Hello everyone! 
I'm Dawn. We moved here from Germany in January. We found a house in Indian Head back in March. I've been reading this board since November of last year, when I found out we'd be coming here.
Since moving in, I've been trying to wrap my brain around the lesson fees. I'd like to start by saying:
I sent a few emails from Germany and about passed out. Some of the responses I received were kind and some were rather rude. But in the end, they were all about the same price.
I have taken my boys out to see Kelley at Bristol's Heart. She is a very nice lady with some very nice horses. She even has reasonable rates. I was looking forward to the boys riding there while I did a half lease but they choose football for the fall. ARGH!
Thru the months of reading this board I feel I know you all, even tho I've never posted. I see a lot of helpful, honest information and I'm hoping that if I lay out our situation some of you will be able to provide honest, tho gentle, feedback. <deep breath> So here goes:
We homeschool so our hours are very flexible (days being preferable). My boys are 10 & 12. They can halter, tie, groom, tack, and walk/trot. They had 2 sessions in Germany of cantering, but I'd like them to back up a bit as I think they were moving too fast. I want sound basics for my boys. We ride English because that's what I know so that's what I can teach.
I taught a homeschool class for 10 weeks that started with "this is a horse". We did anatomy, some very basic husbandry and stable management. I would have liked to do more stable management but the German husband was very precise about bedding and feed. We did tack care, grooming and how to tack up your own horse. I'm a huge believer in doing it themselves safely and correctly. The actual riding instruction was done by the barn's staff. I provided English translation and a physical model as necessary. (ok, some days my horse and I showed the students what NOT to do)
We were very fortunate in that many days we met at the barn, the farrier was there. So the students got to watch and learn first hand, not just what I was teaching with my worksheets. *one day the farrier sent each student home w/a shoe from whichever horse they each were using for lessons* Very cool!
We had "book learning" on Fridays and then rode on Saturdays. By the end of the 10 weeks they were all doing pretty well as walk/trot.
We do NOT want to show, which seems to be a huge focus here. I keep being told the high fees are due a result of all the trainers either showing themselves or training the students to show.
I would like the boys to be proficient at w/t/c so we can eventually trail ride together. In Germany we had different trails for different abilities. The students had the most fun on sunny days on the trails (don't we all?). I want to share that with my boys.
I have thought about leasing and teaching the boys myself. I have enough knowlege and experience to be able to bring them a bit farther along, but truthfully, we could only afford 1 lease, so I'm only teaching one at a time. And then when do I get to ride? Plus, would they really listen to mom about riding? Probably not after listening to me all day about school work.
My husband said there's no way I'd survive! At this point we've not ridden (with the exception of the one day at Kelley's) since last October and I've having major withdrawls!!!!
I have talked to a few homeschoolers in our group and there is some interest in lessons, but not at $50+/lesson. I would be more than willing to do the book learning/ground portion again for a new group if it meant being able to negotiate some reduced fees.
My personal level used to be advanced intermediate, however I spent 3 years in Germany with the most pin-headed, stubborn horse I've ever ridden. He would unseat me at every turn. After 3 years on that boy, I have lost a lot of my confidence. Why do I get the largest, most ornery horse in every barn where I ride???? Some day I'll have a nice, easy going ride. So for now, I wouldn't bill myself above intermediate. I tried to say I was an advanced beginner but Kelley didn't buy it!
OK, this all seems very jumbled to me, so I apologize. Hopefully some of you can make sense of it all.
I'll end by saying I'm near DESPERATE to get riding again. I've put on weight not riding and my mental faculties are suffering! That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.
We are serious about riding, we stocked up on breeches and boots before leaving Germany because they are so cheap there. I just can't float the fees I'm seeing/hearing.
I am looking forward to any and all suggestions and won't be offended if someone says straight out "forget it, you can't afford it here". I just need to know what the experts in the area think.
Thank you for making it this far! I look forward to actually meeting many of you and hopefully sharing some rides.
Dawn
I'm Dawn. We moved here from Germany in January. We found a house in Indian Head back in March. I've been reading this board since November of last year, when I found out we'd be coming here.
Since moving in, I've been trying to wrap my brain around the lesson fees. I'd like to start by saying:
I sent a few emails from Germany and about passed out. Some of the responses I received were kind and some were rather rude. But in the end, they were all about the same price.
I have taken my boys out to see Kelley at Bristol's Heart. She is a very nice lady with some very nice horses. She even has reasonable rates. I was looking forward to the boys riding there while I did a half lease but they choose football for the fall. ARGH!
Thru the months of reading this board I feel I know you all, even tho I've never posted. I see a lot of helpful, honest information and I'm hoping that if I lay out our situation some of you will be able to provide honest, tho gentle, feedback. <deep breath> So here goes:
We homeschool so our hours are very flexible (days being preferable). My boys are 10 & 12. They can halter, tie, groom, tack, and walk/trot. They had 2 sessions in Germany of cantering, but I'd like them to back up a bit as I think they were moving too fast. I want sound basics for my boys. We ride English because that's what I know so that's what I can teach.
I taught a homeschool class for 10 weeks that started with "this is a horse". We did anatomy, some very basic husbandry and stable management. I would have liked to do more stable management but the German husband was very precise about bedding and feed. We did tack care, grooming and how to tack up your own horse. I'm a huge believer in doing it themselves safely and correctly. The actual riding instruction was done by the barn's staff. I provided English translation and a physical model as necessary. (ok, some days my horse and I showed the students what NOT to do)
We were very fortunate in that many days we met at the barn, the farrier was there. So the students got to watch and learn first hand, not just what I was teaching with my worksheets. *one day the farrier sent each student home w/a shoe from whichever horse they each were using for lessons* Very cool!
We had "book learning" on Fridays and then rode on Saturdays. By the end of the 10 weeks they were all doing pretty well as walk/trot.
We do NOT want to show, which seems to be a huge focus here. I keep being told the high fees are due a result of all the trainers either showing themselves or training the students to show.
I would like the boys to be proficient at w/t/c so we can eventually trail ride together. In Germany we had different trails for different abilities. The students had the most fun on sunny days on the trails (don't we all?). I want to share that with my boys.
I have thought about leasing and teaching the boys myself. I have enough knowlege and experience to be able to bring them a bit farther along, but truthfully, we could only afford 1 lease, so I'm only teaching one at a time. And then when do I get to ride? Plus, would they really listen to mom about riding? Probably not after listening to me all day about school work.
My husband said there's no way I'd survive! At this point we've not ridden (with the exception of the one day at Kelley's) since last October and I've having major withdrawls!!!!
I have talked to a few homeschoolers in our group and there is some interest in lessons, but not at $50+/lesson. I would be more than willing to do the book learning/ground portion again for a new group if it meant being able to negotiate some reduced fees.
My personal level used to be advanced intermediate, however I spent 3 years in Germany with the most pin-headed, stubborn horse I've ever ridden. He would unseat me at every turn. After 3 years on that boy, I have lost a lot of my confidence. Why do I get the largest, most ornery horse in every barn where I ride???? Some day I'll have a nice, easy going ride. So for now, I wouldn't bill myself above intermediate. I tried to say I was an advanced beginner but Kelley didn't buy it!
OK, this all seems very jumbled to me, so I apologize. Hopefully some of you can make sense of it all.
I'll end by saying I'm near DESPERATE to get riding again. I've put on weight not riding and my mental faculties are suffering! That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.
We are serious about riding, we stocked up on breeches and boots before leaving Germany because they are so cheap there. I just can't float the fees I'm seeing/hearing.
I am looking forward to any and all suggestions and won't be offended if someone says straight out "forget it, you can't afford it here". I just need to know what the experts in the area think.
Thank you for making it this far! I look forward to actually meeting many of you and hopefully sharing some rides.
Dawn
