Contrary to conventional wisdom, one can in fact look a gift horse in the mouth, now that the mouth no longer houses the retina-scorching nuclear reactor that powers the horse. Get an eyeful of equine incisors with today’s Groupon to Raynham Stables in Nobleton. Choose between the following options:

• For $25, you get one 1.5-hour private horseback-riding lesson (a $59.33 value).
• For $75, you get three 1.5-hour private horseback-riding lessons (a $177.99 value).<p>

All riders must bring along the following gear for their lessons:

• Boots with a half-inch to one-inch heel (available to borrow for free)
• Long pants (loose pants and jeans not recommended)
• Gloves<p>

Helmed by Equine Canada Level III coach Lindsay Mahon, Raynham Stables’ staff of certified instructors deftly guides pupils of all ages through private horseback-riding lessons tailored to individual abilities. The 1.5-hour one-on-one session kicks off with a 30-minute introduction to the basics of grooming and tacking a carrot-fuelled auto, including how to dress the steed in full riding regalia. Once neigh-sayers have been suited up, riders settle into the saddle for 30 minutes of mounted instruction tailored to address individual skill sets, interests, and desires to recreate centaur-heavy dream sequences. Nascent pony operators learn essential equine choreography such as walking, cantering, and trotting, and instructors can opt to run more advanced students through the gravity-flouting rigors of jumping lessons. Back at the stables, a 30-minute tutorial focuses on untacking and stowing away equipment. Raynham Stables requires that all lesson-learners don a helmet (provided by stables), swaddle feet in boots with a half-inch to one-inch heel (provided by stables, if necessary), wear gloves, and cloak limbs in long pants.