Matching Height of Horse - Height of Rider

Hi, I'm new here. I've been riding for about 4 years, give or take. 1 Western, and the last 3 years I've been riding English, jumping and dressage (no hunter). I have a 14.3 mare, and I'm looking to buy a new horse. This is where my problems arise.

My mom and I are both stumped on what height of horse to be looking for. I am 5'8" and rapidly growing...at the beginning of July I was growing a cm. or 2 every three or four nights. When I take my feet out of the stirrups, my legs hang below my mare's belly. I have very long legs, and a shorter body, which makes it harder to find a horse, since I need one with a bigger barrel to make my legs look not so long.

I'm only 13, so tall for my age, and obviously won't stop growing for a couple of years yet. My dad has lots of height in his family, and my mom has some height in her family as well.

The girl who I ride with recently bought a 17h TB gelding, and she is about 1.5 inches shorter than I am. She looks like a perfect size for him. But I am still a beginner...not completely, somewhere between intermediate-advanced beginner, and I need a gentle, calm horse. We're not sure if over 17 hands is a good size for me, simply because of the powerful ness of them, and the fact that I'm just coming off a pony.

What would you guys suggest size-wise?

Thanks so much!
Haley.

 

The best thing you can do is just try a lot of horses. As you know, a larger barrel will take up more leg, so don't get too hung up of height. Just try horses until you find one you are comfortable on. A good idea would be to take a picture when you look at the horse with you mounted, and see how it looks to you. Matching a horse size wise to a rider is important, but things can be overcome. I'm 5'0 ( i think that's about 155 cm) and I ride a 16'2hh horse and have ridden 18 hh horses. My 16'0 horse fits me the best size wise, but I can't find a horse more comfortable to me than my 16'2 hh horse.

 

Height of the horse isnt necessarily very important. I'm 5'7 and both my horses are 15.1hh I struggle a bit with dressage work as i dont like having my feet dangling below their bellies.... but i dont care - i get along well with the horses and thats all that really matters. I'd suggest looking for something around 16hh or taller. But dont rule out anything smaller. You need to be able to get along with the horse too.

 

Hi, I'm new here too.
I am the same height as you and I am 15 y/o and about 100 pounds.
I am looking for a new horse as well and tomorrow I am going to ride a 15.2 hh palomino. I think you'd be fine with something 15.1 and up. But most importantly, you have to get along.

Good luck with your search!