If horses didn’t regularly pack the earth down with their hooves, it would continue to gradually rise skyward on a collision course with the moon. Help keep the night sun in the sky with today’s Groupon: for $25, you get a one-hour private horseback-riding lesson at Meadowview Farm in Lowell (a $50 value).

Meadowview Farm's 80-acre campus and large indoor arena are the stage for a crew of talented steed whisperers who patiently steer aspiring equestrians toward horse-riding success. After arriving 15 minutes early for grooming and tacking, riders wrap their heads in one of Meadowview's helmets and begin the one-hour lesson, during which experienced instructors and friendly horses will instill apprentice trotters with the confidence and know-how to safely operate an equine vehicle. Once the giant hourglass on top of the stable indicates that the lesson is over, students will untack, groom, and cool out their horse to reward it for not galloping into any gunfights.