Why aren't small adults riding ponies?

[goponies]

I’ve often wondered why thare aren’t more adults riding ponies. I’m 5`2`` and was put on behemoths when I was taking lessons. One was 18 hands!!! And I never had fun riding one of those giants…Put me on a pony and well it just feels right! Right now all I own are ponies, one mare tops at a chunky 13.2h, the other a gelding at 14.1h. I’d like to market some ponies to the adult market but there are so very few riders that don’t turn their nose…
Well there’s always Reynard Ridge and her 700$ pony I guess!!!

Who out there would buy a pony? BTW this is NOT a sales pitch it’s all hypothetical!

Pros: ponies are for the most part friendly, they let you know right away what’s wrong. Ponies are tough, eat barely anything and don’t need as much room as a big horse. They also cost less to buy. There’s less manure to pick. Don’t need a mounting block the size of, well,… a mountain. Don’t need an oversize trailer, small is fine. And the list goes on!

Cons: well ponies are …ponies! But if they’ve been well handled they shouldn’t have pony-tude.

Come get on the bandwagon, let others at shows stare at you, be courageous, ride a PONY!!!

[siseley]

Pony? Almost

I don’t ride a pony, but instead a small Arabian. She is only about 14.2, and just as strong and much easier to mount than the OTTB I was first training on. There are Paso’s, Arabs, and lots of cob sized horses too, that work exceptionally well for smaller adults.
P.S. I am about 155 lbs, and Male, at only 5’6", a real meadow muffin.

Steve

[Jasmine]

I bred my mare to a pony for a nice medium pony for myself. I am also selling my 2 year old, since he’s decided he’s going to be big. If I do buy another, it will be either a hony, or a pony.

[ExJumper]

I’m sure many small adults would ride ponies…if that didn’t mean that they would then have to SHOW ponies. Granted the A/A hunters are technically the same size fences as the Large Ponies, but I wouldn’t wnat to be on one competing against a full-sized horse loping down the lines and through the combinations.

It says in the rule book that adults may ride ponies, suitability to count. But I don’t anyone who wanted to win would try to do it on a pony.

(Plus, I think they’re way smarter and therefore more difficult than horses!)

Oh, and a competitive 3’ large pony probably costs more than an equally capable 3’ horse.

[IndysMom]

riding ponies

most people don’t ride ponies because they have pony gaits. Not too comfortable for old backs…

[furlong47]

I’m 5’10" and will ride large ponies that can carry me (Haflingers, Quarter Ponies, and other stocky/drafty types) :lol: But then I don’t show and so don’t worry about ‘suitability’

[deltawave]

For showing in hunters, there is just no place for ponies in the adult divisions. Maybe there should be, though! Pony jumpers look like a hoot, but if I’m not mistaken those divisions are also for Juniors only. Also in dressage, it’s tough to find a pony with big, elastic gaits (unless you import a six-figure German warmblood pony) and “big” is still very much the thing in that world. A lot of people of all shapes and sizes ride horses of all shapes and sizes in eventing, but there too you want something that can make time and score well in dressage and many (although certainly not all!) ponies just don’t have the gaits or the speed.

[2ndyrgal]

easy answer

because we don’t have to.

[no_discipline]

Only ponies here(well, Haflingers aren’t technically ponies…or are they?..) I don’t show either, but they make excellant trail mounts. And yes, to what another poster said…their trots are not the most comfortable thing to endure:lol:.

[gully_s_pilot]

Gully’s pony -bred (Connemara) but not pony sized (15.05). We event; I don’t understand why more adults aren’t on the smaller-sized dudes. After all, if ponies are good enough for Karen O’Connor…

[eventamy]

I’m all for ponies and short horses! I have a barely 14.3 Connemara cross and a 15.1 Connemara that I Weenie Event.
I used to have a 13.3 Haflinger mare that I loved, did the local hunter on the flats and weenie events on her. She was reserve Champ several times out against horses in our green horse divisions.
I’m all for more riders riding horses/ponies more suitable to their size! I’m 5’3 with very short legs, and although I’ve had very tall horses to ride in the past (think 17.1 Trak. and 17.3 TB) I looked ridiculous! My friend had a 17 hand TB with such big movement I had a really hard time trotting him with my short legs. I could walk, canter and jump him all day, but I hated his trot! Now, when I look at horses I won’t even consider anything over 16 hands!
My cousin, although young, is my size and events at Novice on a Haflinger who is not quite 14 hands. He’s awesome! He’s like a Mack truck for dressage but bombs around cross country like it’s nothing and is winning against much bigger horses.

[Ridge_Runner]

All of my horses (all 25 of them) are small horses or large ponies…that is their normal size. I have no interest in owning a large horse again after years of trying to hold big guys together soundness wise. I also find the larger beasties to generally be more work to ride and harder to sit versus the other way around. It sure is easier to get on or off something around 14:2 also if you don’t have a mounting block handy!

My stallion, who I will be campaigning in dressage, just crossed into official horse size this fall at 149-150 c.m., so I will not face restrictions at least on what I can do with him. I am somewhat relieved for that and since I don’t care about the size limit otherwise, that’s OK with me.

I think with the aging baby boomer population and the large number of female riders, we are going to see an increase in demand for smaller mounts as more and more people discover that little equines can be athletic, competitive and be lovely movers as well.

[Reynard_Ridge]

@goponies;2022554

Well there’s always Reynard Ridge and her 700$ pony I guess!!! Come get on the bandwagon, let others at shows stare at you, be courageous, ride a PONY!!!

Right - I ride a pony, but, I’m not all that successful! The truth is, if I wanted to be really competitive in either dressage or eventing, I would dump the pony and buy myself a nice packer. :yes: But, I don’t care that much, so the Pony and I will plonk around happily together.

There ARE terrific pony individuals out there - Teddy being a huge star, and lots of lovely, lovely dressage ponies. But it really is an individual thing. If you want to do upper level eventing, it’s hard to PLAN to ride a pony. If you are a hunter rider, you simple can’t ride a pony, as DW pointed out.

I am a huge pony advocate, and personally believe that a lot of plonker type adults like myself would do just fine on a lovely pony. And our Wee Spotted Driving Pony is providing my wee children and I with HOURS of fun, kid friendly entertainment.

But, hey, maybe someday those poor horse riding (not too tall and not too wide) adults will be lucky enough to come upon the pony of their dreams. For now, they have farther to fall.

[tullio]

In a perfect world, I’d have a nice tall show horse who could walk down the lines and make the 3’ fences look tiny…

… and a 14.1hh PONY to foxhunt, hunt pace, trail ride, and otherwise enjoy. I had a wonderful large pony growing up, and I miss his athleticism and SMARTS all the time! He was tough, game for anything, easy to keep fit and healthy, had diamond tipped hooves (or so it seemed) and was smarter than me. I’d love to have another and at 5’3" with long legs and no upper body, it can happen!

But I love to go to shows, so I’d have to have two equines to get the best of both worlds. And my first priority would be a horse to jump and show.

[Cherry]

I’d be willing to buy a large pony! I learned to ride on a small Tennessee Walking Horse (who would only trot, btw)–she couldn’t have been more than 14.2. I currently have a Thoroughbred “hony” who is around 14.3 and three quarters tall (when I bought her they told me she was 15.1 but none of us bothered to “stick” her).

Some people just don’t have a clue–what can I tell you??? Bigger is not always better! :winkgrin:

[Sakura]

My favorite riding horse is an Arabian that is a hair under 14.1 hh. He is a hoot to ride with three outstanding gates (no choppy pony trot on this fellow). The only complaint I have is finding tack that fits… Bridles tend to be too bulky and hide his pretty face and girths are a headache to find in the right size.

If there were more small adults showing ponies perhaps there would not be such a stigma against them…

[clint]

I’m 5’2" and a couple of years ago decided that of the horses I have ridden, I really like a smaller mount. It took quite awhile to find a large pony that had horse gaits, but I did, and rode this pony for over a year before deciding that I loved the size, but not the attitude. The pony preferred jumping, so she went to a kid, a good solution. After that I stumbled across a 14.3 hh QH, and I just adore her. Great attitude and decent gaits, although she wouldn’t make a competitive dressage horse. The surprising part of this is how hard it is to find a small horse/large pony with a good attitude and good gaits. (And I realize German Riding Ponies are out there, but the price is a tad steep.)

[Kate66]

I would

I have looked for ages for a smallish horse that has the nice big gaits. Last year I bought a lovely Hanoverian who was only 15.2h, partly because she was only 15.2h and I didn’t want to go bigger. Since then I have learned about the German Riding Ponies, which look absolutely fabulous. If I buy another and I can afford one, I will look at the GRP - they are unbelievably expensive though - big gaits in a small package.
A couple of years someone offered to lease me a very competitive 14h pony, who I think was doing 3rd level dressage. I didn’t take him because the short, stumpy gaits just drove me nuts.

[no_discipline]

[QUOTE=clint;2022736]
I’m 5’2" and a couple of years ago decided that of the horses I have ridden, I really like a smaller mount. It took quite awhile to find a large pony that had horse gaits, but I did, and rode this pony for over a year before deciding that I loved the size, but not the attitude. The pony preferred jumping, so she went to a kid, a good solution. After that I stumbled across a 14.3 hh QH, and I just adore her. Great attitude and decent gaits, although she wouldn’t make a competitive dressage horse. The surprising part of this is how hard it is to find a small horse/large pony with a good attitude and good gaits. (And I realize German Riding Ponies are out there, but the price is a tad steep.)[/QUOTE]

:yes: I’ve got the great attitude, still looking for that elusive gait. Not that I care, mind you, as I’m still “young” enough to not be that bother by being bounced around. Give me a few years, I may change my tune;)

Sarah

[Satin_Filly]

Adult pony rider? Why that’s me!!!

I’m 5’ tall and all I ride are ponies! I couldn’t see myself buying a horse larger than 14.2 , LOL!