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There's a reason I don't want kids.
So, I have a nearly-teenaged Girl who rides GB a couple of times a week. She seems fairly sensible, and her mother used to be horsey, so no problems there.
Back in February, I asked Girl if she wanted a key to the woods (while it is possible to go out hacking nearby without one, you have to go on the road and it's a bit of a trek). Mother Said No: not until she'd got more experience. Fine by me, and I rather agreed.
The other Saturday, in between bits of wedding, I had a SMS from Girl: would it be ok if she rode GB for a second time in one day? I'm generally quite happy for her to do this, depending on how hard he's worked, and I very much appreciate that she asks me. I replied saying it should be fine, but what had she done on the first ride, had he sweated up? Oh, she'd just been out in the woods, walk and trot only.
Er, what? I thought she wasn't allowed in the woods, and said so, but said GB'd be ok to do a little bit more.
And then after I got back from the wedding, I spoke to Mother, who was furious. Apparently, the little darling had been in the woods a couple of times with Pony Club, and had taken permission to do this to mean she could also wrangle an invite to go out with one of her mates and the adult who was taking her mate. It had only happened once, both Girl and Mother were very sorry, it wouldn't happen again, etc, etc.
Today, as it happens, I spoke to the previously-wrangled-adult (who's only actually about sixteen or seventeen: the rules say that you have to have someone over fourteen in any party in the woods). And it turns out that the walk-and-trot-only was what the adult and other kid did: Girl pulled her face and got the adult to agree that, yes, ok, the two of them would continue to walk along *this* path while Girl cantered along *that* path and they would all meet up again *there* at the intersection of the two paths. Girl was not there. Adult was rather panicked and decided that it would be safest to take the other kid further through the woods to the gate, leave her there and then ride back and search for Girl's battered remains and / or GB. Fortunately, Girl was also by the gate: apparently, GB just took off with her, she couldn't stop, and he'd gone full-tilt all the way to the gate.
(Whilst in some ways this doesn't surprise me (the fear that she wouldn't be able to stop him if he decided he was going home was one of the reasons I was happy for her not to be allowed up there), I find it very hard to believe that he would willingly canter a) that far and b) down the fairly steep hills that he normally minces carefully down. Also, this was not mentioned when she told me how much work he'd done: I find it hard to believe that he didn't sweat up from that.)
Adult told her that she'd better check GB's legs carefully when she got back, on account of how cantering full pelt downhill isn't a very good idea, and they all went back to the yard. I don't know who did that checking of the legs, but I'm told that there was some concern that one of them looked 'funny' (he's shown no signs of lameness for me, thankfully, so it can only have been minor if it was there at all). What I do know is that there was also no mention of that when she asked me if she could ride him a second time.
I'm not madly concerned that she went into the woods once, but I am concerned that she didn't tell me about a possible injury, and that she lied about what she'd actually done in the woods. And, actually, it's not 'once': she mentioned in passing to the adult that she'd been there a few other times with one of the other (under-fourteen: no idea if anyone else was with them) kids (I've been out with this kid: she rides like a nutter, and I can well believe that she'd canter her young and fit horse down hills).
So, I shall have to phone Mother again, probably this evening. I'm trying to decide whether I should give them a chance to discuss it first, so that Mother has the full(er) story, but I can't decide if I should send a SMS saying "You may want to have another conversation with Girl about her hacking exploits and see if there's anything else she'd like to mention" or saying "You may want to 'fess up to your Mother about what you've actually been doing in the woods before I tell her. PS: I rather think you should know to tell me if you think there's something wrong with my horse, and not expect to be able to ride him if there is"....
(I, on the other hand, had a rather successful side saddle lesson, followed by GB getting checked by the physio, who made his back and neck go crunch in interesting ways and told me that I need to get the saddler out again.)
Edit: Hmm. Have spoken to both Mother and Child: Child promises faithfully that she just said she'd *like* to go out hacking with the other kids (which I'm not sure I believe), that it wasn't that she lost control and GB cantered all the way back, it was just that when they stopped at the meeting place he got ansty and she couldn't stop him from walking off / make him walk back towards the others (which is very believable, far more so than that he would canter all that way, in fact), and that his leg was absolutely fine.
Interestingly, Mother made some comment about how she goes up to the riding school for her lesson every Saturday: that's not what I've been hearing from idle comments on the yard. I might speak to the riding school, because if she's not on the yard, and she's not in the lesson, there's really only one place that she could be. This would tie into the fact that I've been noticing for a month or so that his boots (which he wears for hacking and jumping) have been being used. I shall keep an eye on this.
Girl is on her last chance with me now, and I've told them both so. I shall mobilise the adults to spy on her for me.
Back in February, I asked Girl if she wanted a key to the woods (while it is possible to go out hacking nearby without one, you have to go on the road and it's a bit of a trek). Mother Said No: not until she'd got more experience. Fine by me, and I rather agreed.
The other Saturday, in between bits of wedding, I had a SMS from Girl: would it be ok if she rode GB for a second time in one day? I'm generally quite happy for her to do this, depending on how hard he's worked, and I very much appreciate that she asks me. I replied saying it should be fine, but what had she done on the first ride, had he sweated up? Oh, she'd just been out in the woods, walk and trot only.
Er, what? I thought she wasn't allowed in the woods, and said so, but said GB'd be ok to do a little bit more.
And then after I got back from the wedding, I spoke to Mother, who was furious. Apparently, the little darling had been in the woods a couple of times with Pony Club, and had taken permission to do this to mean she could also wrangle an invite to go out with one of her mates and the adult who was taking her mate. It had only happened once, both Girl and Mother were very sorry, it wouldn't happen again, etc, etc.
Today, as it happens, I spoke to the previously-wrangled-adult (who's only actually about sixteen or seventeen: the rules say that you have to have someone over fourteen in any party in the woods). And it turns out that the walk-and-trot-only was what the adult and other kid did: Girl pulled her face and got the adult to agree that, yes, ok, the two of them would continue to walk along *this* path while Girl cantered along *that* path and they would all meet up again *there* at the intersection of the two paths. Girl was not there. Adult was rather panicked and decided that it would be safest to take the other kid further through the woods to the gate, leave her there and then ride back and search for Girl's battered remains and / or GB. Fortunately, Girl was also by the gate: apparently, GB just took off with her, she couldn't stop, and he'd gone full-tilt all the way to the gate.
(Whilst in some ways this doesn't surprise me (the fear that she wouldn't be able to stop him if he decided he was going home was one of the reasons I was happy for her not to be allowed up there), I find it very hard to believe that he would willingly canter a) that far and b) down the fairly steep hills that he normally minces carefully down. Also, this was not mentioned when she told me how much work he'd done: I find it hard to believe that he didn't sweat up from that.)
Adult told her that she'd better check GB's legs carefully when she got back, on account of how cantering full pelt downhill isn't a very good idea, and they all went back to the yard. I don't know who did that checking of the legs, but I'm told that there was some concern that one of them looked 'funny' (he's shown no signs of lameness for me, thankfully, so it can only have been minor if it was there at all). What I do know is that there was also no mention of that when she asked me if she could ride him a second time.
I'm not madly concerned that she went into the woods once, but I am concerned that she didn't tell me about a possible injury, and that she lied about what she'd actually done in the woods. And, actually, it's not 'once': she mentioned in passing to the adult that she'd been there a few other times with one of the other (under-fourteen: no idea if anyone else was with them) kids (I've been out with this kid: she rides like a nutter, and I can well believe that she'd canter her young and fit horse down hills).
So, I shall have to phone Mother again, probably this evening. I'm trying to decide whether I should give them a chance to discuss it first, so that Mother has the full(er) story, but I can't decide if I should send a SMS saying "You may want to have another conversation with Girl about her hacking exploits and see if there's anything else she'd like to mention" or saying "You may want to 'fess up to your Mother about what you've actually been doing in the woods before I tell her. PS: I rather think you should know to tell me if you think there's something wrong with my horse, and not expect to be able to ride him if there is"....
(I, on the other hand, had a rather successful side saddle lesson, followed by GB getting checked by the physio, who made his back and neck go crunch in interesting ways and told me that I need to get the saddler out again.)
Edit: Hmm. Have spoken to both Mother and Child: Child promises faithfully that she just said she'd *like* to go out hacking with the other kids (which I'm not sure I believe), that it wasn't that she lost control and GB cantered all the way back, it was just that when they stopped at the meeting place he got ansty and she couldn't stop him from walking off / make him walk back towards the others (which is very believable, far more so than that he would canter all that way, in fact), and that his leg was absolutely fine.
Interestingly, Mother made some comment about how she goes up to the riding school for her lesson every Saturday: that's not what I've been hearing from idle comments on the yard. I might speak to the riding school, because if she's not on the yard, and she's not in the lesson, there's really only one place that she could be. This would tie into the fact that I've been noticing for a month or so that his boots (which he wears for hacking and jumping) have been being used. I shall keep an eye on this.
Girl is on her last chance with me now, and I've told them both so. I shall mobilise the adults to spy on her for me.
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Her mother's decided to be stricter than I was going to be: I was just going to mobilise spies, but her mother's said she can't be there without a dedicated adult, which means she's not going to be able to spend all of Saturday there. I can't imagine GB will be too down-hearted to get to go in the field instead of being fussed over!