Am I too old to take horseback riding lessons?

I think if I were to get on a horse again it would a slow, sedate one to see if I could handle it. At this point in my life (69 yrs); I don't think I would chance it no matter any health benefits as I would be afraid to fall and injure myself. I would go to watch others on horses though.
 

Thank you all. I like all this advice. I will take it all under consideration. I know one very experienced rider who was seriously injured by falling off a horse. Perhaps my daughter, who basically rolled her eyes at the idea, was thinking of her. I am going to check to see if there are any therapeutic riding programs in my area, as Aunt Bea suggested.

However, the spine and knee problems -- I have them both. So I will ask my doctor about it when the time comes. It's not the end of the world if I shouldn't ride a horse. I can always think up another Great Idea when the time comes.
 
WheatenLover said:
Thank you all. I like all this advice. I will take it all under consideration. I know one very experienced rider who was seriously injured by falling off a horse. Perhaps my daughter, who basically rolled her eyes at the idea, was thinking of her. I am going to check to see if there are any therapeutic riding programs in my area, as Aunt Bea suggested.

However, the spine and knee problems -- I have them both. So I will ask my doctor about it when the time comes. It's not the end of the world if I shouldn't ride a horse. I can always think up another Great Idea when the time comes.
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I have read that riding can be good for the spine so, yes, check with your doctors. Also I don’t mean to be indelicate but riding requires you to spread your legs quite far apart as the horse is wide. With my replacement hips and sore muscles this would be a real problem as well.

But I loved riding. We used to ride the trails at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs when I was in the army and stationed there, so many decades ago. I never had lessons, never owned a horse, just rode rented ones.
 
WheatenLover said:
It's not the end of the world if I shouldn't ride a horse. I can always think up another Great Idea when the time comes.
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When I lived in Maryland in the Washington DC area, there was a driving club and they had a weekend event where anyone could come and pay to drive a horse and buggy. They had several sizes and types, and an experienced driver came with and helped. It was so much fun.
Your thread here has given me an idea to try to find a place where I could get a lesson to drive a little pony cart (hopefully well sprung and not too jarring). I will save up this idea for next year when I'm retired.
 
I have been thinking of something unusual to involve myself while in Australia and you HoneyNut have provided the answer! In my mind I have always wanted to drive a buggy and when I saw your post, I came back to that thought. So today I began investigation and realise I can join a carriage driving group. I even sent them an email today for more information.
I have interest in the pleasure driving only because I do not think my shoulder woud do well in the dressage events. Thank you HoneyNut you have dropped a gem in my lap :love::love:
 
jujube said:
George H.W. Bush celebrated his 90th birthday by going skydiving. Go for the horseback riding, WheatenLover. They'll find you a sweet old horse that will be like sitting in a rocking chair, especially if you go to a therapeutic riding stable.
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I'd prefer skydiving to horse back riding.
If something goes wrong while skydiving, you won't face any long recoveries.
 
WheatenLover,

As others have recommended, please consider your skeletal system and potential broken bones.

ms gamboolgal (age 60) just has been diagnosed with Osteoporosis and she and I would never let her take a chance now on breaking bones for activities that we did when we were younger.

I am convinced that a horse that rode me into a barn and broke the wooden beams supporting the roof across the back of my neck when I was a kid riding a way to powerful horse for me as I could not control it - was the root cause of spinal disc damage that resulted in me having to get a neck fusion in C5, C6, & C7 when I was 49 year old.

Having said all the obligatory - be careful stuff... I admire your spirit !

Please keep us posted and all the best in your pursuits.

gamboolman....
 
win231 said:
I'd prefer skydiving to horse back riding.
If something goes wrong while skydiving, you won't face any long recoveries.
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I tried that, since I was spending so many Saturdays at the drop zone with friends of mine -- all of whom lived through it for their entire lives. But for some reason I could not force myself to actually jump out of the plane.
 
Granny B. said:
I hope your body can handle it to at least give it a try. I took lessons long ago, on an old sedate sweet large pony. We just trotted around the ring. I hope to do it again one day. Or how about a horse cart?
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It's too slow for me. I rode in an Amish buggy once. If I hadn't had the driver - raised Amish, but left so he could be a veterinarian -- to ask encouraged questions of, I would have been bored pretty swiftly. That buggy was crowded with tourists - they had us sitting there like sardines in a can -- and no one was talking. But they listened! I found out lots of things I didn't know about the modernization of some of the Amish in real life.
 
WheatenLover said:
I tried that, since I was spending so many Saturdays at the drop zone with friends of mine -- all of whom lived through it for their entire lives. But for some reason I could not force myself to actually jump out of the plane.
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LOL - you probably figured, "Hey....this is a perfectly-good plane & it's flying right, so I'm safe. So......why should I jump out of it?"
 

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