Do you canter/gallop towards home?

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skewby

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I never used to, but I have to say since we've started hunting, I have a bit of a bee in my bonnet about getting/keeping horse fit, so I no longer pootle about on hacks but ride like we're on a mission. Horse is fit so well up for it.

I seem to have started to cheat a bit though, and if I ride out when I'm turning straight out after, I do daft things like canter home. I even canter up the verge alongside the drive back to the yard
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Am I asking for trouble? I make sure that if I've gone fast towards home, I walk it the next few times. I had BIG problems stopping my horse in the past. I do not want to go back there!!

*Prepares to get slated*
 
I have no off road hacking at the mo, it is just too muddy so I am cantering on every bit of non soggy grass I can
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Away from home and back towards home on the wide verges (very quiet lanes, and you can see if there is anything coming) horses are fine with this and love it, we don't do it every ride though so they don't expect it.
 
It depends on the horse! I used to on my old horse because we knew each other inside out and he was extremely obedient and I'd had him a long time, but certainly wouldnt with the two I have now. Would be asking for trouble and I would never ask for canter in the same place either.
 
I only ever have the odd short canter (maybe once every 2 months lol), because Dylan's enough of a nutter when he's heading for home
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Also a few years ago one of the women at our yard fell off because her horse took off - at the place where she sometimes started cantering. The horse fell when he went from the bridle path onto the road, she was knocked out, the horse was badly scraped and sore for quite a while.
 
I have been known to do it,but don't make it a regular thing and if I do canter in one spot towards home the next few times it is done at a walk. I wouldn't do it with a nappy horse though or a very green one. It's amazing how quick they cotton on otherwise
 
yup we go up and down our grass track (normally 3 times, its about 1/3 mile long)..... they are expected to go whatever speed we ask though and we have no problems, its about half mile down the road from home so always walk that bit
 
I canter/ galloped in the home direction , but made sure i was only walking/ trotting the last 20 mins. of the journey wouldn't risk letting ned go faster close to home!
 
I find if you do it regularly enough it never becomes an 'issue' I have always expected both of ours to go the pace asked and the younger of the 2 had her formative years with us and neither have ever been a problem
 
You could canter Daisy anywhere you liked and she'd stop. Haven't cantered Lily yet but will be giving it a while to see how good our brakes are before we try it.
 
I always canter on the way home from hacks, but leave 10/20 mins before getting home as a cool down as such! Never had any problems, but its never right next to home!
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yes depending on what hack i am doing, i expect my horses to be stoppable whatever direction we are heading.

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Ditto!

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Ditto again! However, much as I expect my horse to be stoppable in any direction, it doesn't always work out like that
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She is rather keen out hacking, but that's fine with me as she *does* know when to give up eventually.
 
Most of the rides I do are circular and I canter where there is the opportunity. As I ride them all in both directions she is always unsure of where we will canter and has brilliant brakes (99% of the time anyway!). If I didn't feel secure cantering her towards home, I'm not sure how happy I would feel about cantering out on hacks at all... as most of our canter tracks can be taken in 2 directions!
 
Not sure if I would. I have a 10 minute ride on the roads when leaving/returning to yard anyway so not an issue. I ride in a National Trust Park which has grass gallops in it. I have walked her along them on occassions and she's happy to just walk, but I mainly use them for fittening and once shes galloping I would be hard pushed to be able to pull her up immediately if I wanted to. She is an ex-racer and I would class her as very obedient but I would say that once she is on the gallops she is more in charge of the situation than I am!
 
Me and a friend always cantered our horses home. It was up a long stretch of grass next to the fields up hill, everyone did it as it was a great fittening hill. Horses walked and cooled off up the lane to the yard, we had a blast, horses were fit, fun time had by all
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Yes, because my horse stops dead whichever direction I'm cantering in (she's a bit special like that
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There was a point on the track where the path had a dead drop on the side, although not too large, was steep, and I didn't fancy the results if we fell down it. So that's where all cantering stops. It works out nicely too cos it's enough of a walk from home to cool down.

However, Dorey learnt it was the bank that was the stopping place and would try it on... "I'm going to take another three steps and stop NOW!".

Still. I'd be fuming if I couldn't control her on a hack, whichever direction. What if a walker appeared?
 
It would be great if all horses stopped in whatever direction they are cantering but not every horse's brain works the same. Unfortunately the hacking isnt great where my horse is stabled and she was quick to learn the off road route so she knows at what point we pass the half way mark no matter which way round we go! I have on a few occasions cantered towards home but I really dont want her to expect we are cantering every time. She just gets too excited and she is a big mare to hold when she really wants to go.

I just dont like risking it now.
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no i don't.

i do all of my fast work away from home.

and keeping fit isn't really much to do with it- getting horses fit for 4**** events we never used to canter them hacking like that.
they had days for canter work and the rest of the hacking was mainly really slow trot work and hills.
 
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I have been known to do it,but don't make it a regular thing and if I do canter in one spot towards home the next few times it is done at a walk. I wouldn't do it with a nappy horse though or a very green one. It's amazing how quick they cotton on otherwise

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my thoughts exactly.
 
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