Hacking to Meets

chestnut cob

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How far is acceptable to hack to a Meet?

I'm looking at hacking to some of the more local meets because a) horse can be a bit of a pain to load coming home (he doesn't want to leave the party!) and b) he will settle much quicker once we move off, as he isn't fresh off the trailer.

We have one coming up that is just under 5 miles, by road, which I can do in about 4.2 miles (to be precise!) via various bridleways. Is that too far to hack, bearing in mind I may end up hacking at least that far home as well (depending on where we end up)? Horse is pretty fit and I'll only stay out 3/3.5 hours I'd imagine so he won't be expected to hack for an hour, hunt for 7 then hack another home home!
 

livetoride

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Yep. Should be fine. I've done three miles each way plus four hours+ out - it's his job! You know your horse's fitness best.
 

legaldancer

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I did 9 miles to a meet once as a child and a similar distance to shows (and back again).

I would think up to 6 miles would be fine.
 
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Sounds like that would be fine, as long as your horse is fit enough. I hack to all of the meets I go to as my boy isn't the best to load, and also I find he that he is much more settled at the meet after hacking there. I hack to meets which are anywhere up to an hour's hack away.
 

Hunters

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Absolutely fine I would say... A friend of mine used to have a horse that pulled so she would often hack him to the meet, quite a lot of time in a smart trot.

Unsurprisingly he then didn't then pull out hunting as he had lost a lot of his 'fresh beans'... She did then cadge a lift home - which no one minded as we hadn't been barged past all day.

A cunning plan on her part I always thought!
 

chestnut cob

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thanks everyone, good to know I'm not expecting too much of him! I'd say he's definitely fit enough - hacked today for 2 hours, probably 65-70% trot & canter, & he didn't even get warm or breathe heavily. My usually quiet horse (who I thought I was going to retire spring just gone!) took the whole first hour to settle down today... I've had snorting, spooking, jogging & several attempts to simply bugger off, not to mention looking for hounds around every corner! So I think an hour or so's hack to a meet might be just what's needed! For the meets that are further away I'm tempted to see if can get dropped off 3 miles away & hack there...
 

bellatrix

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I hack 2.5 miles to a meet quite regularly. My horse is still extremely fresh and raring to go when we get there, I think it probably does her some good! I think as long as said horse is fit enough 4.7 miles will be ok :)
 

ofcourseyoucan

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hacking to meets is good! and horse often hunts better. as long as the horse is fit enough, and you can still arrive reasonably clean then no problem. only problem is if hounds run a long way in opposite direction to home and then you end up with a very long hack home unless you can cadge a lift. on yound horses i would always try to hack 2 or 3 miles to a meet to settle them, though i like to be picked up to go home ....
 

EAST KENT

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Five miles..why that`s practically next door! I had four O.S. maps sellotaped together for my area,and meets were measured for distance using a piece of cotton.Up to ten miles away was my rule,often croossing fields to cut distance on the homeward journey and in darkness.Far from being tired my mare would jog and snatch all the way home.
 

Shoei

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I reg used to hack my mare 7 miles to a meet. I always found I was the one who was tired hacking home and she still pulled like a tank!
 

chestnut cob

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Well today I hacked to where one particular meet will be in a couple of weeks... took me 1hr 15 min and that included stopping several times to check my OS map, and I walked 95% of the roads. If I trot some of the road sections I think I can prob get that down to just over an hour. Hack ended up being 11.5 miles today and he was still full of beans at the end so I think I can say he's fairly fit! ;)

I'm pleased to read that I'm not the only one who hacks to meets! Next Saturday's is bang on 5 miles from the yard so I will probably hack there as it'll definitely settle him. Took him last weekend and he was a total pain (pulled like a train from the moment he stepped off the trailer, in contrast to doing his job well the week before, when I'd hacked to the meet) so I was going to put a stronger bit in, but I'd rather hack to settle him and stick with his usual bit. I am going to see whether my YO would pick me up next Sat in the lorry, if we end up a long way from home in the opposite direction.. ending up a further 5 miles from home is the only thing that worries me! OS maps at the ready I think! ;)
 

chestnut cob

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sorry badly worded/ typed in a rush. The hour & a bit was about 4.5 miles. Entire hack was about 11.5 miles & took about 3hrs 45mins. I did manage to get quite lost along bridleways in that time so you could prob add on another mile or two for that, & spent a fair amount of time standing still trying to work out where I was by the map & landmarks!
 
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