# Learning how to ride - how expensive?



## Bengal (Feb 16, 2010)

I've wanted to learn how to ride for a long time and have never actually had any money. I'm FINALLY starting a new job in a couple of weeks but don't know if it'll be enough...does anyone know, approximately, how much a riding lesson would cost around the Surrey/Hampshire/Berkshire border?:smile5:


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## laddieisthebest (Feb 17, 2010)

Hi there ! 

If I were you, I would try and look up various riding schools in the area,, if thats what you are looking for. Google maps is a good place to start , type "riding in ..." and many will come up. Look on the schools websites etc, and they should say the prices. 
However, if you are looking for your own horse, or one on loan, they vary massivly in price. Some loans are free, or you only pay for the cost of shoeing, though some can be more than £80 a month! A good website for loans, and horses for sale is nfed.com. 
Hope this helps. :smile5:


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## Nicky10 (Jan 11, 2010)

It doesn't cost all that much because if you're only starting the last thing you should do is get a horse on loan you're better with an old placid horse who's used to beginners and they will have them at the school. It's £10 a class for me just call around the local stables and see what their prices are


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## Barry G (Feb 13, 2010)

For anyone wanting to learn to ride a horse, the only place to go is to a registered and licensed riding centre where there will be available a qualified instructor and a suitable horse. At the beginning it is a good idea to have some one-on-one lessons - ie just you and the tutor. Now this may cost a little more but the first few lessons are designed to show you how to sit on a horse properly. If you learn at the begining how to sit upright and hold the reins , then you can build from there. 
There is no way that you can cope with a loaned horse - so don't even think of it. 
In a prosperous area like Camberley there will be a riding school - just look in the yellow pages and ask around. You'll need at the beginning at least one lesson a week and until your muscles develop that will make you ache enough to last until the next lesson. There used to be a Wey Valley Riding Club - see if you can find it.

Look up on the Internet the British Horse Society (BHS) web site - they have a good manual on learning to ride - if you enjoy your first few lessons, then buy a copy.

But a warning - learning to ride a horse, leads you to riding a horse, owning a horse, competing on a horse and it becomes a lifelong obsession. When you find yourself in a tack store buying your own riding hat, then you'll know you are hooked.

Best of luck

B G


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## Acacia86 (Dec 30, 2008)

I wish ours we £10 over here! Its more than that for a 30 minute lesson


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## fran-k77 (Mar 4, 2010)

I used to live in Surrey and now live in Hampshire and I think that an hour long group lesson cost around £20 - £25. A private lesson usually costs more.
And if you do get hooked, riding kit can work out quite expensive too!


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## Barry G (Feb 13, 2010)

Make no mistake, horse riding is an expensive hobby. If the price of a shared lesson seems high and the cost of a riding hat, riding boots, jodhs,
leather gloves and a shaped waterproof jacket seems daunting then wait until you consider the cost of kitting the horse out. As she leaves the yard my horse is wearing something like £1750 worth of leather wear. She has a
purpose built wardrobe in the garage which houses maybe £10,000 worth of saddlery.

She cost the price of a fairly young second hand car to buy and she costs more than our car to run on an annual basis.

And bearing in mind that she can put you in Accident & Emergency with broken bones and a cracked skull at the flutter of a plastic bag I sometimes wonder if she is worth it.

However in the days when I used to earn good money, I worked it out that I might as well waste the money on my horse as to give it to the tax man for him to waste on numerous ideas and ventures that personally I thought were not my business. 

So my advice is that to enjoy the countryside, all you need is a pair of walking boots, a stout waterproof jacket, a map and a compas You could even borrow the neighbour's labrador for company. 
You makes your choice and pays your money.

Horses are like caviar for the general.


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## kaisa624 (Mar 5, 2010)

Rycroft is one of the cheapest around that I've found. I live like 10 mins from you, and have ridden at Hawley Equestrian but it's very expensive, I ride out with a friend who has 4 horses in Ash. Umm, theres Bearwood Stables which I've been told are good. There are a lot of riding schools around the area, as you probably know there are a lot of private schools ha. Is there not a riding school as you head out of Yateley through Eversley and out the other side? Or is that just a saddlery place? Just past Bluebeckers on the left...


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## mezzer (Oct 6, 2009)

kaisa624 said:


> Rycroft is one of the cheapest around that I've found. I live like 10 mins from you, and have ridden at Hawley Equestrian but it's very expensive, I ride out with a friend who has 4 horses in Ash. Umm, theres Bearwood Stables which I've been told are good. There are a lot of riding schools around the area, as you probably know there are a lot of private schools ha. Is there not a riding school as you head out of Yateley through Eversley and out the other side? Or is that just a saddlery place? Just past Bluebeckers on the left...


_I thought Rycroft were very expensive .......Cloud Stables is at Arborfield...... very reasonable_


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## kaisa624 (Mar 5, 2010)

I don't know, but it's one of the cheapest I've found, but then again I normally use one of my friend's horses who stables there for lessons so it might be a bit cheaper. I'm still looking for a school to join properly.


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## nic101 (Jun 8, 2009)

i paid £17.50 for half hour private. £20 hour group (rubbish)

i quit and saving upt for my own instead lol (i have owned before but lost my last lad, had a break, started riding again then became scrooge lol)!

dont loan for a first horse - very bad idea! confidence knocks will happen anyhow so loaning makes it worse imho.


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## bigmuddy11 (Jul 7, 2010)

the cost of the riding gear doesn't have to be very expensive, simply find good condition riding gear in the papers, ebay etc, spend the most on safety least on decorative, good helmet is a must, pretty joddys not so much lol, then as you go along and decide this is a hobby you will want to continue with definately just buy one thing at a time to replace the second hand items, lay by / lay away is your best friend here  and i can't recommend the " smart rider safety stirrups" enough, absolutely the best invention ever i think, no fears of being dragged in a fall ever, i fell off at a gallop was lucky enough not to even get a bruise but i was able to be relaxed with the fall and not tecse up which would have increased my injuries just because i knew i wouldn't get dragged. horse riding is a very addictive hobby but soooo worth it..:thumbup:


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## fringo (Jul 2, 2010)

thanks for the information. vry useful.. .. i was looking for the same thing.. I love to ride horse.. and i have tried it once without learning.. . and to my surprise i handled the horse very wll and i was very much appreciated.. infact i rode fastly.....since then i have this thirst to be a professional horse rider....


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## Melx (Dec 23, 2009)

I think riding schools are over reated lol I Started going to a riding school at the age of 5, Admitedly I learnt alot but then you hit a brick wall, everyone does. You get to a point where you have learnt enough and you cannot pregress on, just have to carry on doing the same old things!
I quit when I was 12/13 for 3 years, then came back to it by starting working at a livery yard and buying a horse. This helped with my confidence on the ground aswel as being able to ride every now and again, then I stopped that and sold my horse to go to college then to start work full time and decided last year to go back to it as I was getting to an age where if I wanted to compete properly I would have to do it now or never!
I had a few lessons but really didnt learn anything! So I decided to go back to horse ownership. In Feb this year I bought Star, 16.3hh tb Mare and I learn so much more from owning her than any riding school would ever be able to teach me! I still have occasional lessons on Star just so that I know we are both working properly and getting the most out of eachother but that is it.

I agree that loaning would be a terrible idea for now or owning as you need some experience as it isnt just the riding when it comes to looking after a horse 24 hours a day! Very stressful with your first for example if they cut themselves, knowing what to do without panicking and thinking they are gonna die from a scratch! lol (I done this hehe) And knowing what to feed them and in what amounts and how to muck out and all things that are involved in it.

Have a few lessons and see how you feel! You will either love it or hate it!
Good luck :thumbup:


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## LisaSalter (Jun 25, 2012)

Learning to ride can be expensive but it doesn't have to be - My daughter is currently learning to ride - the lessons themselves are fairly expensive currently twice a week for half an hour £20 and she has hand-me-down boots, jodhpurs and coat but I bought her hat and body protector new as its very important from a safety perspective - check out this article that explains the costs a little more Buying Secondhand Horse Riding Equipment  Good Luck with it all, it is a very rewarding hobby


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