Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Dec 1, 2012 7:17:24 GMT
Some of you might have seen I've been looking for someone to ride harvey, hacking out, which involes a bit more than just going on a hack. Got a few adverts about the internet.
So many people asking if I have a school to ride him in as how are they supposed to school him on a hack!
Oh my lordy, I have never had the luxury of a school, only while harvey was away, all my horses have been schooled on hacks and so will the ponies when their time comes.
Heck however did people school horses before arenas became popular there must be tonnes of horses never schooled for that reason. Grrrrrrrrr waste of my flipping time because I'm not actually busy enough! Rant over thanks for reading ill go back to my non schooled horses!
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Post by lils on Dec 1, 2012 8:20:34 GMT
Ponies get so sour going round and round in circles!
Both my ponies i Qualified For HOYS, Come What May and Go With The Flo were only hacked!!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 1, 2012 9:01:53 GMT
In 45 yrs of riding, I have never had a school!
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silvershadow
Full Member
<3 Silver Shadow <3 Horninglow Ennerdale Water <3 Kincardine Garry <3
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Post by silvershadow on Dec 1, 2012 10:52:21 GMT
I have a school I use over the road, but generally just ride mine in my field!
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Post by auntiebarb on Dec 1, 2012 10:59:52 GMT
I have ridden for 56 years and only been in a school for odd lessons with the famous Mrs Bates!
My horses are totally balanced, happy, love a gallop, only buck when starting a canter sometimes! which I love, can jump if asked, bitless, but a pleasure to ride and own.
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sarahp
Happy to help
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Post by sarahp on Dec 1, 2012 11:07:47 GMT
I was about to answer your headline question with one word only - easily!
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Post by fanfarefan on Dec 1, 2012 12:23:00 GMT
we are fortunate enough to have a school , and for the mini's its a god send , as they are a little too small to ride , however, when we had the bigger ones, we generally used it for a bit of lunging or for turnout in bad weather , we never really used it for schooling , that was all done out on the roads the same as we had done for all those years before we had it
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sarahp
Happy to help
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Post by sarahp on Dec 1, 2012 13:07:50 GMT
I've always had a 20 x 40 yards, not meters, school which is actually an old hard tennis court covered with sand, so not exactly the best or smartest one! Newly broken ones were ridden first in the fields as the school was a bit tight for unbalanced babies - ride straight at that particular fencepost, do a BIG circle at the clump of nettles, downward transition by the oak tree etc. The secret is to think in advance where you will do what rather then just wander aimlessly around wherever.
I found native ponies are best schooled on hacks, especially if you have bits where you can do the odd circle, broad paths for leg yielding etc as we do, lots of commons around here but the downside is I had to trailer out to hack as our road became too dangerous to ride along. They can get bored with too much in a school and start playing up.
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Post by honeypot on Dec 1, 2012 16:26:35 GMT
We never had a school. If you are lucky out on a hack we might find a field with hedges to make sides but not very often.
The reason why there are so many naughty ponies is they feed them too much and then make them fitter on the lunge or going round in circles in a school. No wonder they nap and buck.
Someon one once told my daughter she was lucky because she had such easy ponies, people do not take in to conderation the hours spent hacking teaching the pony.
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Post by xJBDx on Dec 1, 2012 16:41:04 GMT
We too do not have a school, just lots of hacking and a slopey, uneven field, which I sometimes ride in. My SHP came 3rd at HOYS this year and I only really school him on a hack! Though, I would do anything for a menage!!!!
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Post by nici on Dec 2, 2012 12:10:11 GMT
We currently have an unfenced 12 acre field for schooling in. The kids do struggle the size / shape of their circles sometimes, but working near one of the corners helps with that. Ponies find it much more entertaining than a school, as they also get to go for a few good gallops while they're out, and they do enjoy a race! In previous years, by this time of year I'd be wishing we had a school as our grazing fields are no longer suitable for riding, but having the new field to ride in is far better.
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Post by mollymalone on Dec 2, 2012 19:33:17 GMT
I've never had a school either!! I would, if I could, but some many people dont.
I do take my horse to an EC and use their school and jumps, although I have jumps at home its a faff putting them out and putting them away again!
If I school at home other than out hacking, its in an unmarked area within a 6 acre field. I havent found any disadvantages of not having a school other than in the summer my ground gets quite hard.
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Post by tosca on Dec 2, 2012 22:25:50 GMT
People do love their school.
I often think they are totally brain-washed, as a youngster in the late '40's early '50's we had a cinder track and although we produced to County standard were considered 'posh' because of it/
Lately we have one, but a lot of school work is done out hacking as it always was, to be honest, it is surplus to requirements.
Having had PSG and above dressage horses, and intermediate event horses schooled mostly on hacks and grass, I cant say not having one has held us back, and all our animals will work effectively on a less than perfect surface. I do laugh quietly when folk complain of less than perfect ground is 'dangerous. for their cobs and hunters, even their workers, what a joke, its their job for goodness sake, if there is a bit of a puddle or mud patch in the ring, any of ours would turn their hoof to bog-trotter mode and deal with it, all in a days work.
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Post by sophie747 on Dec 4, 2012 18:48:14 GMT
How refreshing to read this! All my ponies "just hack out"! They are interested in what they are doing and have fun aswell as learning a bit aswell!!
P.s Never had or likely to have anything resembling an arena!
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Post by sophie747 on Dec 4, 2012 18:51:03 GMT
How refreshing to read this! All my ponies "just hack out"! They are interested in what they are doing and have fun aswell as learning a bit aswell!!
P.s Never had or likely to have anything resembling an arena!
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Post by catkin on Dec 5, 2012 17:43:41 GMT
Well, of course you can. As described above, out hacking etc and in a field. In fact, I think its a very important part of the schooling of any animal to work in open spaces, without the 'support' of a fence. Also encourages forward thinking, self carriage - I could go on. However, I do consider it a blessing to have a small arena. This makes it easier to ride at home in wet weather, is great when starting young ponies and of course, makes things easier with small children too. I also use mine to 'turn out' those on limited grazing.
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Post by umuppet on Dec 10, 2012 11:08:24 GMT
No school either, just roads and a 42 acre field. I've broken all my youngsters in the open field, it teaches them not to lean on railings and it balancess them faster.
All my lots have done well, but its just over winter that i have to grit my teeth abit.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Dec 10, 2012 12:20:34 GMT
the amount of people asking me for a school, i had a lady coming this weekend and she called to say she wasnt coming as she found a horse with access to a school. I have asked if i can use the school at the end of my road at weekends as i cant ride in the week but even that consists of a hack to it. I shall not need to use it in summer. He much preferes the hacking to schooling. this is the first time ive ever had access to a school and its not the be all and end all, i wouldnt be doing it if harvey wasnt coming back into work.
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Post by flee on Dec 11, 2012 12:37:45 GMT
Ponies get so sour going round and round in circles! ! Going round and round in circles IS boring . Correct ,constructive and imaginitive schooling isn't. |
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sarahp
Happy to help
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Post by sarahp on Dec 11, 2012 13:09:48 GMT
True oh wise one. The trouble is that that requires the human to engage brain first!
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Post by flee on Dec 11, 2012 14:58:39 GMT
True oh wise one. The trouble is that that requires the human to engage brain first! Ah ! I didn't think that through did I ? |
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Post by sjw87 on Dec 11, 2012 15:22:36 GMT
I have a 5min hack along a lane to off road riding but also have a school.
I'm just trying to remember last time I used it. The gate might rust shut at this rate...lol
Sent from my ST18i using proboards
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Post by cyffryn on Dec 18, 2012 18:54:38 GMT
Another with no school - occasionally go for lessons in a school which is nice. Think there are an awful lot of riders who are not happy hacking - they use the excuse they need a school to train a horse properly to cover their problem. It is also why we see a lot of robotic horses and ponies in the show ring and lower end of dressage. It is thankfully obvious from a lot of comments on here many of us make do very well with roads,tracks,hills and dales  |
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Post by kickon on Dec 29, 2012 14:50:08 GMT
HA Makes me sick  Have been doing it for years and the best schooling is done off the school... If you and your horse/pony are well ballance on the side of a hill then everything else is a walk in the park  |
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Post by parsnip on Dec 31, 2012 13:22:13 GMT
I used to show Connemaras in my youth and their owner wouldn't let them in a school/arena at all. He insisted on them being schooled on hacks and us never taking the same route two days in a row. As he said they don't have shows in schools! They were fantastic ponies and had the best lateral work I have ever encountered (even if our legs hurt a lot!) from all the shoulder in and leg-yielding we had to do on hacks!
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Post by solitaire sr on Jan 12, 2013 11:40:38 GMT
All my schooling is done out hacking.
i have a 4 year old arab gelding that i backed myself and schooled out riding. i think a horse needs variety, instead of boring school work.
i plan to put all our hacking into practice this weekend as i hire out a local menage just to do a bit of work to get him ready for the ridden classes, but i would only ever school a max of once a week,(if we had our own school which we dont) my arab is vey highly strung and schooling daily would bore his intelligent mind.
hacking all the way for me.
i know so many people have have had horses at hoys and have never had the horses/ponies even enter a school.
xxx
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Post by catkin on Jan 23, 2013 18:46:11 GMT
Oh that we could go hacking at the moment. Flipping snow!
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robcl
Junior Member
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Post by robcl on Feb 4, 2013 19:14:46 GMT
My goodness all my schooling is done in a field or out hacking. We show and do affiliated dressage and I'm very proud that I got my horse to the regaionals and won on the inter regional teams having been no where near a school.
Someone once said to me that she couldnt possibly start competing yet because her school had not been put in. grrrr makes me so mad, I think its an excuse for not being able to cope with riding outside the confines of a fence.
Having said all that if anyone would like to buy me a school I would be enternaly grateful
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Post by shawnthesheep on Feb 6, 2013 9:48:09 GMT
I am lucky enough to have a school, but only use it for my babies to play in when the weather is bad & they have to stay in. I also use it to turn my 13hh pony out, who's prone to laminitus when the lush grass comes through. He has a hay net & water in there and can see all of the others, which must be better for him than being couped up in the stable!
My others hack out, which I agree is the best way to school them. :-)
Many years ago before everyone had a lorry or trailer, we used to hack 5-10 miles to a show so that when we arrived they were already warmed up and needed a quick brush before going in the ring :-) A VERY early start to the day though!
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Post by maddiesmum on Feb 6, 2013 10:16:33 GMT
I agree with all! Hacking is the best education you can give your horses and ponies! People used to look at my mum like she was mad that I used to hack out my ponies (and they qualified HOYS, RIHS, BSPS etc), I believe it was the making of them! Stick by it today, my horses have always hacked far more than anything else as does my daughters lead rein pony, plus walking the lanes leading him is helping me to get fit haha, win win! and if you want to school at home, do it in the field hun, or fence an area off. We had a grass school for years and was totally fine  |
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