06/03/2022
okay....rant here...there is no such thing as a cheap bargain priced beginner safe trail, rope, rodeo or show horse......those are the horses that have thousands of dollars of training as well as thousands of hours of training and riding. They are forgiving to excessive kicks and jabs, they ignore when the direct rein is a bit "too" direct, they stand there when you forget to tighten the saddle and it slides sideways, they stand in the roping box, when you accidenly drop your rope, they finish that hind lead change, even though you are off center throwing them off balance, they rate themselves going over the cross rails, they adjust their stride to the trot poles, they stand there when you try to pull their manes for hours on end, much less band them....they walk down the trail, even when you are so busy chatting you don't notice the rabbit hole they just avoided for you. And for kids, they lower their head when they halter them, they stop when they notice the child stops, just because they are aware and alert....However for "cheap" or "inexpensive" I can find you a reiner that you'll have to ride through every lead change and will try to cheat circles or a rope horse that doesn't know the meaning of the world rate, or a jumper who has no idea how to adjust it's stride and thinks throwing a crowhop over a bounce is normal or a pleasure horse that dives in every corner or a trail horse that jiggs and rears if not always in the lead yet won't cross anything that isn't a groomed trail without following another horse.
That resilient, forgiving, kind, beginner horse will always be worth every single penny you paid for it, be it for trails or show. If you are lucky enough to find one, regardless if they are 4 years old or 14 years old, black or white, registered or grade, buy them, before someone else sees the priceless gem and robs you of owning them.