COTH fam, I’ve moved to Huntsville for the next 6 months to a year for work and am desperately missing riding. I’d love to ride a couple of days a week, which is about all my schedule will allow anyway. Competed competently up to 1.40m on a made horse, through 1.20m on several OTTBs, and specialized in starting young horses and producing them up through A shows. Tons of references available upon request. Don’t want to be paid, will catch and tack and cool out my own horses, don’t care if I’m riding babies, bad horses, schoolmasters, or anything in between. I just want to stay in the swing of things while a prisone…I mean, resident of Huntsville. Any suggestions welcome!
I was in Eastern AL for four years in college. My experience may not apply to Huntsville but if you do H/J and want to ride, you may have to be more open minded towards what you sit on.
Not a lot of H/J out where I was. When I wanted to catch ride, it was out of eventing barns.
You can find cow horses to ride for days and almost everyone horsey I knew had a backyard husband horse that could use some trail riding miles or something.
Check local tack stores, craigslist, facebook pages, etc. and be ready to ride anything!
Thanks for the input, DO! I’ll ride anything but I do kind of hope to find a couple that are fairly nice to enjoy riding. However, some of my previous trials and tribulations included breaking horses that I had to use a dart gun to catch…so there’s that.
How far are you willing to drive?
An hour wouldn’t be crazy I don’t think. Much beyond that might be a struggle to get to before dark.
If you can go an hour and half, there are a good amount of Birmingham options. Blackjack farms is there and so is Fox Lake Farm and Windwood Equestrian, though those are closer to 1h45min.
ETA: if you’re willing to go all the way to Tuscaloosa, Westminster always has plenty to ride.
[QUOTE=hunterrider23;8669046]
If you can go an hour and half, there are a good amount of Birmingham options. Blackjack farms is there and so is Fox Lake Farm and Windwood Equestrian, though those are closer to 1h45min.
ETA: if you’re willing to go all the way to Tuscaloosa, Westminster always has plenty to ride.[/QUOTE]
Yes, to that; there are many great options in Bham for sure. But it’s very far from Huntsville. As far as I know River Pine is the only option there but there could be more. Here is the link to AHJA and you may be able to find some more options: http://www.alabamahunterjumpers.org/
[QUOTE=Soaponarope;8669145]
Yes, to that; there are many great options in Bham for sure. But it’s very far from Huntsville. As far as I know River Pine is the only option there but there could be more. Here is the link to AHJA and you may be able to find some more options: http://www.alabamahunterjumpers.org/[/QUOTE]
The good thing is the roads tend to be mostly highway and the traffic isn’t that bad. I made the drive from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham a few times and didn’t have any trouble making it there in 45/50 minutes.
Yes, the drive from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham is very short. Westminster in Tuscaloosa is a great place and hosts the majority of AHJA shows. But, the drive from Huntsville to either Tuscaloosa or Birmingham is long, not something you would want to do a few times a week although some people work out a weekend commute.
