To Be or Not to Be In a Lesson on a Weekday....

First off, I love the barn where I board the fourlegged kids. It is a wonderful place to keep horses. There is really only one issue that seems to have reared it's ugly head again, and it is the issue of "Weekday Evening Lessons." There is one larger covered arena, a very small indoor arena, and an oudoor arena that is currenty undoergoing it's winter swamp phase. Essentially there is one place for everyone to ride, with the small indoor only really suitable for longeing. It can get really chaotic in the covered arena in the evenings after everyone gets off work.  Due to this chaos, a rule was instated that lessons were not to happen from 4-7PM.

The theoretical pros of this rule:

• No more group lessons clogging up the arena.
• No lesson riders needing the rail, the jump, the quarter line, etc, so potentially better arena flow
• Potentially fewer riders in the arena.

The theoretical cons of this rule

• Difficult for children to have lessons on weeknights, due to only later lesson slots
• People who are day shift workers (i.e. 9-5) will find it difficult to take weekday lessons
• Could produce a glut of weekend lessons, and 7PM weekday evening lessons.
• Could dissuade riders from continuing their equestrian education.

My personal experience has been that this rule has eliminated my weekday lessons, and that makes me pretty sad. I have converted to Saturday lessons, and I am now part of a parade of lessons. I still ride during the week, and usually during the no-lesson window. The arena is usually pretty empty; maybe one or two riders with me usually.

So my question is, could this rule be amended to better serve all members of the population? I am sure that if one or two nights a week, lessons were permitted, the strain on the weekends would be lessened. And maybe if certain types of lessons were permitted only in the small indoor, e.g., lead line and longe line lessons.  Unleashing beginner children into a large busy arena is probably something that should be avoided at any cost anyways.  Competent children who can negotiate traffic safely are a different matter.

I would like to hear of compromises, because I think many are out there. I think that everyone should be encouraged to ride with a trainer, and any policy that has the effect of making ignorance bliss should be adjusted accordingly.