A holiday in Sabina wouldn’t be complete without a horseback ride. Because these magnificent and tame animals allow visitors to enjoy greater distances than simply on foot, significantly changing perspective, observing and admiring the surroundings, even from a higher view. And being in contact with the horses allows you to feel even closer to the wonders that Nature can offer and being in touch with it becomes even more solid.
Horseback riding, a bonus for your health
There are numerous health benefits that horseback riding has to offer. Indeed, because perhaps it’s the layman that thinks the horse bears all the fatigue, in addition to the weight of the person riding. However, the rider stimulates, even during a simple ride, a multitude of muscles, ranging from the leg to the abdominal area, including the buttocks and arms.
As the horse’s speed increases, the heartbeats increase in parallel, and therefore the cardiovascular system also benefits, resulting in a consumption of calories. Concentration and balance increase, as wells as memory, the perception of one’s body in space and reflexes.
We need to be careful, however, because it is not an activity for everyone: the risks for pregnant women are obviously clear and it is equally not recommended for anyone suffering from spine and cardio-circulatory system pathologies. Relying on an expert guide, and avoiding considering oneself as an expert, will prevent accidental falls that could seriously compromise both present and future health. Yet even those who, for whatever reason, decide not to go for a ride can benefit from the company of horses during a day at the riding school.
It is no coincidence, in fact, that horses, as well as similar animals such as donkeys and mules, are among the animals most involved in pet therapy with disabled people of all ages. The horse is docile, meek, and above all responds to human emotions, and becomes a perfect co-therapist. It creates a profound relationship of empathy with humans, and forces them to face their emotions, even negative, and to overcome them. And it is not certain that only the disabled can benefit from it: being around horses is also beneficial for moments of particular stress, that can be found in adolescence, or pre-adolescence, and a great help for parents struggling with children who are soon to become adults.
On horseback in the Sabina region, a wide range of possibilities
It’s good for both the body and the spirit. And it involves everyone, young and old alike. A day at the stables, or on an educational farm, takes the children away from those public city gardens, where at most they spot a crow, giving them a bit of nature, showing them the animals and teaching them respect for these wonderful creatures.
A horseback ride in Sabina offers a total immersion of landscapes, each one more evocative than the other, proposing vast samples. An example of this are the rides aimed at discovering Monte Tancia organized by the Tancia Hostel House, the very traditional and historic ‘Osteria del Tancia’ inn, a stopping place during the transhumance and along the itineraries of the merchants.
Another fascinating scenario is provided by the Nazzano Tevere Farfa Nature Reserve, in the municipalities of Torrita Tiberina and Nazzano. Here, the “Equilibrium” equestrian club organizes rides, in addition to courses for beginners, in the reserve while discovering the clear Farfa river water and the luxuriant vegetation that grows on the banks.
Without having to move too far away, the Sulla collina di Castelnuovo di Farfa farmhouse – needless to say, in the municipality that bears the same name! – offers, in addition to sumptuous meals, horseback riding. Impero and the other horses are waiting impatiently for you!
Now let’s move a little further away, but we believe it is really worth it. Because the landscape, from the gentle hills, gives way to a more severe mountain, the Terminillo. And here we invite you to contact La Scuderia Terminillo stable, to enjoy the other types of altitude that the Sabina region has to offer, with a level of difficulty that obviously changes considerably.
If you love horses, it’s just a question of choosing. You have no excuses, because below you’ll find the contact info of the above-mentioned riding schools which are not too far from Le Residenze del Borgo di Cicignano:
Tancia Hostel House
Località Osteria Tancia
Monte San Giovanni in Sabina (RI)
Telephone number: +39 328.28.74.327
E-mail: tanciahostelhouse@gmail.com
Circolo ippico “Equilibrium”
Via Santa Lucia 5
Poggio Mirteto (RI)
Telephone number: +39 333.30.35.33
Sulla collina di Castelnuovo di Farfa
Via Convienti
Castelnuovo di Farfa (RI)
Telephone number: +39 327.94.92.282
La Scuderia Terminillo
Loc. 5 Confini
Micigliano (RI)
Telephone number: +39 339.53.73.441
