Horse Rentals Could Be Riding Into the Sunset

Not so long ago, it was easy to rent a horse by the hour in San Diego County, but many stables have closed their doors in the past few years because of rising insurance costs or the inability to even obtain a policy.

About 20 stables used to exist in the county where riders could enjoy a one- or two-hour jaunt on back-country trails in areas such as Ramona, Julian, Poway, rural San Diego and Palomar Mountain. Now, a mere handful survive.

Insurers Alarmed

Liz Hammond, co-owner of Holidays on Horseback in Descanso, said insurance companies became alarmed at the number of problems caused by single-hour rentals, including a lack of experienced guidance given to riders.

“Owners found in the short rides that people would race out and race back, and the horses would get nutty and psychotic,” Hammond said. “The insurance companies looked at the claims and saw that the problems were with hourly rides.”

As a result, insurance companies raised their rates or simply wouldn’t insure at all, said Anna Glover, Hammond’s insurance broker in Mammoth Lakes.

This strategy doesn’t sit well with Ron Mullis, who considers insurance companies’ pricing “a gigantic rip-off.”

Mullis, owner of Sandi’s Stables, in the Tijuana River Valley in San Diego, said he looked into getting insurance for his 40-horse operation when he opened two years ago. He said he was quoted a rate of $15,600 a year for 10 or fewer horses and $4,800 up front to provide hourly rentals. He said he opted to go without insurance. Renting a horse at Sandi’s costs $8 the first hour, $15 for two hours and $5 for each additional hour.

Mullis is not the only Tijuana River Valley stable owner who has eschewed insurance on his rent-by-the-hour rides. Two others, D-Bar-D Stables and Hilltop Stables, have also decided to do without. These two stables charge customers $10 an hour--or $20 for three hours--to ride.

One Premium Is $20,000 a Year

Glover says insurance for stables that provide hourly rentals are about two-and-a-half times higher than for outfits providing guided pack tours; the highest premium she knows of is $20,000 a year. Overnight pack trips are a safer risk, she said, because the horse is not being worked as much.

Such pack trips might be safer, but they also put more of a strain on typically small stables.

“It’s more of an effort for longer rides and overnights,” Hammond said. “It’s like moving an army with lots of equipment and things.”

Hammond’s Holidays on Horseback offers guided trips from a day to a week, ranging from $60 to $100 per person per day. Holidays on Horseback also claims to be the only outfitter offering overnight guided trail rides in Southern California.

Barbara Gerrior of Horsemen’s Park in San Diego faced a battle three years ago when the city sought to terminate her lease because she was unable to obtain a $1-million insurance policy that the city, as the property owner, required for protection against liability claims. She said she was unable to locate a carrier and had to end her hourly horse rentals. However, she still boards horses, gives lessons and offers hayrides.

“Insurance companies are in business to make money, and they were losing money because of the greed and irresponsibility of the general public and legal profession,” Gerrior said. “People aren’t responsible for themselves anymore. They’re always looking for someone else to blame and take care of them.”

The Broken Fingernail Case

Mullis, the Sandi’s Stables owner, recounted a story about a woman who threatened to sue him unless he paid her $80 because she broke a fake fingernail. She complained that she took time off work to go to the manicurist and suffered mental trauma from the experience.

“I told her to get in line and that I had an excellent attorney she could talk to,” Mullis said. “She was confident. I’m quite certain she had done this kind of thing in the past.”

Mullis said some riders invite danger when they overestimate their abilities and get into trouble by mounting a horse they can’t control.

But despite the problems, there still are a handful of stables offering horse rides by the hour.

Rancho San Diego Stables in Rancho San Diego, for example, offers riding “lessons” for $10 an hour, said owner Marjorie Armour. She said that two years ago, her stable provided unguided rentals, but she was forced to change the format to guided lessons because of new insurance restrictions. Armour said she pays $15,000 a year for a $300,000 insurance policy, without which she’d be out of business.

Joe and Cindy Elliott lease land from San Diego Country Estates in Ramona for their rental operation at Rainbow Ranch. They offer “lessons” instead of “rentals” to stay in business and to maintain insurance coverage.

“The reason we’re able to operate . . . is because we’ve built a lesson in with a trail ride,” Joe Elliott said.

Adults can ride at Rainbow Ranch for $12 an hour. Riders are given a lesson in an arena before a guide takes them out on a trail, Elliott said.

Business at Rainbow Ranch has increased as other stables have dropped their hourly rentals. But even with the increased business, Joe Elliott said he is concerned because “everybody’s so sue-happy.”

Despite the Elliotts’ success, many stable owners fear it won’t be long until all forms of rental riding are relegated to the past.

“It’s not just a problem here,” Mullis said. “It’s a problem everywhere with the insurance. In the future, I don’t expect there to be any rental stables.”