Do you canter on roads?

[mrdarcy]

I do lots of trotting on roads - training and competing endurance. If you didn't trot on roads whilst competing you'd never make the minimum time allowed. And I actually prefer trotting on roads than on badly rutted or very deep ground - I think ground like that can potentially do far more damage. Why people think it's fine to canter or even gallop over concrete hard ground in the summer yet won't even trot on a road is bizarre!

As for cantering people I've seen people out competing endurance cantering on roads. Most of those are barefoot and therefore have much better grip than my horse in his steel shoes. It's the slipping that is the big danger and some tarmac roads are so slippy that walk is the only suitable pace.

 

[loobylu]

Horses do trot road work twice a week for a considerable distance but it is mostly up steep hills. Don't encopurage cantering but the shorter-strided do try to in order to keep up.

 

[MagicMelon]

Id never dream of even trotting on roads TBH. When I got my very first pony when I was young, I trotted him quite a lot (just normally, not fast) on the roads - he ended up with concussive laminitis which I firmly believe was due to this and have blamed myself since for it! Therefore, I never trot anymore. But then again, I very rarely even hack

I have unfortunately been bolted with on the odd occassion along roads though... however not by choice obviously!

I'll always remember a pony my mum went to see - the owner who was a 13yo kid jumped on him bareback, in a headcollar and she had no hat on, and proceeded to show him off to my mum by cantering him up and down the road!! We actually did take him on loan purely to get him away from them

 

[rara007]

We trot on the roads- and as fast as we go sometimes, occsionally abit of canter if there is misinterpritation.
Does that make us outrageously bad? How else would you suggest training to get the correct speed for 21KM maratons(oftern which have parts on the road, and mud harder than the roads!) We do mostly 14Km/h, but sometimes we practice section C at 19Km/h...

All our ponies are sound, and so far unbeanten in marathons BTW.

 

[nuffield]

echo what gedenskis girl says. when doing endurance rides most peeps trot really fast. i do canter on the roads now my horses are barefoot, suposed to be less concusive than trotting.

 

[MagicMelon]

Blimey I am surprised some of you trot fast and even canter on roads... I personally wouldnt dream of it as Ive already said. The concussion is certainly not good for their legs long term and IMO could well lead to problems later on... I know plenty of endurance people with extremely fit horses yet its all done off-road which IMO is the best.