2020 Hacking & Riding Thread

[Huggy]

I'm in shock. Another lovely morning, and off we go on a nice chilled hack, only marred by a pesky crab fly that I just couldn't get off Hogan. Rounded a bend, and coming towards us, 2 riders. Not only did they pass us without Hogan stopping but they trotted away, and I really thought I was in for it. Perfect little lad, not a flicker. I have to say I was gobsmacked, especially as we were outward bound, and they were headed home. Be interesting to see if it goes the same way next time.

 

[chunky monkey]

The boys have just been getting light work this last week. Riding one leading the other to the end of the road and back. The got the day off yesterday as i was busy in the garden. Stuck my head over the bank last night to say hi and billy started whinnying. So this morning i got up earlier and went for a ride. Figured the roads would be quiet for the sunday bank holiday morning as its also very grey and wind gusts. Complete difference to yesterdays glorious hot sunshine. So i decide to ride and lead. If i got to the end of the road and it looked quiet i would risk leading the mile up the main road to the country lane. Well it was, so we ended up doing our 4 mile route round. Havent done that far for 3 weeks so it felt lovely. Not to many people out either. I really dont like leading on the main roads with traffic about as its not safe taking two if billy has a hissy. Unfortunately some of our tracks and bridleways are not wide enough to ride and lead so i can only do it on the road if its very quiet. With no rider for chunky at the moment hes getting a bit jealous of me going out with billy. I think he perks up when he gets to go out with billy on hacks. But end of the road and back gets a bit boring for all of us.

 

[Huggy]

Holy cow! The weather forecast said "breezy" - full force gale more like! However, I had got up and ready, so gritted my teeth, and promised myself if the cows were there, we wouldn't try and cope with them AND the wind. They weren't, so off we went. It really was very blowy, but Hogan was fine. It was slightly sheltered in the inclosure, but coming back along the main track was quite hair raising. The wind was gusting, so it would go quiet for a minute, then sound like a train was coming. Got home in one piece, and felt very brave which is a bit sad, really.

 

[chunky monkey]

Boys had the day off yesterday. Decided today i was going to do a polework session with Billy down in the field. He was a bit keen and far too much rushing over them. Then it turned entertaining, although i didnt think so. Infact i was incredibly lucky to sit it all. I was just trotting over a row of four raised poles, he hits the last one, knocks it on the floor. Carries on away. So i new it wasnt between his legs. Two seconds later hes exploding. Front legs off the ground, then back legs, then front legs jump sideways right. At which point i feel air between my leg and saddle. Uh oh im going. Land back in saddle amazingly. Stands for like one second then he spins around a bit 90°. Im desperately gathering up my washing line reins for all im worth. Then he jumps left this time, i feel air again but sit it. A few paces forward and i manage to stop him. Hes having a few nostril snorts. Then spins round a bit more. Then i get him to calm.
Im looking to see if theres anything on the floor in the grass. Between us and the jump. Look at the jump, thinking maybe he did catch the pole and drag it. Nope it was laying on ground infront of wing, so he definately didnt have it trapped under his legs. Couldnt see a thing. Im thinking maybe a snakes just bitten him or something but couldnt see a thing.
So i take a breath and they proceed to walk round to do the run of poles again. As i get round to the start i look on the ground in front of us and there a rock with some plastic round it, the size of a football laying in the grass. Billy looks stops looks at it. Im like well that wasnt there 30 seconds ago. Then realize that this rock has just come of the building site thats above us. The bloke is there working in the garden with a digger. Just before id gone over the first jump i heard someone yell on the site. I thought it was the workmen communicating between them. Little did i know that it was because this bloody large rock was rolling down the hillside behind us. We were heading completely away from it as we went over the jumps. Billy either heard it coming at a rapid rate of knots or as id turned off the last jump he might have caught site of it out the corner of his eye. No wonder he had a mega hissy. I was cursing him for being a stupid twat. Ill forgive him on this occasion.
I did try to go over the set of poles again but as Billy got over the 4th pole he decided he was going to have a little explosion again. Fortunately i got it under control within 3 paces. Hed obviously got it in his head that the last pole was pure evil. I decided not to attempt any more pole work after that. Ill leave it a couple of days and try the run again, hopefully he'll have forgot about it by they. Ive now got to go move a rock out the field before the next session to. Think i can find a rabbit hole in the field to fill with it.

 

[Huggy]

Boys had the day off yesterday. Decided today i was going to do a polework session with Billy down in the field. He was a bit keen and far too much rushing over them. Then it turned entertaining, although i didnt think so. Infact i was incredibly lucky to sit it all. I was just trotting over a row of four raised poles, he hits the last one, knocks it on the floor. Carries on away. So i new it wasnt between his legs. Two seconds later hes exploding. Front legs off the ground, then back legs, then front legs jump sideways right. At which point i feel air between my leg and saddle. Uh oh im going. Land back in saddle amazingly. Stands for like one second then he spins around a bit 90°. Im desperately gathering up my washing line reins for all im worth. Then he jumps left this time, i feel air again but sit it. A few paces forward and i manage to stop him. Hes having a few nostril snorts. Then spins round a bit more. Then i get him to calm.
Im looking to see if theres anything on the floor in the grass. Between us and the jump. Look at the jump, thinking maybe he did catch the pole and drag it. Nope it was laying on ground infront of wing, so he definately didnt have it trapped under his legs. Couldnt see a thing. Im thinking maybe a snakes just bitten him or something but couldnt see a thing.
So i take a breath and they proceed to walk round to do the run of poles again. As i get round to the start i look on the ground in front of us and there a rock with some plastic round it, the size of a football laying in the grass. Billy looks stops looks at it. Im like well that wasnt there 30 seconds ago. Then realize that this rock has just come of the building site thats above us. The bloke is there working in the garden with a digger. Just before id gone over the first jump i heard someone yell on the site. I thought it was the workmen communicating between them. Little did i know that it was because this bloody large rock was rolling down the hillside behind us. We were heading completely away from it as we went over the jumps. Billy either heard it coming at a rapid rate of knots or as id turned off the last jump he might have caught site of it out the corner of his eye. No wonder he had a mega hissy. I was cursing him for being a stupid twat. Ill forgive him on this occasion.
I did try to go over the set of poles again but as Billy got over the 4th pole he decided he was going to have a little explosion again. Fortunately i got it under control within 3 paces. Hed obviously got it in his head that the last pole was pure evil. I decided not to attempt any more pole work after that. Ill leave it a couple of days and try the run again, hopefully he'll have forgot about it by they. Ive now got to go move a rock out the field before the next session to. Think i can find a rabbit hole in the field to fill with it.

Oh my life! That was lucky - what if you'd been farther back? You could both have been hit! Well sat though - you must have a super glue bottom! Were the workmen aware how close a call that was ?

 

[chunky monkey]

Oh my life! That was lucky - what if you'd been farther back? You could both have been hit! Well sat though - you must have a super glue bottom! Were the workmen aware how close a call that was ?

Oh yes. The workman on the digger was actually my brother. Hes actually doing a bit of work for the builder on the site 4 doors down. Hed been moving top soil from our garden and yard all day to the site. Hes actually extended my lawn and made it flat. A job thats only been waiting 5 years. We just need to throw some grass seed over it now. Took the digger back down to level what hed been moving. The sites garden is very steep and then adjoins into my field next door. He actually said later. When it roled. It was getting up speed as it went and started bouncing off the ground, so more like the dambusters bouncing bomb. Fortunately it goes flat at the bottom which brought ut to a halt. He actually saw billys moves and knows he is a twat at thr best of times. I think he would have been off the digger and over the fence if id have been lying flat out on the floor.
When i go down to feed the sheep ill get a picture of how steep it is. I was probably 100metres away from the site. Billy wasnt even bothered by the digger noise working above which was a huge plus too. In his earlier days he would have stressed when he was exposed to seeing or hearing a digger moving at that distance.

 

[Huggy]

Went out first thing - absolutely FREEZING! Bitterly cold wind, but bright sunshine. We stayed out longer, and bliss - no cows! We're now beginning to relax on different routes, and Hogan really seems to be settling into it. He has the comfiest trot - I'd happily go the whole ride in trot - He's like an armchair! I'm liking this mellow Hogan .They've opened the forest car parks, so it'll get busier now, though I doubt we'll get the tourists in the summer this year.

 

[GaryB]

Another long weekend

On Friday we had jumps set up in the school so we had a play with those at about 75cm.
On Saturday I decided to take advantage of the lockdown. We have a busy road nears the stables which is normally too dangerous to cross on horseback, but currently is quite quite. Harvey and I had a nice hack round a new route. It was all very frightening for a horse. He was funny when we got back as he has never come home that way before and we were nearly at the gae before he recognised where we were
Sunday as some poework followed by practicing jumping over a 90cm spread which was all very exciting for Harvey.

Hacking
1 hour
4 miles

Schooling
1 hour


Totals
Schooling
12 hours 10

Hacking
20 hours
70.1 miles

 

[GaryB]

Yay! Boris' new rules mean I can now ride after work. I took OH on a trip as she isn't allowed at the yard at weekends because of social distancing etc, but evenings are fine and only one livery is allowed at a time. We disinfect everything that has been touched.

Anyway we had a play over the grid, practised some S turns over a small jump and then had a quick play jumping building up to a spread with the front at 90cm and the back at 95cm. Harvey was very good which meant I finished quicker than I had expected, but he had done all that I had asked and planned so I stopped.

20m canter circles with a couple of canter poles.

Cantering down the grid - in the background the rustic pole I used for the S turns across the school

Vertical

Spread

Schooling
25 minutes

Totals
Schooling
12 hours 35

Hacking
20 hours
70.1 miles

 

[Huggy]

Harvey loves his jumping, doesn't he!?

 

[GaryB]

Harvey loves his jumping, doesn't he!?

Other than food its definitely his favourite thing

 

[Huggy]

Another gorgeous morning. Hogan seems to be improving exponentially at the moment. We met OH walking the dog as we went through the gate - normally, I would have expected to lag behind once we separated, with Hogan being such a slow coach, but we actually overtook him on a parallel track, at walk. We then trotted the whole way home, which not long ago would have been unthinkable. I'll have to start going farther afield, or we'll only be out for 20 mins!

 

[horselover96]

Would you still compete with a horse with clubbed feet or not? I want to enter my horse in British dressage competitions however he has bilateral clubbed feet. I want to know if it is a good idea or not.

 

[Huggy]

Would you still compete with a horse with clubbed feet or not? I want to enter my horse in British dressage competitions however he has bilateral clubbed feet. I want to know if it is a good idea or not.

Sorry don't know much about dressage or clubbed feet.

 

[Huggy]

Out at 8 prompt. Went outside the inclosure for the first time in a while, and despite cows just across the road, Hogan was fine. Even managed a trot along the outside track. Going round the outside brings it up to an hour's hack, and later in the week am hoping to meet my friend (she'll be on foot) to actually cross over the road to the big wide world.

 

[Trewsers]

Would you still compete with a horse with clubbed feet or not? I want to enter my horse in British dressage competitions however he has bilateral clubbed feet. I want to know if it is a good idea or not.

You might fare better if you post in another section and get more replies - I'm sorry I've no idea either.

 

[Huggy]

Very warm this morning, even at 8am. As we walked along the lane from the yard, a ninja cyclist startled Hogan from behind, and from there, we were doomed. He spent the entire ride looking for something to spook at. Best contenders were the newly flowered, random rhodedendrums dotted around the inclosure. He contained himself until we were almost home, then threw a massive spook at a birdhouse in one of the gardens. Legs buckled, whipped round in a circle at the speed of light, but thank goodness there were walkers a bit behind us, or he'd have been off like a greyhound. Lost a stirrup, and my shoulder's a bit strained, but stayed on and he calmed down. Silly boy.

 

[GaryB]

On Saturday I decided to venture back on to out local short bridleway to give harvey a change of scenery. He was most miffed that he couldn't canter and played up all the way home. I tied him up as usual for a wash down and he somehow managed to pull back, break the gate post and canter off. Obviously beinbg Harvey he stopped at the nearest grass, but when he saw me coming he decided he still wanted a canter so he jumped the 1.2m gate into one of the paddocks and spent the nect 5 minutes galloping up and down before he let me catch him. Then he wanted a treat - Ha!

On Sunday I tried to school but everything I did got progressively worse so in the end I got off in disgust

Saturday was our grooms 18th birthday. She was very despondent as she couldn't have a party with her friends and she thought that we had forgotten. We dressed up the kitchen with banners and balloons and bought her lots of silly things (a unicorn hat solk, pink socks etc). We also had some cider for her first kegal drink and a Unicorn birthday cake. It wasn't a big party with 3 of us, but I tgik she will remember it!

I'd booked the school for after work on Wednesday which turned out to be very hot (24c). Harvey worked reasonably although he is still finding it very exciting and tending to rush into grids.

Baking on Wednesday!

Schooling
50 minutes

Hacking
4 miles
1 hour 10

Totals
Schooling
13 hours 25

Hacking
21 hours 10
74.1 miles

 

[Trewsers]

On Saturday I decided to venture back on to out local short bridleway to give harvey a change of scenery. He was most miffed that he couldn't canter and played up all the way home. I tied him up as usual for a wash down and he somehow managed to pull back, break the gate post and canter off. Obviously beinbg Harvey he stopped at the nearest grass, but when he saw me coming he decided he still wanted a canter so he jumped the 1.2m gate into one of the paddocks and spent the nect 5 minutes galloping up and down before he let me catch him. Then he wanted a treat - Ha!

On Sunday I tried to school but everything I did got progressively worse so in the end I got off in disgust

Saturday was our grooms 18th birthday. She was very despondent as she couldn't have a party with her friends and she thought that we had forgotten. We dressed up the kitchen with banners and balloons and bought her lots of silly things (a unicorn hat solk, pink socks etc). We also had some cider for her first kegal drink and a Unicorn birthday cake. It wasn't a big party with 3 of us, but I tgik she will remember it!

I'd booked the school for after work on Wednesday which turned out to be very hot (24c). Harvey worked reasonably although he is still finding it very exciting and tending to rush into grids.

Baking on Wednesday!

Schooling
50 minutes

Hacking
4 miles
1 hour 10

Totals
Schooling
13 hours 25

Hacking
21 hours 10
74.1 miles

That sounded like a great party for her!!! And yes, bet she'll always remember it.
Norty Harvey though - what's got into him?!!! Fancy escaping and having himself an illicit grass snack!

 

[GaryB]

Norty Harvey though - what's got into him?!!! Fancy escaping and having himself an illicit grass snack

He wasn't the most popular horse on the yard (and the gatepost he broke was concreted in so we haven't worked out how to replace it yet)