A Parent’s View from the sidelines with Virginia Barber

This article is from the January 2020 Horse Deals magazine.

Behind every child rider, there is a parent who supports their child’s chosen discipline. Any sport a child is involved in takes a commitment in time and money to realise the child’s dream. Add horses into the equation and the commitment in time and money doubles!

So who are the parents behind the child rider? What are their thoughts on the benefits and life lessons that horses and riding provide to their child? In this series, you will find out about the parent’s view from behind the scenes and at the sidelines.

How did Georgie commence her riding career? 
Georgie started riding at home at the age of two and joined our local pony club (Dayboro) and enjoyed doing gymkhanas and muster days with some of her friends. She then started showjumping at the local jump club and then was introduced to the sport of endurance.

What were your initial thoughts when you realised Georgie was into horses?
I was very happy as horses are my passion so to be able to share that with her is very special.

Did you have experience with horses before Georgie’s interest? 
Yes, I started riding horses at the age of ten, joining my local pony club (Pine Rivers Pony Club), competing in gymkhana’s and then moving into jumping and one day events.

Does your personal experience with horses have an impact on Georgie’s sport? 
Yes, being able to pass on my experience to Georgie and to train and ride with her, she has become a very good horsewoman at a very young age.

What were your expectations of Georgie’s first pony and what did you end up with? 
When we started looking for Georgie’s first pony I was looking for an older, experienced pony that had been around many kids but was not too old and slow. After searching for many months I ended up purchasing an unbroken three-year-old Australian Pony. Total opposite to what I started looking for, but without a huge budget I realised I was not going to find what I was after, so I decided to create it myself.

How do you juggle your time for horses between the rest of your commitments?
I am very lucky that horses are my work but I do schedule Georgie’s and my own training/riding time into my diary as well as our competition weekends. Georgie is homeschooled so that allows her to schedule her training in around her school work, and also leaves her more available to go away for the weekends regularly, as most endurance rides span over multiple days. We encourage my son to also come away with us to help strap or sometimes he may do a 20km ride for fun, too.

What do you think the life lessons and benefits of your child being involved with horses are? 
Horses have taught Georgie not only to be a compassionate and caring person but to listen and understand others, it has shown her that you need to work hard to get results, what you put in is what you will get out of life. It has shown her that in life there are hard times, trying times, and even pain, but also joy, satisfaction and a sense of achievement and time management. It has taught her to treat animals and people with respect, encourage and help others, and how to be a good sport.

As a family, what sacrifices have you had to make to fulfil Georgie’s passion? 
Time and money! So much time and money, but as they see our family work hard for this and see the commitment it takes, Georgie has then shown the same commitment in her training.

Horse riding is known as high risk. How do you come to terms with the risk factors? 
It is high risk, but so are many other sports. I ensure Georgie has the required skills to ride the horses she does. She only rides horses that I know are within her riding ability.

What enjoyment do you get out of watching Georgie ride? 
It is amazing to see what horses can teach children, how it can help shape them into caring, passionate, understanding young people. I just love to see her excitement and sense of achievement on completion of a ride, and even more so her determination and horsemanship skills throughout a long ride, to care and work with her horse as a team.

What advice can you give to other parents whose child may be interested in riding? 
Horses can teach so many things on so many levels. It’s not just horsemanship skills they learn, it is life skills. If you have no experience in horses yourself, I recommended you find a local instructor or coach that you and your child feel comfortable with. Get riding lessons before buying your first horse. Once your coach thinks that your child has the necessary skills to care for a horse, purchase a horse with your coach’s guidance. Listen to them as to whether the horse is the right one for your child. Finding the right horse for your child is the key to your child’s safety and will dictate if they continue riding horses for a lifetime or it being just a phase.

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