Ballroom Dancing vs Riding horse with direction to go

[danceswithhorses]

So I have finally graduated nursing school and can afford to take up one of my hobbies again either ballroom or riding. Now while I could afford to do both in the short term I really need to have a plan in mind of which direction I need to take.

Now for showing horses again it will cost me a minimum of $1000 a month plus show expenses I can afford this ( I have a supportive hubby!) but I also have an interest in started ballroom again but I never competed as an adult so am not aware of the costs.

I am leaning towards dancing more as I don't know how much more being thrown off a horse I can take.

So the question is how much do you guys pay for competions on a moderate level would it be more than being competitive on the horse circuit. I won't count costumes into it since I'm a darn good costume maker.

 

[waltzguy]

Welcome to dance-forums!

Competition costs vary tremendously. One key difference is whether you will compete amateur couple, or as pro-am. The former is $, the latter is $$$. There are advantages and disadvantages to both, so I'm not implying preference, since money is only part of the equation.

 

[Dancebug]

So the question is how much do you guys pay for competions on a moderate level would it be more than being competitive on the horse circuit. I won't count costumes into it since I'm a darn good costume maker.

If you have an amateur partner, ballroom dance shouldn't cost too much, especailly when you can make your own costumes.

 

[etp777]

Dance!

And welcome to DF.

 

[tanya_the_dancer]

So I have finally graduated nursing school and can afford to take up one of my hobbies again either ballroom or riding. Now while I could afford to do both in the short term I really need to have a plan in mind of which direction I need to take.

Now for showing horses again it will cost me a minimum of $1000 a month plus show expenses I can afford this ( I have a supportive hubby!) but I also have an interest in started ballroom again but I never competed as an adult so am not aware of the costs.

I am leaning towards dancing more as I don't know how much more being thrown off a horse I can take.

So the question is how much do you guys pay for competions on a moderate level would it be more than being competitive on the horse circuit. I won't count costumes into it since I'm a darn good costume maker.

You can easily spend $1000 a month on dancing, although I think it would be easier to control the costs, because, well horse has expenses you can't cut back on (like it has to eat, for one), while with dancing you can, say, cut back on the number of lessons you take per week.

If I were making your choice, I would definitely dance. But then, I've been on a horse 3 or 4 times in my entire life, and didn't like it all that much, so what do I know. My mom likes them (the horses), she says they feel so good to touch, but according to my dad, he says - why don't you just get a piece of horse pelt and you can safely touch it all you want .

 

[danceronice]

Believe me, I know where you're coming from, and for me it depends.

Dance IS cheaper unless you really go overboard OR you simply take lessons on a schoolie and don't own (because the horse will always have overhead--board or costs of operating if you're at home, feed, vet, farrier, equipment for him, equipment for you, then there's show costs, trainer costs, shipping or buying your own rig...) Admittedly all those costs vary depending on where you are-board around here is out of this world, and anywhere you go, a full-service barn with a BNT (Big Name Trainer) is going to cost a LOT of money. Whereas I know a couple areas that $125/month for self-care with a stall is the norm. And what breed, if you show or don't show, what circuit, who you ride with...even just initial outlay--I could pick up a good OTTB for $600 tomorrow, but if I want a horse I could SHOW on tomorrow I'd expect to start with a base price of $10,000 for a promising greenie and go up. Then if you own, you have to be ready for surprise expenses (I don't want to know what the surgery on my guy cost when he got a wire wound on his stifle that ended up needing surgery to clear the infection.)

So if you're going by money, dance is probably cheaper. (Dance people: this is why I may at times seem nonchalant about the cost of pro-am. Compared to what I USED to do....)

However-you don't own your partner or your pro. Your horse is YOURS. Out in the barn, waiting for you every day. You don't HAVE to show to enjoy it. If you stay out of the shows, then you can wear what you like, look how you like, use whatever style saddle you want (can you tell I used to do hunters? And I didn't enjoy it much?) and just ride and have fun. You can't have fun just dancing without competing unless you're into social dance and then your ability to enjoy it is often dependent on who shows up at that venue (if there IS a social dance venue nearby--here it's not a problem, but I understand in some places it's not exactly easy to find a place). Competing is a wash either way--especially if you do dressage or hunters, the judging is just as subjective in either case, and there's always someone who can buy themselves a better ride or dress or pro or a BNT. (Unless you do jumpers, in which case fastest clearest wins, if you can handle that kind of pressure.)

On the other other hand, I've never had a dance partner spook and throw me into a fence. It's more little chronic nagging pain with dance than occasional sudden high-speed impacts with the ground/fence/jump standard/indoor wall. (The number of those I've had over the years may even be directly contributing to the constant lower back pain with the dance.)

If you can't afford to do both to the level you'd wish, it comes down to which do you love more and do you get more out of.

 

[fascination]

welcome to df...we have several threads that go into some of the variables of cost WRT ballroom dance and you might want to use our search function to peruse them...I am only a sample of one but I can give you a loose ballpark figure on my expenses (b/c I don't really feel at liberty to be specific) which are for pro/am with a top level pro...my lessons are in the vicinity or 80-100 bucks per lesson 45-50 minutes...I wouldn't consider less than 4 lessons a week if I was really serious...and/or unless I was able to put in some good practicing to match that...the cost of comps varies greatly according to how many you do, which ones you choose, how many styles you dance and how the pro charges if you dance pro/am...I also can't see anyone being terribly competitive without doing ...meh...a minimum of 4 a year...

this is just my opinion...and I will say that these figures are lower than what I do

 

[DancinProf]

If you are not sure what you want to commit to, ballroom might be easier to get out of after getting into it--at least, I'm guessing it's easier to sell a competition gown than a horse!

Seeing danceronice's post makes me wonder if there's a gene for expensive hobbies. I'm an ex-ice skater, now ballroom dancer...and I was thinking of starting riding lessons this summer if my husband's knee problem hadn't cleared up. Why couldn't I want to knit, or garden, or jog, or do crosswords?

 

[danceswithhorses]

Yes there must be a gene for expensive hobbies as I used to figure skate as well ( poorly I might add )

My tentative plan right now is to take one or two lessons in each "hobby" and figure out which I still have passion and talent for though I have a habit of pursuing things I'm crappy at hence the figure skating.

Of course for both it doesn't help that I live in LA where spending a lot of money is the norm.

Oh as a knitter it gets expensive fast too as you become an obsessive yarn shopper.

Maybe my problem is I have spenditis.

 

[danceronice]

.... So that's at least three of us with skating/riding/dancing? (My order being riding, skating, dancing, and thank GOD my friend's rig is currently not up to a 200-mile drive or I would be headed to Finger Lakes for that $600 OTTB instead of sitting here. I could hide him in the garage for a week. Really. When the price drops on the horse you've been eyeballing IT'S A SIGN.)

I think there is an expensive hobby gene. There must be. And no kidding on the knitting. I know a few yarn snobs who scare me. I swear they want the name of the sheep the wool came from!

 

[tanya_the_dancer]

I skated when I was a child. I never got to the point when it becomes expensive, though (although back then it wouldn't be my decision anyway).

 

[Dance808]

.... So that's at least three of us with skating/riding/dancing? (My order being riding, skating, dancing, and thank GOD my friend's rig is currently not up to a 200-mile drive or I would be headed to Finger Lakes for that $600 OTTB instead of sitting here. I could hide him in the garage for a week. Really. When the price drops on the horse you've been eyeballing IT'S A SIGN.)

I think there is an expensive hobby gene. There must be. And no kidding on the knitting. I know a few yarn snobs who scare me. I swear they want the name of the sheep the wool came from!

you can count me as 3 1/2 for the riding/skating/horses. my mom used to show so we grew up riding but i never showed. then she put us in figure skating (which i did to the expensive point and then stopped while my smart sister skated past the expensive point and to the place where she made money doing it...) and then i took up dancing.

i agree there's a gene -- passed from mom to daughter in my family!

 

[tanya_the_dancer]

you can count me as 3 1/2 for the riding/skating/horses. my mom used to show so we grew up riding but i never showed. then she put us in figure skating (which i did to the expensive point and then stopped while my smart sister skated past the expensive point and to the place where she made money doing it...) and then i took up dancing.

i agree there's a gene -- passed from mom to daughter in my family!

Interesting. The reason I never got into riding is that I don't like to be around animals, especially big ones and never did, even as a child. The only animals I like are small dogs (my parents have had chihuahuas since I was 13). So I rode maybe 4 times in my life (things we do for our kids!), and didn't find it to be enjoyable enough experience to try to incorporate it in my life on regular basis.

 

[dancingirldancing]

Believe me, I know where you're coming from, and for me it depends.

Dance IS cheaper unless you really go overboard OR you simply take lessons on a schoolie and don't own (because the horse will always have overhead--board or costs of operating if you're at home, feed, vet, farrier, equipment for him, equipment for you, then there's show costs, trainer costs, shipping or buying your own rig...) Admittedly all those costs vary depending on where you are-board around here is out of this world, and anywhere you go, a full-service barn with a BNT (Big Name Trainer) is going to cost a LOT of money. Whereas I know a couple areas that $125/month for self-care with a stall is the norm. And what breed, if you show or don't show, what circuit, who you ride with...even just initial outlay--I could pick up a good OTTB for $600 tomorrow, but if I want a horse I could SHOW on tomorrow I'd expect to start with a base price of $10,000 for a promising greenie and go up. Then if you own, you have to be ready for surprise expenses (I don't want to know what the surgery on my guy cost when he got a wire wound on his stifle that ended up needing surgery to clear the infection.)

So if you're going by money, dance is probably cheaper. (Dance people: this is why I may at times seem nonchalant about the cost of pro-am. Compared to what I USED to do....)

However-you don't own your partner or your pro. Your horse is YOURS. Out in the barn, waiting for you every day. You don't HAVE to show to enjoy it. If you stay out of the shows, then you can wear what you like, look how you like, use whatever style saddle you want (can you tell I used to do hunters? And I didn't enjoy it much?) and just ride and have fun. You can't have fun just dancing without competing unless you're into social dance and then your ability to enjoy it is often dependent on who shows up at that venue (if there IS a social dance venue nearby--here it's not a problem, but I understand in some places it's not exactly easy to find a place). Competing is a wash either way--especially if you do dressage or hunters, the judging is just as subjective in either case, and there's always someone who can buy themselves a better ride or dress or pro or a BNT. (Unless you do jumpers, in which case fastest clearest wins, if you can handle that kind of pressure.)

On the other other hand, I've never had a dance partner spook and throw me into a fence. It's more little chronic nagging pain with dance than occasional sudden high-speed impacts with the ground/fence/jump standard/indoor wall. (The number of those I've had over the years may even be directly contributing to the constant lower back pain with the dance.)

If you can't afford to do both to the level you'd wish, it comes down to which do you love more and do you get more out of.

This is soooo funny !!! :uplaugh:

 

[dancingirldancing]

If you are not sure what you want to commit to, ballroom might be easier to get out of after getting into it--at least, I'm guessing it's easier to sell a competition gown than a horse!

Seeing danceronice's post makes me wonder if there's a gene for expensive hobbies. I'm an ex-ice skater, now ballroom dancer...and I was thinking of starting riding lessons this summer if my husband's knee problem hadn't cleared up. Why couldn't I want to knit, or garden, or jog, or do crosswords?

I used to collect designer bags ... so yeah definitely a pattern of exxy hobby there !