Saddle Up Riding Club

Please don’t even think about going here. Where shall I begin. I’ve had horses, was educated via 4-​H, and I have a good handle on how to care for horses. I came with my young niece (11) and sister and we were expecting a riding lesson for the three of us.
First the «instructor» (and I put that in quotes for a reason) asked if my niece was «okay saddling up» on her own, without ever having met her, and they pointed to a halter and said «you can take her out there» pointing to the paddock. Luckily I was able to help my niece, who is fairly comfortable with horses and is a good rider, but how the heck would they know that?! Then they pulled my ride out of her stall, Alice. When we got out of the barn I noticed her back right hock was swollen. I said, «She’s obviously lame, so I’m not comfortable riding this horse.» (How would you like to go trotting around with a sprained ankle?!) The instructor was surprised. «Oh, yeah, seems like it,» then she thought for a second and said, «Well, I could give you James, but…» And I assumed «but…» meant James was a handful. No, he was just a draft horse who was trained to pull a cart, not hold a rider. Then my sister’s horse was brought out of the barn, a 25-​year old (yeah, that’s old for a horse) gelding who had sweat and saddle marks all over his back. I said, «Looks like he was just ridden,» and the instructor said, «No, that was yesterday.» So obviously he was not groomed or washed after what looked like quite a workout, and left to stew in a stall all night. Then my sister watched as the instructor saddled up. She told her to stay away from his head because he might bite, then stay away from his rear, because he might kick. When we finally got into the ring, I decided I would just walk around and let my niece get the benefit of a lesson and a good ride. What she got was a pony that thought it was a bull and had she not known how to ride she could have been seriously injured. After the instructor shouted out «give her leg» and «tell her who’s boss» a few times she asked another staff member (a young girl) to get on the horse and get her to mind. Well, that did no help, because this horse was obviously very poorly trained, in fact all the horses were completely lacking in that area, precisely the reason these horses were purchased for therapeutic riding (i.e. pulling the horse along at a walk) not for riding in a real «lesson.» We got a lesson alright, a lesson how not to treat horses and run a stable.
Not sure why Pinellas Horse recommended them when they were booked. They might reconsider next time. There’s a reason it’s only $ 25 an hour, but it was still a big waste of money.