Horse question: inexperienced rider

Hey, i started taking horse riding lessons when i was 14, at around the same time i went on holiday to scotland with my parents and after only a few lessons they paid for me to go on a 5 hour trek across the scottish countryside.

As an inexperienced rider, they gave me a docile and easily controlable horse to ride. Horses like to follow each other, they also like to race each other. I would suggest that the experienced rider would ride along side or in front of the inexperienced one as the horse will just follow.

I can say that on my 5 hour trek with muscles not used to riding, i didnt feel the effects until i got off the horse and my legs went to jelly and i sat right down on my butt! My legs and butt felt stiff after that and the next day too but i had a great time so i didnt mind.

I started working with horses when i was 15 (Until i was 18 when i joined the air force) and riding all the time so soon got used to it after.

Getting the horse to move and stop is easy if the horse is docile and unlikely to run off, horses can tell an inexperienced rider and some play up because of this. If her horse is following his horse, it will likely start and stop when his does if they are just walking, but he can instruct her to give a slight squeeze of legs to go forward and a slight tug on the reins to stop.

Some of the horses i rode were very spirited and so this would involve a near constant (but not hard) pressure on the reins so that they are under control and do not gallop off, then when the pressure on the reins was released they knew they could go for it.

She could travel for 5 hours a day but she would feel stiff and the bones in her butt would feel bruised lol.

I've done this - taken people with absolutely NO riding experience, on a six hour trail ride.

The horses I put them on were well trained trail horses. Not easily spooked, also pretty 'tough' in the mouth - not prone to get too upset if their heads got yanked a bit and not prone to bolt if they felt the heals of the rider slap their sides on occasion.

So - an older experienced horse will be more docile, less likely to bolt or be headstrong than a young horse. IF I have a choice, that's what I'll put a green rider on.

You can give someone the 'basic' instructions in a few minutes. The commands to start, stop and 'turn' a horse. This will usually suffice to get them moving, assuming you are going to be riding with them.

You are NOT going to trot. You are NOT going to canter. This is just using the horse to walk and carry the person along.

So if they're not being pursued - if there's no reason for her to have to master the skills of a trot or canter right off the batt - then you're good to go for the day. If she's having trouble keeping her mount moving - (A horse can usually tell pretty quickly that they've got a rookie on her back - they'll start grazing on the trail... stopping to pick a choice grass... they won't take the command to move out seriously) - then he can 'pony' the horse. That is take the reins from her, or use a lead rope to 'lead' the horse along next to, or behind him. That way he's controlling both mounts, and she just has to sit and go along.

Six hours in a saddle for a rookie is a long... long... LONG time. Yeah, she'll be sore, and tired. She will be MORE sore and tired the next day. Much will depend on the type of saddle, but basically it's going to be tough if you're not trained to it.

Assuming they are going to be on the trail for two weeks - and no pursuit - if it were me - after the first day or two - I'd be giving instructions on the trot and canter. A little bit at a time.

At the end of two weeks, in the saddle every day for up to six hours - she would be a 'novice' rider. Able to handle the horse, trot and canter. No question about that.

It really depends on having a nice, mature stable mount under her. That's the ticket.

That's been my experience.

Cai said:

So - my first question is: Would it be possible for my FMC to just get up on a horse (with my MMC's instructions) and travel with him (five, six hours a day for a week or two?) I figure she would slow him down (a lot?) and it would hurt (a lot?) but I've already taken that into account. She's not one to give up.

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I can't answer for side saddle or bareback, but it's not that hard to sit on a docile horse that is wearing a standard saddle. It can be a bit frightening, but we're not taking rocket science here. You would be sore being on a horse for 5-6 hours a day, but depending on the protagonist's condition, it might not be overwhelmingly so. (i.e. if MC is fairly young and healthy, they'll ache and be sore, but they'll be able to get on the next day, too.)

Getting the horse to do what you want is much harder, as is putting on the saddle and bridle. The first time I went riding, I could sit on the horse just fine, but the horse knew I had no clue what I was doing and *always* went the wrong direction. By the second time, I assisted with getting the saddle on, but was afraid to put my fingers close enough to the horse's mouth to get the bridle in, and didn't tighten the saddle enough. (Horses will take in big breaths to puff out their ribs/stomachs when they're being saddled by someone in experienced. Then the saddle slips to the side when you're riding, which is dangerous.) Also, the horse mostly followed my directions, unless he didn't want to. (Because he saw food or something interesting.)

By about three or four tries, I was able to saddle and bridle the horse, clean it's feet and brush it down, as well as get it to go where I wanted it to, and keep it from veering off to the side of the road or stopping to munch on things.

Note that I always had fairly mellow horses. (Older geldings and mares.) A spirited horse is going to be difficult for anyone other than an experienced rider to control, and saddle breaking is risky even for *good* riders.

Also, jumping and getting the horse to move at more than a slow walk is harder than is just sitting on them. (And some of the difficulty in either depends on the horse itself.)

Cai said:

I think I could change her background to "has ridden a horse twice or thrice in her life and has a very basic grasp on the concept" but I would rather not (if possible). But I want to keep it believable so if I have to change it, I will.

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Definitely a few tries would help. A lot depends on what you want, though. Is MC going to be sitting on a horse following another horse, or is MC going to be racing off at a full gallop? I could totally buy a rider getting on a horse, having some difficulty controlling the creature, but getting a knack for it after a few hours of trial and error.

Cai said:

My second question is: For a rider so inexperienced as her, what part of riding would be the hardest for her? (Dis)mounting? Getting the horse to move in the first place? Getting the horse to stop?

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It depends. I found mounting to be the hardest part, but with a foot stool and someone holding your horse, it's not too bad. Dismounting is only particularly difficult if the horse is moving (i.e. an emergency dismount). If someone is holding your horse and you have a stool, that also is pretty easy.

After that, some horses like to go, some are lazier. She'll probably be on a lazy horse (easier to control), so getting the horse to move can be difficult. But if you're on a more energetic one, getting them to stand still can be brutal.

I honestly probably found getting the horse to do what I wanted vs. what it wanted the hardest. (i.e., stop and start on command, stop eating the plants, go right vs. left, etc.)

Cai said:

And connected to this is my third question: In which way could my MMC help my FMC? Would he assist her in (dis)mounting? Would he ride beside her to help her keep her horse in the right pace? Would he take the reins from her when it's time to bring the horse to a halt and assist her with that?

And, while typing all that, I thought - my MMC wouldn't prefer riding one horse with her behind him, or would he? Since they have to go quite a distance I figured one horse could not carry two people for such a long time.

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MMC could hold the horse when he/she mounts/dismounts, saddle it for her, groom it for her, put in the bridle, etc. All this stuff can be tricky to do on your own, even if you're an OK rider. MMC might also ride in front of her, so that her horse could follow his. (And he could find a safe trail that would make the horse less likely to stagger - a frightening prospective for a beginning rider!)

Horses can carry two people, but it depends on the breed. Some are a lot stronger than others. I'm not sure that it would really be more comfortable to ride pillion for either of them, but definitely it's a possibility.

If your maleMC is smart, every hour he'll have both of them dismount and walk for a few minutes. It will give the horses a tiny break and give the femaleMC a Major chance to stretch her legs and not get completely stiff. In rough terrain they can dismount at the base of a steep hill to really spare the horses, but the female MC prolly won't be up for the challenge until the second week (she needs to stretch, not strain climbing muscles on top of riding muscles)

FemaleMC might have trouble leading her mount. Also, while riding, maleMC should make sure shes not slouched or stiff or something horrible (like clutching the reins)

Young healhy folks? Sure, no rushing about, he gets to pick the horse - yeah, she can ride fine for all day for two weeks. Sore the first couple of days, but getting better after that. And likely as not, he'd be 'teaching' her to ride during the day - so at the end of two weeks, she'd be fine. (Yup, dismounting to walk every now and then. Stopping to eat and water, 'call of nature' and all that.)

Perhaps I missed it, but what is the culture of the FMC? Is it one where horses are normal experience? A character from 1880 who has never ridden will be different from 1980. Also horses are alive. They have personalities. They like some people more than others and it can really, really piss off the testosterone laden misogynist when the calm little girl or nancy boy can ride the mad freak horse and not get bucked...just saying.

I'm a bit older than most on the web, so if your MC grew up around horses, that will confer a bit more knowledge than than people today. That doesn't mean that they couldn't have a phobia about the 1 ton beast that's in the barn. It just means that they'd realize that horse have personalities too

I've done it, and it's usually not a problem.

If she has never rreally ridden before then she is going to be sore later. After the first day her thighs, calves, stomach muscles and lower back will be sore. If she was nervous or tense then her shoulders will ache. She may well have blisters on her fingers from gripping too tighly, and chaffing on her legs from her clothes.

She will probably be fine the first day, but very stiff the second day. Even after just walking all that time.

If the horse is docile enough then it's usually not a problem, and for extra control the male can attach a lead rope to her horse's bit and lead it from his - a bit like a dog leash. This gives a lot more control.

What she will probably have most trouble with is mounting, it would be easier if he gives her a leg up.

Cai said:

My second question is: For a rider so inexperienced as her, what part of riding would be the hardest for her?

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If she's fat and out of shape, mounting.

Otherwise, it's going to be her form in the saddle. She'll have to learn:

• To sit straight in the saddle, so her center of gravity is over the horse's.
• Keep her heels down. Not only so her foot doesn't slip through the stirrup, but also to keep her legs from flying back, which would throw her body forward. A rider with 'ballet toes' has no chance in hell of staying with a fast moving horse.
• Keep her feet pointing forward, instead of out like a bullfrog. When her toes point outward, her knees go off the saddle, and they become useless for gripping the horse.
• Keep her foot directly beneath her body, so it's in a centered position, ready to swing slightly forward or back, if need be.
• Not using the reins as handles to balance herself--newbie riders are the cruelest thing to horses because of this!
• Not holding the saddle to balance herself. Holding the saddle prevents the rider from gaining true balance on the horse, which would fatigue a horse pretty quick on a long journey.

She will have to be nagged repetitively about these things, and your MMC is likely to want to hit her in the head with a log after awhile, because she will repeatedly point her toes, yank on the horse's mouth, et cetera. After day two, she'll finally start to sit right--maybe. Oh, and I swear, 99% of newbie riders complain of some little physical disability or another keeping them from being able to hold the proper leg position. To this, I make them set their toe on a fence or something, and flex their heel, as low as they can get it (to fix ballet toes). I'll also have them walk around with their toes pointed inward (to fix the bullfrog syndrome). Not only because the stretching is good for them. But also, because I can tell them, "See? You can hold that position. You just won't do it on the horse." To which they usually say, "Oh."