Field, livery or sole use mini yard?

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Runsamok

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I'm at a bit of a cross roads at the moment and was hoping for some opinions...

I have two horses, a 10yo and a 5yo. The 5yo is ready to get out and start competing now. Transport is a problem though; they're both big horses, and I passed my test after 1997 so without taking a test and forking out for a lorry/trailer I can't transport them under my own steam.

I'm about to move yards, and currently have 3 viable options. I could move to a field with a shelter, which would be great financially - could save up for transport and license, but it would be awkward in pretty much every other way, and would probably be a year before the 5yo got any real milage.

I could move to a little sole use yard I've found, but it has no arena (there are some nearby which I could hire). It is 30 min hack from a busy competition centre, which would be a major bonus for my 5yo, and I could compete him on a regular basis without any transport costs.

Or I could move to a livery yard. Good yards are hard to come by in my area, but I've found one that looks promising. The arena would be very useful in winter, and the hacking is some of the best in the country. I would have to shell out for transport, and realistically would get out less than the previous option.

Opinions would be fantastic :).
 
Its not the end of the world if the 5yr old didn't do anything much for another year (other than hack), and if it would enable you to save and buy transport that would be worth thinking about. You could probably hire a box with driver a couple of times a year to get him out too..

The sole yard sounds fantastic, does it have enough turnout? I love having my own place, but you do need to have cover around for holidays or days out etc. I'm quite happy with my own company too, some people aren't..

The yard sounds nice, but whats the point in having wonderful schooling facilities if you are still stuck..

I would probably choose B then A then C, none of them sound bad options, you're lucky!
 
I'd choose option B personally. However if the livery yard has a few competing liveries you may be able to get help with transport.
 
Personally, I'd go for the private yard. If the fields are flat you could school on them too, rather than always having to hack to an arena. I think it does them some good to be ridden in fields in control (ie not just going for a gallop).

The other plus of riding in a field (this was my only option at home), which I've only just realised, is that you can leave your jumps up all the time! :D
 
I'd choose B myself, though I am very happy on my livery yard, it's good to have other people to keep an eye out on your horses (if you have a good yard like mine) but being able to hack your 5yo to a competition venue is a big plus. There may be other liveries with transport who compete but it might still be hard to get regular lifts with people.
 
Thanks everyone. Pretty much confirmed what I was thinking :). There's enough grazing at the little yard, and the proximity to the comp venue outweighs any negatives, I think.

Cheers :D.

P.s. If it all goes through you may be seeing some comp reports from me soon!
 
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