Horse Lease Fair Price

Let me see if I understand this. You ride for 2x/week and pay $320 (8 times $40) on a monthly basis.

Now you're looking for a lease, for a 3-day period, e. g. 1/10 of a month. The owners are looking to charge you $150.

Under the current arrangement, 3 days costs you $120 ($40 x 3), but you don't have unlimited horse time. Essentially this is an additional $30 to be able to ride for an unlimited (within reason, horses need to rest, of course) time during those 3 days.

6 days under this proposed arrangement would be $300. 8 days would be $400 (e. g. they are effectively charging you $50/day).

I think it's too much, and here's why (and it may not be what you're expecting).

Despite your best intentions, you may not be able to exceed 1 hour of riding in any given day. You are therefore spending an added $10 to ride more than an hour, but you aren't necessarily going to be able to use the 61st minute (and over). Why not? Because you'll get tired, too, not only after an hour but potentially after doing this for a week or a month or two.

One thing I recall about riding, as a kid, was that a part of what was great about it was that it was a special treat. But I've been on longer rides, and both horse and rider end up rather fatigued at the end of them. After all, posting and maintaining good posture are hard physical work while riding. And you know you will be doing a lot of both.

I would ask the owners if I were you, a few questions -

1. Can you spread the 3 day lease out, or do the days all have to be taken consecutively?
   
2. What happens in the event of rain? Can you reschedule?
   
3. What happens in the event of injury or illness (either yours or the horse's)? Can you reschedule or cancel, or get a replacement horse for that time period?
   
4. If cancellations are allowed, how much lead time has to be provided before you're charged?

I loved riding as a teenager but it also often resulted in saddle sores and backaches, and I've jumped and shown. Things to think about before committing yourself, so maybe, if the answers to the questions are satisfactory to you, try it out for one 3-day lease and see how you feel at the end of it. Be honest with yourself - don't sugarcoat how you feel if you're overly fatigued or you feel it's too much, hoping that it'll get better. The last thing you want is for a fun experience like this to feel like it's turning into a chore.

And I also want to commend you on being so responsible with your money, and being conscientious about it.