Canter on tarmac - do you?

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pennyturner

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Daughters enjoying a little canter on a lane received unsolicited feedback from an opinionated fat lady in a car not to canter on the road.

Ponies are unshod and never had a day lame in their life, and appear to enjoy 'springing' a hill on the back roads. Under control of course.

So what do you think? Sure to damage their legs, or none of her business?
 
Personally I wouldn't due to potential concussion injuries but have often seen the local hunt hurtling down my lane and farm track in 3rd gear...sometimes it doesn't appear to be intentional though!
 
pennyturner said:
Daughters enjoying a little canter on a lane received unsolicited feedback from an opinionated fat lady in a car not to canter on the road.

Ponies are unshod and never had a day lame in their life, and appear to enjoy 'springing' a hill on the back roads. Under control of course.

So what do you think? Sure to damage their legs, or none of her business?
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I wouldn't have said it was down to a stranger to pass comment, however I personally do not canter on road (on purpose anyway ;) )
 
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Yes definitely!!! We are shoeless though and therefore perfect feet for it. :D I have had comments but I just ask what they know that I dont??

If shod then no. Then you would be asking for trouble.
 
I went galloping down the road the other day. Not my idea, though!

On healthy bare feet then I don't think a little canter will hurt.
 
I wouldn't but then my boy has navicular in his fronts and wears bar shoes so it'd be asking for trouble/lameness.

Having said that, I wouldn't anyway - I'd be too worried about concussion (in his joints and my head should he do his trademark spin ;)).

P
 
I don't think it was any of the ladies business. But personally I would never canter on the road, I only ever walk and the occasional short and steady trot.
 
I don't live in a hunting area so wouldn't know what the norm is amongst hunting folk, but I have never ever ever heard if anyone cantering on Tarmac (deliberately)!!!
 
Pale Rider said:
Canter away, if your barefoot no problems, beneficial in fact.:D
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Just out of interest how does it benefit? Genuine question as I have never heard that before.

I tend to just walk on roads, but we are lucky and have lots of off road hacking near us so no need to canter anywhere but grass.
Even so I still probably wouldn't but this is personal preference for my horse as she is shod and wouldn't like to encourage her that roads are places for 'play time'
 
Definitely not on purpose

I would be concerned about slipping, I guesse thats not so much of a problem if you are shoeless, but mainly I would worry about other road users. I rely so much on hearing to know whats round the corner.
 
I'm not very good at clearly explaining things, but here goes.

Bones take longer to condition (get stronger) than muscles.

That's why lots of runners get shin splints - they haven't conditioned their bones properly before doing tons of fast concussive work.

Concussion from hard surface is good for conditioning bones and reducing osteoporosis (last bit in humans) as it stimulates bone growth.

It just takes a long time for bone regeneration/growth to catch up with the amount of work that the muscle's level of fitness can take (sorry I can't remember any numbers off the top of my head).

Therefore... the odd trot or canter on the road is ok, as is doing it regularly, but if doing it regularly you should build up frequency and distance slowly.
 
trottingon said:
I don't live in a hunting area so wouldn't know what the norm is amongst hunting folk, but I have never ever ever heard if anyone cantering on Tarmac (deliberately)!!!
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I've seen our lot out hunting cantering downhill on the wrong side of the road on occasions!

I'm not one for cantering on tarmac, but done it accidentally when ned was having a spazz and we survived :)
 
There's cantering and cantering.....

With an unshod pony, conditioned to the surface, a steady hand canter along smooth tarmac is OK. Hammering along in either trot or canter, particularly if a horse is unused to roadwork, is just asking for trouble.
 
Emma86 said:
Just out of interest how does it benefit? Genuine question as I have never heard that before.

I tend to just walk on roads, but we are lucky and have lots of off road hacking near us so no need to canter anywhere but grass.
Even so I still probably wouldn't but this is personal preference for my horse as she is shod and wouldn't like to encourage her that roads are places for 'play time'
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The hoof is supposed to expand when it is placed on the floor and to contract when it is lifted up.
When it expands, it fills with blood drawn into the hoof. When it contracts it forces blood up the leg, away from the hoof.
The bottom of the foot should have a thick sole, un constricted heels, a very large and thick frog. and internally a massive fiberous digital cushion.

When you shoe a horse, you stop the expansion and contraction. Therefore you increase the strain on the heart and restrict the blood flow to the hoof.

You cause the hoof to become atrophied in as much as the heels constrict, the sole becomes thin and the frog gets smaller. The internal digital cushion becomes spongy and weak.

Therefore when your horse is shod, because of the atrophied condition of the feet any trotting, cantering or galloping on hard ground or roads will have a detrimental effect as there is no shock absorbtion left in the foot. Video shows the shock wave travelling up the leg of a shod horse even in walk on hard ground.

Conversely, a healthy barefoot horse can easily absorb the impact of cantering or galloping on a road surface, which is perfectly natural and normal. :)
 
I wouldn't consider it with a shod horse (due to the danger of slipping & concusion to the legs) but I do canter one of my unshod horses on the road.
She's quite hot so sometimes I let her canter if the road is quiet, I hacked her home from hunting last year & she was so fired up we ended up cantering most of the way home, as it was easier than trying to make her go slowly.
 
texas said:
I'm not very good at clearly explaining things, but here goes.

Bones take longer to condition (get stronger) than muscles.

That's why lots of runners get shin splints - they haven't conditioned their bones properly before doing tons of fast concussive work.

Concussion from hard surface is good for conditioning bones and reducing osteoporosis (last bit in humans) as it stimulates bone growth.

It just takes a long time for bone regeneration/growth to catch up with the amount of work that the muscle's level of fitness can take (sorry I can't remember any numbers off the top of my head).

Therefore... the odd trot or canter on the road is ok, as is doing it regularly, but if doing it regularly you should build up frequency and distance slowly.
Click to expand...

Pale Rider said:
The hoof is supposed to expand when it is placed on the floor and to contract when it is lifted up.
When it expands, it fills with blood drawn into the hoof. When it contracts it forces blood up the leg, away from the hoof.
The bottom of the foot should have a thick sole, un constricted heels, a very large and thick frog. and internally a massive fiberous digital cushion.

When you shoe a horse, you stop the expansion and contraction. Therefore you increase the strain on the heart and restrict the blood flow to the hoof.

You cause the hoof to become atrophied in as much as the heels constrict, the sole becomes thin and the frog gets smaller. The internal digital cushion becomes spongy and weak.

Therefore when your horse is shod, because of the atrophied condition of the feet any trotting, cantering or galloping on hard ground or roads will have a detrimental effect as there is no shock absorbtion left in the foot. Video shows the shock wave travelling up the leg of a shod horse even in walk on hard ground.

Conversely, a healthy barefoot horse can easily absorb the impact of cantering or galloping on a road surface, which is perfectly natural and normal. :)
Click to expand...

Interesting thanks :)
 
To be honest walk and trot only on the road mainly for safety of me and horse due to traffic. Never thought of cantering on roads and don't intend to start now either.

I will canter on by ways which are hardcore tracks though. So prob not much worse but less likely to find traffic there. Infancy there is a big hill round here's my riders regularly canter gallop up on gravel
 
Personally most worried about the amount of posters who would never canter down a road on purpose - I actually feel that one of the basic skills of riding out is to control which gait your horse is in so as not to put yourself/horse/every other road user in danger.

I have cantered on tarmac before, out hunting.
 
Runtoearth, i learn to control my horse out on hack over common land, and usually i would only be on roads before and after i come off common, so basically it is my warm up and cool down, sometimes though when i push horse into trot he does those pathetic canter on the spot moments haha.
 
Have cantered on tarmac out hunting, and will continue to do so.

A controlled round hand canter is much more balanced and less concussive than a pounding trot IMO.

Personal pet hate is people who hare along main roads in an on the forehand trot looking as though they barely in control. Surely this is much worse for the forelimbs.
 
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