About 20 years ago I rode a Belgian horse but I didn't rent it because someone my wife met had about 40 Belgian horses and did competitions at the Horse Pulls sometimes. Even though while I was getting off his hoof was the size of my laptop computer and when he stepped on my tennis shoe luckily my foot was sideways or (what foot?) So, you might need to be wearing really strong steel toes boots that their hooves won't be able to crush. (hopefully) I still loved riding horses. But, when you are 6 foot five inches tall like me you really shouldn't be riding most horses because you are going to be too much weight for them to carry. So, as I was looking around for people with bigger horses I realized I either had to buy two Belgians and pay someone to take care of them for me or start to look for who rents them around the western part of the U.S.
Also, these bigger breeds in peacetime were for pulling a plow through any territory and in olden times they carried knights in full armor. So, breeds like Belgians, Percherons, Clydesdales etc. were originally bred especially for knights wearing armor. They are the gentle giants because you can't survive a horse this big if it isn't gentle or you will just get crushed under their hooves or against their sides against a wall, building or tree if they aren't gentle. So, they all tend to be bred for their gentleness otherwise you can't survive them as humans.
The one thing I have to caution you on riding with a saddle on their horses or riding bareback. Even if you are a big person like me you sort of feel like you are doing the splits when you ride because they are so much wider than a regular horse and much taller as well and their hooves are at least twice to three times the size of a regular horse as well. They are better at walking and trotting but not so much galloping with hooves that big, especially caring someone on their back. Also, you have a lot further to fall from horses this big too. So be careful.
Here is part of what I found:
Big riders mean big horses on Western trails
— Apr. 24, 2014 10:59 AM EDT
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BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Wranglers in the West who have for decades cashed in on the allure of getting on a horse and setting out on an open trail say they have had to add bigger horses to their stables to help carry larger tourists over the rugged terrain.
The ranches say they are using draft horses, the diesels of the horse world, in ever greater numbers to make sure they don't lose out on income from potential customers of any size who come out to get closer to the West of yesteryear.
"Even though a person might be overweight, or, you know, heavier than the average American, it's kind of nice we can provide a situation where they can ride with their family," said wrangler T. James "Doc" Humphrey.
Humphrey's 10-gallon hat, goatee, black vest and spurs are a tourist favorite at Sombrero Ranches, east of Rocky Mountain National Park, where they have 20 draft horses, including Belgians and Percherons, and 25 draft horses mixes.
Ranch operators say they began adding the bigger horses in the 1990s, but the pace has picked up in recent years. Over the last 20 years, obesity has increased to more than a third of adults and about 17 percent of children age 2 to 19, according to federal statistics.
"I think it's wonderful that these people are looking to accommodate people of larger body size," said Peggy Howell, spokeswoman for the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, adding that more businesses should become "size savvy."
"People of larger body size enjoy athletic activities just as much as people with what's considered normal body size," she said.
Draft horses fell out of favor as machines took over pulling farm equipment in the mid-20th century, said Elaine Beardsley of the Ohio-based Percheron Horse Association of America. Registered Percherons reached a low of 86 in 1953, and are now at 1,000.
The bigger horses have allowed outfitters to eliminate weight limits.
"I felt bad about telling people they're too big to ride," said Russ Little of Dry Ridge Outfitters, which offers rides at Harriman State Park in Idaho. Eight of the 45 horses he has are part Percherons. He said a 225-pound weight limit these days would cost him $6,000 a season.
At Chico Hot Springs in Montana, Heidi Saile of Rockin' HK Outfitters said she and her husband, Kipp, removed the stable's 225-pound limit last year when they took over from different outfitters. She said the limit would cost her $4,000 in lost revenue.
"Little horses just aren't sturdy enough to hold up in a dude operation in the Rocky Mountains," Kipp Saile said, noting that about 15 of their 60 horses were Percheron mixes, the largest weighing 1,800 pounds.
At Sombrero in Estes Park, Colo., general manager Bryan "Kansas" Seck said they began making the transition to draft horses years ago because of rugged mountainous terrain and strength to carry a rider for longer periods of time.
But the larger horses also allowed them to eliminate their weight limit. The heaviest rider Seck ever put on a horse was 399 pounds.
"As long as you can get on a horse, you can ride," he said.
Laura Ewing of Baltimore noted that the horses back East are small and she was somewhat concerned when she arrived at Sombrero to go on a ride with her 6-year-old son, Alex.
"Because I'm a little heavier I rode a larger horse," Ewing said. "I was a little bit concerned at first, but when I saw the size of the horses that they have here, they're pretty hardy horses ... They're not ponies."
Another rider, who weighed 240 pounds, rode 1,800-pound Bam Bam, a brown Belgian draft horse with furry legs and a size 5 horseshoes — the smaller, traditional quarter-horses of about 1,000 pounds wear a 0 to 1. They rode up the trails dotted with elk, deer and chipmunks and breathtaking views of Longs Peak.
Like Little, the Sailes prefer Percheron draft horses because of their easygoing dispositions. However, larger horses are more expensive. They eat more, require larger doses of medications and at about $150 cost twice as much to put horseshoes on.
But unlike regular-sized riding horses that have seven months off after the tourist season, Little said, Percheron mixes can work most of the year, carrying elk and moose hunters into the backcountry in the fall and pulling wagons with tourists in the winter.
"You just feel better about having a big person on a big horse," Little said.
___
Associated Press writer P. Solomon Banda in Estes Park, Colo., contributed to this report.
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Big riders mean big horses on Western trails - The Big Story
bigstory.ap.org › IdahoApr 24, 2014 - "You just feel better about having a big person on a big horse," Little said. ... Styles is on Joker, a Belgian draft horse, while Little rides Dodge, ...Associated PressHere are some more sites regarding riding for larger people both height or weight or both.
Dude Ranches Use Big Horses for Big Riders - Horse ...
www.horseloversmath.com/dude-ranches-use-big-horses-big-riders/May 29, 2014 - For many people, renting a horse for a trail ride once a year, or once in a ... How many of these bigger draft horses do they have all together?Idaho ranch upgrades to bigger horses for bigger tourists
www.ktvb.com/story/news/local/2014/07/03/12154483/Apr 24, 2014 - Idaho ranch upgrades to bigger horses for bigger tourists. ... of his stock from quarter horses to larger varieties of draft horse crossbreeds. ... We take people out there that are 250 pounds on a four-hour ride in the mountains.KTVBBig riders mean big horses on Western trails | WBNS-10TV ...
www.10tv.com/content/stories/.../big-riders-big-horses.htmlApr 24, 2014 - The ranches say they're using draft horses, the diesels of the horse world, ... says he always "felt bad about telling people they're too big to ride.WBNS‑TVBig riders mean big horses on Western trails - PhotoGallery ...
www.suntimes.com/photos/galleries/index.html?story...Stables across the West are employing more of the larger draft horses to accommodate people who have gotten heavier in recent years. (AP Photo/P Solomon ...Chicago Sun‑TimesBelgian horse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgian_horseThe Belgian horse or Belgian draft horse, also known as Belgian Heavy Horse, Brabançon, ... The disease is similar to chronic lymphedema in humans. ... animals, but have also become popular as show horses, and pleasure riding horses.WikipediaDraft horse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draft_horseFor other uses of the term "heavy horse", see Heavy horse. ... Draft horses crossbred on light riding horses adds height and weight to the ensuing offspring, and ... Humans domesticated horses and needed them to perform a variety of duties.WikipediaDraft Crosses--Percheron Thoroughbred, Quarter Horse ...
mountaintrailhorses.com/draft-crosses-gentle-giants.htmlYou feel like you're being split in half when riding a 2,000-pound draft horse. Some saddle horses are too small for big people. They simply can't handle the ...How to Train Draft Horses for Pleasure Riding | Animals ...
animals.pawnation.com › Farm AnimalsIf your draft horse were human, he'd be the big, burly farmer working from dawn to ... but today many people train them to pull wagons and carts and ride them as...
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