Has anyone here never galloped their horse?

I have galloped many other horses, but never my current one. He is a soon to be nine year old tbx ex polo, but he just doesn't like to go fast. I've only ever seen him gallop once for about five mins with a youngster he first met in a new field that made him very excited, but other than that he just does a very up long fast canter. Never a full on gallop. X x
 
I've only managed 3 strides of canter on my "BigFatRosie"! I know she can gallop! I've seen her in the field. It's a bit like that scene on Jurassic Park when the cup of water vibrates!
 
lydia_markwick said:
sweet release of the south downs!! maybe not always in control but love it on my tb he runs like the wind and miles of grass tracks and gallops!! love love love thats why i have a racehorse! : )
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Yes, exactly, I love my ex-racer too and we are on the South Downs and can ride a local estate.:) We gallop most hacks out and I really can't imagine not being able to do so.
 
Not really on our mare...we've never really had decent hacking, and now we have access to as much stubble as we could possibly want, by the time the harvest comes this year, she'll hopefully be pregnant and I won't want to risk it :(
Three years ago when we were on another big farm, we had the wettest harvest in history and it was as much as she could do to canter slowly on the odd dry bit :(
I have lovely memories of my husband galloping our previous horse for the first time...she could really operate, but once she reached top speed she just stayed there in a gorgeous rhythm, and didn't pull or buck. My very fit hunter was horrifed when they came past us :D
With the youngster, altho he's cantering on hacksI think we'll wait a while...and then it could be interesting as he's pretty powerful :D
 
Never galloped on mine either.

She is 7 and I have had her since a foal.

We have had some nice faster canters but no galloping and I don't have any urge to do it either.
 
Captain- we had to teach to canter under saddle. He has never galloped under saddle and I have never seen him gallop in the field.

Fany- would have a heart attack if you asked her! We pootle around, a bit of trot a bit of canter, loads of walk nosing into fields and gardens.

There is nothing better than having a good blast but just not on either of mine. :rolleyes:

FDC
 
yep! he loved it :) we did go to some galllops (1 mile long) its quite away actually n i just let him go. i've done it every year with all my horses - something different for them to enjoy!
 
Yep....Very Fast too! My big lad seems to think he's a Racehorse and not a Showjumper (he's even left a few of the ex-racers at the yard way behind when galloping!). Not a regular thing as he's quite a hot-headed type and very strong so too much over-exciting work and he becomes a nightmare but I do let him have the odd gallop now and again.

My Little one (he's 17 but a lot smaller than Max) is a very quiet lad and would quite happily potter along anywherte but he too enjoys the odd gallop.
 
I tried a few times with my last horse, but he couldn't grasp the concept at all. He was a dressage horse through and through - incredibly powerful and uphill, but completely at sea when asked to go faster than extended canter - even with two people on pointers teararsing off up a hill in front of him. He got himself in such a bother that he offered all his party tricks one after another, and then decided that gazelle like leaps through the air were the most effective way of keeping up, and almost certainly what I was asking him for.
Never saw him canter in the field, let alone gallop - huge elevated passagey trot was his default setting!
 
yes i love it and so does she. i dont no anything about age or fitness. apart from at 15 i no she can and she does an hours schooling or hacking everyday and so it plenty fit enough for anything.

i often just ask her for canter and she chooses the speed. it has been hampered a bit at the moment by the solid ground from no rain. so have only done it once in four weeks.
 
When my horse is fit, I have to at least once a week or he becomes a loony and through out winter we go hunting so yes I have, and he's an ex racer :) a very successful one at that!
 
Auslander said:
I tried a few times with my last horse, but he couldn't grasp the concept at all. He was a dressage horse through and through - incredibly powerful and uphill, but completely at sea when asked to go faster than extended canter - even with two people on pointers teararsing off up a hill in front of him. He got himself in such a bother that he offered all his party tricks one after another, and then decided that gazelle like leaps through the air were the most effective way of keeping up, and almost certainly what I was asking him for.
Never saw him canter in the field, let alone gallop - huge elevated passagey trot was his default setting!
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This did make me laugh!

I had a SF mare and she had a great canter but her gallop (in the field) was described as "like watching a fat kid run for a bus"!!!! :D
 
On the beach- yes! An absolute amazing feeling when they're going so fast- feels like your flying!
And who says cobs are lazy- mine overtook my mums TB x on the beach :D
 
Shellby27 said:
I've only managed 3 strides of canter on my "BigFatRosie"! I know she can gallop! I've seen her in the field. It's a bit like that scene on Jurassic Park when the cup of water vibrates!
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Ha, that made me chuckle!

Have galloped on plenty of others but not my own. I can't see me ever galloping again either. First of all, horse is naturally lazy and if others gallop off in front of her, she'll just down tools and say, don't even think for a minute I'm doing THAT! And I'm now older and wiser and have no desire to gallop (and I don't mean hurtle along, 'cos I still enjoy that - I mean flat out, full on, racehorse gallop). Scares the b'jesus out of me these days! I'm pretty sure my old body would give up the ghost and I'd just plop off out the side door.
 
I have galloped both of the horses I haved owned.
I galloped my little section a intentionally, usually just a fast canter but when he stepped it up, he could fly! Didn't gallop often, but brilliant when we did!
I galloped my mare unintentionally, when she took off with me. I was absoloutly terrified, not fun at all!
Will never gallop my share pony as she has navicular, most we do is a fast canter on very soft ground, but not often.
 
I gallop lots! It is, without a doubt, the best way for me to get rid of the cobwebs, and Ellie is always happier to do what I want afterwards.

But we are very selective and careful about ground conditions. And blessed with having lots of farmer friends who let us use their slightly uphill, stretch on for miles stubble fields!
 
Nope not on my 5 year old, and proberly wont until she's 3/4 years older, but i am extremely careful about her legs, as I've seen so many cases of lame horses at 10/11 due to being hammered.

Saying that not sure what exactly hammered is, rather be over careful than not.

Have galloped my ex racer yes, it was very fun and was nice to see how easily i could pull her up calmly!

:)
 
Most people that waffle on about galloping their horses tend to be numpties that don't really understand the difference between that and a decent canter, the ones that do are few and far between, at least around my area they are.

For a 14.3hh connie x 18yo Buzz can't half shift!! last year we lived hacking distance from epping forest so had plenty of room and he regularly left my friends 16.3hh sports horse in his dust!
 
Hummm interesting. Used to gallop a cob I learned to ride on, but not through my choice. Once the hack was done he'd b*gger off home and there was nothing I could do about it (I was 10 and a bit weedy, he was a proper solid cart horse type 15hh called Bertie with a Personality lol) that said, Bertie has a very nice gallop, easy to sit to. He dumped me once and then stopped and started nudging me with his nose, waited patiently til I got back on.

My old loan horse, galloped him once after not having ridden for aaaaages, forgot to shorten my reins and rather resembled a pot of trifle on top of a jack hammer... 17hh Irish Draught x TB with mahoosive strides, didn't do that again!

Owned a disastrous IDxTB mare (read me over horsed rather than Jazzy being only suitable for knackerman, heard she ended up in very suitable event home) who would do real bolts, at flat out speed which utterly terrified me, suffice to say have not and probably won't gallop new horse. Just a bit too frightening for me. But once I've gotten to know her, who knows? Maybe. She is a lazy girl so might only get an extended canter, which feels good anyway.

:D
 
Goodness yes! It's brilliant! I do it at any opportunity I can find - an open gate to a field?? That's just asking for it... :D:D:D

Only been told off once but said my horse bolted... :D:D:D he's shut the gate ever since... boo!!
 
The cob - yes because I want to whizz him up a bit!
The welsh - yes back in the early days when she used to P off with me! Also out mock hunting.
The TB - not yet but depending on what happens over the next few weeks will do at some point this summer.
 
Yes lots of times.

Very lucky though as have gallops at livery yard and miles and miles of tracks and woods nearby.

Every now and again my boy tells me he needs a blast and goes completely flat out and clears his lungs out. Its great, does us both a power of good!

At the end its almost as if he's said "phew, I needed that".
 
This thread has really reassured me!! :)

I've been meaning to gallop my boy for ages as I felt I HAD to. I love him to pieces and generally trust him no matter what, HOWEVER, put him in a massive open field and ask for a gallop?! No thanks!!! He's just too fast and strong! I'm a bit of a chicken and far too frightened!!

So must admit I am pleased to hear that not everyone gallops their horse. Perhaps I'll settle for a nice fast canter round our large outdoor arena to blow the cobwebs away :o
 
I took my old boy to the Newmarket sponsored ride a few years ago, had some lovely long canters and then hit the all weather hill gallop. At that point I realised that what i had thought was galloping before was nothing close! He just dropped down underneath me and it was like flying, just incredible. He was clocked at 35mph, not bad for a 20plus year old arab!

I don't tend to kick them into it, I just let them go as fast as they are happy to. Taking young horse to the gallops on Monday so hopefully he can let off some steam there.
 
redmerl said:
This is interesting. I though most people galloped their horses?
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I think a lot of people say they gallop but they just do a fast canter. There is a clear difference between canter and gallop which some people don't grasp.

I don't mean that people on this thread haven't galloped but I know a lot of people in "real life" that say they gallop etc but they just canter fast.
 
I used to gallop my first pony everywhere, had lots of fields to ride in!! I have galloped my old boy a few times when been on suitable ground (again fields).
I am yet to gallop my current ride, he is an ex racer who needs to walk/trot/canter first! Although he is kept on a yard with a gallops so it is very tempting for future use. If any has galloped there ex racer how long did you wait before hand? I have only been riding him a week so it wont be for a while yet!
 
No sadly.... I have two I am riding at the moment both backed by me, one's 7 this time and the other 8!

When you get older you tend not to be so brave when it comes to going fast!

The 8 year old is a quarter horse gelding and have just (over Easter and the following hol weekend) got him cantering OUT on a hack. There are some lovely conservation strips nearby where you can let rip, though the ground was a little hard. I did think about a gallop but QH is carrying a bit of weight and was puffing enough as it was (or was that me!!??).

I would love a gallop on my stallion but he is very sharp and can't even think about cantering out as so many things distract him - he is likely to stop dead to look at someone over the hedge! But I have enjoyed some canters in the field. He moves like a dream.
I have volunteered us both to be flag carriers at our national breed show - that should be fun - better get practicing with a towel on a stick! This would be our first public ridden appearance - he usually drags me round the showring in hand. ;)
 
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