benzdiesel
Well-Known Member
So... I'm not one of the more vocal folks around, but I've had this question on my mind for a while and can't think where else would be better to ask it. So, here goes.
I've got a friend who's a horse enthusiast that for years has been saying I'd really enjoy learning to ride, and that I ought to give it a try. I've actually done it once or twice, when I was years younger and lighter, but not recently enough to claim to know what I'm doing. The catch is that I don't think she realizes I'd be quite a load for the horse to carry - possibly because she's just never had an issue with it between us personally and may not have thought about it in those terms, and also possibly because I'm tall enough that I look somewhat smaller than I am. Not much, but enough I feel like I ought to educate myself before I jump into something.
Obviously, I wouldn't want to have to carry a horse around on MY back. Equally obviously, larger-than-average draft horses are pulling (but not carrying, technically) several hundred pounds of dirt around at once with plows, without injury. So... I realize this may be a really dumb question, but since I have no experience and don't feel comfortable asking my friend in person (although in the end, I would ask her to be sure she personally thought her horse was okay with it) if the "average", if there is such a thing, riding horse would have a problem carrying me or some of the other larger folks around here around? There's a certain amount of difference between a load that rides around like a sloppy dead weight and a load that at least tries to support itself and not make the horse's job any harder than it would have to be... I'm factoring that in and figure I could help the horse out a little bit in that way if nothing else.
I'm 300 +/- 10 on any given day, if that's helpful. But general horse size vs load capacity information would be useful too, probably to more people than just me. Main question is whether I even have any business considering it or not.
Thanks for any input, as I haven't got any relevant experience to help with such issues. I actually did grow up on and still live on a farm in farm country, but we never kept animals (that was my uncle's department) and that's one of the things I just never got around to learning growing up.
Quick internet searching has provided some opinions that I'm 75-100 lbs more than their particular horses should carry, and other opinions that I'd still be okay if I did my part too. I'm not proposing anything fancy, just basic horseback transportation, pretty much. The horse's size is a huge factor, which makes having this conversation with the actual person whose horse I'd be potentially threatening crucial in the end - but I would like a general opinion first so I know if it's even worth asking the question.
Sorry for the length, but I hate to leave any thought unclarified
Thanks.
I've got a friend who's a horse enthusiast that for years has been saying I'd really enjoy learning to ride, and that I ought to give it a try. I've actually done it once or twice, when I was years younger and lighter, but not recently enough to claim to know what I'm doing. The catch is that I don't think she realizes I'd be quite a load for the horse to carry - possibly because she's just never had an issue with it between us personally and may not have thought about it in those terms, and also possibly because I'm tall enough that I look somewhat smaller than I am. Not much, but enough I feel like I ought to educate myself before I jump into something.
Obviously, I wouldn't want to have to carry a horse around on MY back. Equally obviously, larger-than-average draft horses are pulling (but not carrying, technically) several hundred pounds of dirt around at once with plows, without injury. So... I realize this may be a really dumb question, but since I have no experience and don't feel comfortable asking my friend in person (although in the end, I would ask her to be sure she personally thought her horse was okay with it) if the "average", if there is such a thing, riding horse would have a problem carrying me or some of the other larger folks around here around? There's a certain amount of difference between a load that rides around like a sloppy dead weight and a load that at least tries to support itself and not make the horse's job any harder than it would have to be... I'm factoring that in and figure I could help the horse out a little bit in that way if nothing else.
I'm 300 +/- 10 on any given day, if that's helpful. But general horse size vs load capacity information would be useful too, probably to more people than just me. Main question is whether I even have any business considering it or not.
Thanks for any input, as I haven't got any relevant experience to help with such issues. I actually did grow up on and still live on a farm in farm country, but we never kept animals (that was my uncle's department) and that's one of the things I just never got around to learning growing up.
Quick internet searching has provided some opinions that I'm 75-100 lbs more than their particular horses should carry, and other opinions that I'd still be okay if I did my part too. I'm not proposing anything fancy, just basic horseback transportation, pretty much. The horse's size is a huge factor, which makes having this conversation with the actual person whose horse I'd be potentially threatening crucial in the end - but I would like a general opinion first so I know if it's even worth asking the question.
Sorry for the length, but I hate to leave any thought unclarified
Thanks.
