught lessons, but would not start a rider until they were 6. For my 6th birthday, I got riding lessons. I think the parents did it to humour me. 18 years, several ribbons & horses later, I'm still in it.

Mom said it was in my genes. Mom started driving in the mid-90s because she figured she might as well participate since she was taking me to shows. Dad bought her first harness horse (Preferred American) in February '95 & she's gone from there. When she first began showing, many people were shocked to see a Mrs. Bartlett competing as they remembered my grandmother. My brother started driving Hackney ponies when he realized he could win money, especially since I couldn't win money in equitation. Plus he was bored at horse shows that Mom drug him to. When he turned 16, he wanted more horse power & 4 wheels.

So how did I start out? I was horse crazy from the start. Guess it really was in my genes.

Katie

[ASB_EQ_Gal]

I was born riding saddle seat. My mom started with horses when she was really young. She started working with Arabs doing saddle seat. So my mom and dad were on the Arab show circuit for quite a while. They then got interested in promoting the Spotted National Show Horses, so they went to Scripss Miramar and Michelle sold them the stud we had for a long time Columbia. This was when the Saddlebred came into their lives even more. However once Michelle sold Columbia to my mom and dad she had them stay quite a while with her down in California to learn the "saddlebred way". Once my mom starting working with the Saddlebreds she ended up going all the way with them and stopped doing the Arabs.

So I was pretty much born into it. I've always ridden saddle seat and saddlebreds. It is literally in my blood :)

I first started out riding a little Tennessee Walker pony cross who was wonderful. He is who I learned on. Eventually I started riding more advanced horses (the saddlebreds) and then my pony died of cancer. I was so sad but it opened the door to push me to start showing the "big boys". I would say though my first real true show hose is the one I have now. He is my pride and joy.

[kittymom]

I, too, had horses in my genes as my Mom had a Saddlebred as a high school girl in the 1950's. After I was born, we went (against my Dad's will) to some area shows to watch because my mom's cousin showed SS Eq. To me, it was like the kids today watching Britney Spears from the front row. I was simply awestruck. I shortly thereafter received my first pony and thru word of mouth, found my first instructor way back in 1968. I think when you truly love every aspect of this industry, you stay with it forever. I always had just as much fun playing around with my pony as I did with a show horse.

I think in a recent article in SHR, Shirley O'Gorman hit the nail on the head when she said the reason it is harder today to attract kids to riding is that there are so many more options and distractions for them now. How do we spread the word to the average local kid that riding can be more fun and rewarding than some of these other activities? When I was a kid, horses weren't "just" an activity--they were the center of my world.

[KatieEq]

Kittymom,

To answer your question, I have to agree with Shirley O'Gorman. There are SO many activities & sports that kids can get involved in these days that it is crazy! For example, the kids I au pair for in a given week go to the following activities - riding (twice a week & sometimes on the weekends), vaulting, ballet, & swimming. These girls are 6 & 8. The youngest today went to "football" (soccer) tryouts & decided she liked that. The mother once the oldest to start running track. And let's not forget the tv, dvd player, & Wii that we have in the house. You can't even bribe them to help you clean the horses' stalls. They'd rather be in front of the TV or at a friend's house.

Maybe some organizations & riders could look into putting together literature on how riding influenced their lives - how it kept them out of trouble, taught them various responsibilites, etc. Another option might be to get some of the juvenile riders to do a small presentation to one of their classes about riding & the benefits. Don't the younger grades have a "show & tell" with their parents who discuss their careers? Why not overlook the career & discuss the horses. Or have that child bring their trainer in to talk about their career with horses. When I was younger, I was involved in 4-H & the 4-H horse club. We had a combination of hunter/jumper & saddle seat people, but we had fun. The western kids had their own club. I don't think 4-H is that big anymore though.

Also, why not hit the Girl Scout & Boy Scout troops? I know Girl Scouts have 2 or 3 patches you can receive with working with horses. Contact the local office, who can then put you in contact with a troop or den mother. My G.S. troop came out to the barn one year & received 2 patches with my trainer overseeing everything. It seems like it was basic stuff - grooming, feeding, colors, etc. - but those who wanted to ride received either a free or discounted lesson.

I think a lot of it comes down to marketing as well. Saddlebreds always seem out of reach for some people. My German trainer called them "too fancy" for her taste, but then
again she saw photos of mom & me showing at Louisville & not the ones of my 23-year-old first horse who is enjoying her retirement & looks nothing like a show horse but a regular, every day pleasure pony.

If a barn or group of barns could host a Saturday event together at a local fairgrounds that might reach a crowd. Cowboys in Owensboro (which is now the Dream Riders handicapped riding program) hosted an ag day a few years ago. They brought in various breeds of horses for an exhibition, had a petting zoo, information, crops, etc. And I know the ASB was not represented at this exhibit. But something like this might be informative to the general public. They had it on a weekend & catered to the ag life in Owensboro, showing the various ways we earn a living through farming, cattle, horses, etc. I was at a horse show that weekend so I was unable to go, but I hear quite a few people showed up.

[hannh]

What a great topic!

When my daughter was 11 yrs. old she attended the local YMCA's summer "horse" camp for a week. Even though the horse had poison ivy, which of course spread to my poor daughter, she absolutely loved it. The camp sent her home for a night because it was so bad. I took her to the doctor the next day, they prescribed benedryl and calamine lotion to help. She insisted on going back that day because she didn't want to miss any of the fun, even though she was miserable!

The next Christmas, my mother decided that it would be fun to buy her some riding lessons as a Christmas present at a local barn. My mom found out about the barn because her neighbor's daughter was the trainer/instructor. My mom didn't know anything other than they taught "english" style riding, they just happened to be a saddleseat barn. Well after a few lessons, my daughter was hooked!

Fast forward a year and my daughter started showing in Academy shows. After a year of watching my daughter ride and remembering how much fun I had riding when I was a child, I decided it might be fun to start taking riding lessons again too. Why should my daughter have all the fun!?! :D Well, we were both showing in academy and decided it was time to buy a horse that we could both share and start showing in the performance classes. Then we bought another horse so we could each have our own horse to show.

A couple of horses and 7 years later, we're both showing and having a great time. This will be my daughter's last year in the Juvenille classes but I know we'll both continue showing for many many more years to come. Not only is this a fun sport, it's been a common bond that we can share together.

Heather

[kittymom]

Thank you all for your input so far. Having grown up with horses, I am fully aware of the privileges and benefits they provided and I KNOW I would not be the same person today if I hadn't had those wonderful experiences. Riding is such a great, timeless and non-trendy activity. Other than helmets, what has really changed about most of it at the beginner's level since the inception of Saddle Seat riding? I believe a lot of parents think that even though they may be able to afford the beginning stages of riding, their children will want what the parent may not be able to provide-an expensive horse.

I admire the first rate Saddlebred barns that run academy programs that treat the kids who may never buy a horse just the same as those that can buy a world's champion. I think it should be our mission to try to provide a positive experience for the kids even if their parents will never buy them a horse of their own and show them that a life with horses is within reach for most everyone. From a business standpoint, those kids will tell more kids and eventually, some will buy horses. I've stated on the Saddlebred Rescue forum that I know firsthand that having a beautiful, safe and fun Saddlebred can be otained for less than $1,000. Further, I believe that the top end of this business will take care of itself; it's the ground floor that is falling apart in a lot areas of the country.

Hopefully Saddlebreds, and especially Saddlebred Rescue Horses, can help change that and help keep some kids on the right track in life at the same time. Hmmm, instead of "It Takes A Village," how about, "It Takes A Saddlebred." !!

[barnbum4life]

When I was six I wanted to ride, so my mom signed me up for a camp. Two years and several camps later, she realized that this was not a phase and so began the search for a ridng place. However, she did NOT want me to jump, and came across an ad for a saddleseat barn (now my barn) in the newspaper, and we went to visit it and loved it and have been there ever since. But, I think that I really wanted to ride saddleseat when I saw my trainer show a few months after I started riding with her. I was mesmerized by the horse she was riding and how pretty it was and how much fun it looked, so from then on I've really loved riding:)

[Doc94]

I actually got involved from some people at our church. There was two different ladys there who both rode American Saddlebreds. Since I've always had a love for horses I knew soon as they started to talk about them I wanted to ride. I was only 5 but I kept telling my parents and hinting them on that I really wanted to ride. One day I was sitting there with my dad and I finally got the guts and just turned to my dad and said can you call to see if I can ride horses. He said sure and I was super excited, he was talking to the people and I still remember just sitting there listening to the whole conversation. i heard my dad say next thursday and i freaked out. I was super excited. So that pretty much how I got started. I owe alot of credit to thoose two ladys if it werent for them I probably would have never started riding Saddlebreds!

[Kmac]

My mom had a farm when she was growing up and took lessons at Bonnybrook Farms. I started taking riding lessons there when I was 8. Then, my mom took a lesson at Sugar Knoll Farm and absolutely loved it. Then, I started riding there, too and we've been there ever since! :D

[PatShaver]

This is how my daughter started to ride saddle seat -

She begged for a year to begin riding lessons. I kept putting her off. We sold our house and rented a farm house for a year while we built another house. Well, we just happened to be three driveways away from a saddlebred stable while living at the rental house. Of course, she kept staring at the sign and begged until I finally gave in. I just couldn't think of enough reasons not to bring her when the barn was so convenient to the house. She was 8 then and that was 7 years ago. If the barn wasn't so close to us, she might have been riding h/j or even western!

[ASBPunkin]

I had always loved horses, so for my 8th birthday present, my parents bought me riding lessons at La Fleur Van Ess Stables and I've been hooked ever since:p . After a year and a half, we bought our first horse, Charlie. That's when the rest of my family began riding. Six months later, we bought Polo and Sophie. A year later we bought Ricardo, Rose, and Chocolate. A year after that Chloe was born, and last year Mia was born:D. Now we have too many horses LOL -- But they're worth it;)

[Tack Collector]

By accident. I grew up watching westerns and studying western saddles in the Sears Catalog. (I am not old. I was just very precocious and could read and write at fourth grade level, 6 hours after birth. ;) ) My first choice was a red leather western saddle, with a black one a distant second. I told my parents I didn't need a horse, just a saddle, and I'd just toss it on top of the doghouse and pretend.

Then, a couple of years later we made a rare trip to town to Christmas shop and I came home with a Margret Cabell Self book that was loaded with hunt seat photos from the '40s through maybe 1962. But it had one picture of a saddle seat saddle, a bareheaded woman on a saddle seat Saddlebred, and a matched pair of Morgans in the show ring, passing a '42 to '46 Hudson car. Forget that trashy red western saddle. It's English, English, English, or nothing now. I thougt the Irish hunters looked very chic and I wanted to jump and foxhunt. Never mind that it's not hunt country and most horses are AQHAs that never leave the ground on purpose. It's my fantasy. I can envision what I want to.

Then, I got a large pony. He was unknown bloodlines but lots of people thought Hackney. My parents had a neighbor give me riding instructions. She rode saddle seat. The lesson horse was a 5-gaited ASB. The stable was full of ASBs, Morgans, and Standardbreds. Not a hunter/jumper in site, LOL. Never did learn to jump.

It's amazing that I took up saddle seat, really. There was only a very small core group that did. Mostly it was AQHA, western, and crowd of barrel & other contest riders & still is. Not many H/J or TBs, either, and probably nobody knew how to pronounce much less ride dressage at that time.

When I was a kid, and for years before, westerns were the thing on TV and at the movies. I'll bet that got a lot of people to look at horses, when they would not otherwise have even thought of them. How many kids fell in love with horses 'cause of the palamino color and that silver parade saddle??? Get more media coverage for ASBs and saddle seat. Let people pick whatever the heck color caveson set they like, use black tack, attach sterling silver initials to their cutback saddles, or use engraved stirrup irons and sequins or whatever is the "hot" trend of the day is. It works for western and it works for TWH. If it's change or die out, then change.

BTW, I got a pair of those engraved silver Prussian side Kelly irons. They are tastefully done, I think.

[WTC101]

I thought this might be an interesting and helpful topic for riding programs-admins., if this isn't in the right place, I apologize.

When you first started to ride, how did you decide to do it? Did your parents see an ad in the newspaper? Did you drive past a farm and wander in? Did your friends at school talk about it and then you wanted to ride too?

Also, how did you convince your parents that it wasn't cost prohibitive if they thought, at first, it was?

You don't need to be specific with names or places-just in general might be a help for those either starting or growing a riding program.


I first started to ride 3/4 years ago. I got into showing horses and riding from my good friend who has shown and driven and has done very good. So, one day I decided "oh what the heck! I'll start riding", so that's how I started to ride/show. So, that's how I started to ride! :D

[kittymom]

I'm glad this topic got so much interest. It sounds like word of mouth is the best way to get more people involved.