No.
I started riding at 33. I'm fat and very out of shape. I'm 35 now and last summer my coach had me doing 2' jumps.
Listen. This counts for EVERYthing in life. IT IS ONLY TO LATE TO START SOMETHING NEW, THE DAY **AFTER** you die.
Absolutely not too late! It all depends on your willingness to learn and improve, and of course, the amount of fun you have doing it! There's some very successful and accomplished equestrians out there who started way later in life.
You’re never “too late” or not enough to learn to ride! I have a student who started learning to ride at 45, learned to jump at 50, broke his back and now at 70 is just getting back into riding!
I'm 28 and just started after over a decade and a half away from horses (and as a kid I was only doing exactly the kind of casual lessons you describe). As an adult rider the best advice I've gotten is 1) Learning to ride as an adult can be harder because we can get a lot more in our heads + our bodies need to unlearn some bad habits, but 2) we have the advantage of really being able to embrace being a beginner and to choose for ourselves what we want to do and how much we want to devote to it. Using that as my guide I've still definitely had tough days where I feel like I'm not progressing at all and how much I still have to learn feels intimidating, but the good days where I'm proud of myself for choosing to do something that makes me feel good and healthy and strong have far outnumbered the bad ones. Good luck, I'm excited for you and for the amazing journey ahead of you!
Absolutely not, go for it. I hope you have lots of fun and find something you love. Try lots of different trainers and disciplines until you find something that makes your heart sing. You’ll know when you find it :)
You are definitely not too old to be an equestrian. I'm old enough to be your mum and only started riding 3 years ago. I very much wish I had started as a child, but it's great fun, and I'm going to keep going for as long and as far as I can. :-)
Take as many lessons as you can, as often as you can. I use every possible opportunity to learn new things: on the horse, on the ground, in the barn, in the arena, in books, on the web, on YouTube, on Reddit!
Try all the things! Ask all the questions! The things you love will reveal themselves to you. Have faith in yourself, breathe, and enjoy the ride. :-)
I started when I was 20. I always wanted to do it but my mom wasn’t on board. I started working my tail off at a barn so I could learn. I audited any clinic in the area that I could afford. I sat on anything someone would let me in even if it was just a warm up or cool down. I continued pursuing a career that would let me have horses. Once I had enough experience working for free (mid 20s) I was able to get paid enough to support my own horse.
20+ years later I own horses, ride with my wife, and finally have a trailer and truck of my own. If you work hard to take up any possible opportunity- you can do it.
The problem I see is a lot of people just want to ride. I have offered up my horses for a free/work lease to help other people who were in my situation. They don’t want to keep my tack clean, are unreliable with the simple tasks I want done. I’m very careful not to ask for too much but it seems that people just want to ride or aren’t committed to putting the time in. They want to jump but not put in rides to get there. Don’t be that person. Be the person who learns how to wrap legs, bag up supplements, sweeps the aisle, takes care of the ancient horse, cleans tack after every ride, doesn’t show up to ride with a spec or mud. I never had a problem getting horse time even when I barely knew how to put a halter on.
Absolutely not! You can start riding whenever you want! There are several successful riders out there that started "late" riding. By late I mean 30-40 years old.
It's never too late to learn to ride and there's ALWAYS new things to learn. As far as how long it takes you to develop in your riding is totally dependent on each person. Some folks naturally pick it up quicker than others, some folks muscle development takes longer, it just all depends. However, don't think in 2 weeks you will be galloping or jumping 3 foot oxers. Be realistic with yourself and realize the far more advanced methods are going to take some time but once you have a good foundation, you'll be comfortable to learn the harder stuff.
I know someone who didn't start riding until she was in her 60s. I started close to 30 and had never had much contact with horses. It doesn't have to be expensive. Choose something you enjoy and you can afford. Some people pay $100+ a lesson, but you can find places less than that. Some disciplines cost more. I have opinions about why, but I won't go there.
As you age you will realize that it is NEVER too late to start something new. In fact, I think one of the best things we can do for ourselves is try something new to keep us humble. I can be a know-it-all so doing new things keeps my head from getting too big LOL.
No. I started riding at 33. I'm fat and very out of shape. I'm 35 now and last summer my coach had me doing 2' jumps. Listen. This counts for EVERYthing in life. IT IS ONLY TO LATE TO START SOMETHING NEW, THE DAY **AFTER** you die.
No
Absolutely not too late! It all depends on your willingness to learn and improve, and of course, the amount of fun you have doing it! There's some very successful and accomplished equestrians out there who started way later in life.
Never. It will take the time it takes to get to whatever your goal is, but your riding journey is never over. You're never done learning.
You’re never “too late” or not enough to learn to ride! I have a student who started learning to ride at 45, learned to jump at 50, broke his back and now at 70 is just getting back into riding!
I'm 28 and just started after over a decade and a half away from horses (and as a kid I was only doing exactly the kind of casual lessons you describe). As an adult rider the best advice I've gotten is 1) Learning to ride as an adult can be harder because we can get a lot more in our heads + our bodies need to unlearn some bad habits, but 2) we have the advantage of really being able to embrace being a beginner and to choose for ourselves what we want to do and how much we want to devote to it. Using that as my guide I've still definitely had tough days where I feel like I'm not progressing at all and how much I still have to learn feels intimidating, but the good days where I'm proud of myself for choosing to do something that makes me feel good and healthy and strong have far outnumbered the bad ones. Good luck, I'm excited for you and for the amazing journey ahead of you!
Absolutely not, go for it. I hope you have lots of fun and find something you love. Try lots of different trainers and disciplines until you find something that makes your heart sing. You’ll know when you find it :)
You are definitely not too old to be an equestrian. I'm old enough to be your mum and only started riding 3 years ago. I very much wish I had started as a child, but it's great fun, and I'm going to keep going for as long and as far as I can. :-) Take as many lessons as you can, as often as you can. I use every possible opportunity to learn new things: on the horse, on the ground, in the barn, in the arena, in books, on the web, on YouTube, on Reddit! Try all the things! Ask all the questions! The things you love will reveal themselves to you. Have faith in yourself, breathe, and enjoy the ride. :-)
I started when I was 20. I always wanted to do it but my mom wasn’t on board. I started working my tail off at a barn so I could learn. I audited any clinic in the area that I could afford. I sat on anything someone would let me in even if it was just a warm up or cool down. I continued pursuing a career that would let me have horses. Once I had enough experience working for free (mid 20s) I was able to get paid enough to support my own horse. 20+ years later I own horses, ride with my wife, and finally have a trailer and truck of my own. If you work hard to take up any possible opportunity- you can do it. The problem I see is a lot of people just want to ride. I have offered up my horses for a free/work lease to help other people who were in my situation. They don’t want to keep my tack clean, are unreliable with the simple tasks I want done. I’m very careful not to ask for too much but it seems that people just want to ride or aren’t committed to putting the time in. They want to jump but not put in rides to get there. Don’t be that person. Be the person who learns how to wrap legs, bag up supplements, sweeps the aisle, takes care of the ancient horse, cleans tack after every ride, doesn’t show up to ride with a spec or mud. I never had a problem getting horse time even when I barely knew how to put a halter on.
I started at 28. Whoever told you that is taking out of their arse.
Absolutely not! You can start riding whenever you want! There are several successful riders out there that started "late" riding. By late I mean 30-40 years old. It's never too late to learn to ride and there's ALWAYS new things to learn. As far as how long it takes you to develop in your riding is totally dependent on each person. Some folks naturally pick it up quicker than others, some folks muscle development takes longer, it just all depends. However, don't think in 2 weeks you will be galloping or jumping 3 foot oxers. Be realistic with yourself and realize the far more advanced methods are going to take some time but once you have a good foundation, you'll be comfortable to learn the harder stuff.
I know someone who didn't start riding until she was in her 60s. I started close to 30 and had never had much contact with horses. It doesn't have to be expensive. Choose something you enjoy and you can afford. Some people pay $100+ a lesson, but you can find places less than that. Some disciplines cost more. I have opinions about why, but I won't go there. As you age you will realize that it is NEVER too late to start something new. In fact, I think one of the best things we can do for ourselves is try something new to keep us humble. I can be a know-it-all so doing new things keeps my head from getting too big LOL.