Eventing - no access to a school

[jessie7]

Does anyone event who doesn’t have access to a school?
I have to box my horse to hire a school which ends up very expensive and time consuming! I’m currently at a yard with fab hacking, which has been great for young ones, but I really want to focus on eventing my horse this year.
I’ve just found out there is a space at another local yard with a school so thinking of moving.

Just wondering what everyone else does if they don’t have a school and do you think it affects your competition progress?
I dream of being able to do some mid week pole or grid work!

 

[sportsmansB]

Could you join a riding club? Ours has lessons only about £15, some are quite basic but to be honest small fences and pole work are just as useful.

 

[paddi22]

I moved house and brought my horses home a few years ago and now I don't have any facilities at all, I don't even have a field to ride in and I do one star. I do nearly all my schooling on hacks. I really only box to a lesson once a week or twice if I can. I have forestry near me so i set up branches to do poleswork!

A lot depends on what your horse is like though. i'm lucky in that my main horse kind of knows his job (apart from dressage!), so I don't really need to jump him much. I have a younger horse and it's a bit more of a struggle with her. I will do any grid, polework on lessons.

But it is amazing the amount of dressagework/fitness etc you can do on hacks if you are focused. A really positive side effect is that my horses are a lot more content with schooling on the hacks and have better hind ends from hill work etc.. I used to just school kind of aimlessly when I had an arena to use, whereas now I'm more focused. But I do box to lessons instead of arena hire.

 

[cundlegreen]

I moved house and brought my horses home a few years ago and now I don't have any facilities at all, I don't even have a field to ride in and I do one star. I do nearly all my schooling on hacks. I really only box to a lesson once a week or twice if I can. I have forestry near me so i set up branches to do poleswork!

A lot depends on what your horse is like though. i'm lucky in that my main horse kind of knows his job (apart from dressage!), so I don't really need to jump him much. I have a younger horse and it's a bit more of a struggle with her. I will do any grid, polework on lessons.

But it is amazing the amount of dressagework/fitness etc you can do on hacks if you are focused. A really positive side effect is that my horses are a lot more content with schooling on the hacks and have better hind ends from hill work etc.. I used to just school kind of aimlessly when I had an arena to use, whereas now I'm more focused. But I do box to lessons instead of arena hire.

I'm the same. my mare has gone up to Intermediate level despite hardly ever going in a school unless it's for a lesson. I have a piece of grass setaside on a hill with rabbit holes etc, and once they learn to balance themselves on that, a grass arena is easy. I also feel my mare who has hock arthritis has stayed sound because of work on a natural surface, rather than an all weather.

 

[jessie7]

Good to know you both managed to achieve that level without a school.
I just find it frustrating when I have a dressage lesson and can’t go home and practice the same way. And I see great pole exercises Etc i would like to try and can’t practice them at home.
I think I need to not use it as an excuse and get more resourceful!
My current horse can just be a bit of a sod sometimes when we are hacking so I often don’t have his full attention like I do in a school.
I might ask if I can corner off a part of the field and try that......

 

[paddi22]

I didn't know how I would cope at first, but I actually see all the minuses as positive things now. Like when you say your horse won't focus on hacks, if he does that, they he will also lose focus in busy warms ups, or in an arena with xc horses going past etc. So if you find a way to cope with that on hacks then it will help his focus on the day eventing.

If you can ride in a bit of field that is perfect! Your dressage in comps will be on grass, so yourself and your horse's balance will be way better than others people that just ride in arenas and struggle then with unlevel ground. Mine also don't bat an eyelid at rain/wind/gales, they just work in all weathers cause we have no choice.

It is tough to have to box everywhere, but its actually made me more focused, and now when I AM in an arena I don't waste a second.

 

[Velcrobum]

I evented for some years doing all my schooling out hacking. Had training via RC which was good for practice but did have proper lessons tailored to my needs. It can be done very successfully and I know someone who has super facilities but one horse that hates the school so all work is done out hacking. Horse usually does low 20's dressage now heading towards Intermediate eventing.

 

[asmp]

I remember reading once that Mary King always schooled young horses on grass as that is what they had to compete on at the smaller shows. what's good for her......!!!

 

[Red-1]

I did have a school when I was competing at Int and CCI* bu I still did most of my schooling out hacking. We had a bridleway that meant a 30 minute hack to a set aside field that was on a slope, as long as 10 minutes of that was a trot. It was a 40 minute hack home.

We did school work and canter work, all mixed up, so we could do half a dressage test, then a timed lap, and then return to the rest of the test.

it was the most successful I have ever been! I have lost that field, due to building, and now am mainly in a school, which is a lot more difficult.

I would box somewhere once a week or so, be hat a competition, lesson or schooling such as XC schooling.

I think the main use for the school was to lunge when I was too busy to ride, or as winter turnout. I rarely rode in it at all.

 

[TGM]

When my daughter started competing we didn't have a school and she was still able to finish in the top 5 in her first BE100s. We were able to borrow a school within hacking distance though, and made good use of PC and RC clinics and practices. We have got a school now though and I must say it does make life much easier! Whether it is worth you moving yards depends on what the pros and cons of each yard are. For example, would you have to travel further or pay more for the yard with a school? Or does it lack some of the facilities that your current yard has - for example is the hacking not so good, or is turnout more limited?

 

[fredflop]

I’d say it can be done, if you’ve got suitable hacking. I don’t.