Has anyone....

Cinnamontoast

Cinnamontoast

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backed their horse to drive instead of ride because of confidence/weight/accident or other reason? I had lost confidence before the accident anyway but looking sensibly at the location of the injury, I don't see myself getting back on board, really. He's 11-will he 'take' to it?

Is it feasible to have a 15.1 as a driving horse? And will people point and shout rude words given he's a coloured cob? :o :D
 
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He is sane and sensible (and a cob - added bonus). Let's face it... It's their true calling in life :D

I knew that if I didn't get a hold of my weight that I would have broken Oilve to drive. It was definitely on the agenda. Thing is, that leg is going to take a while, but it doesn't mean you won't ride again, it just means that giving it a proper recovery for a couple of years may be the best thing long term.

Get him broken. :p
 
I have a friend who has broken her cob to drive who was a similar age to yours, do as long as you take it quietly and slowly you'll be okay.

As far as what people say or think, what does it matter? it is your horse and what you chose to so with her is up to you. Plus the fact if the Romanies have used coloured cobs to pull traps/caravans and the like for 100's of years I don't think it is an issue!!!

You enjoy your horse in the best way for you .. good luck!:D
 
Driving horses is great fun, and I wouldn't worry about what people will think - in my experience people love seeing a horse and cart/carriage and they smile and wave, I don't think they take much notice of what the horse pulling it is.

I've seen a lot of RDA driving horses that have been broken to drive around 8-12 years of age, so not there shouldn't be any problem - find a yard that does RDA driving near you and ask them about it.

Good luck with your horse - I'm sure you'll be taking trips to the pub with the horse and cart in no time ;)
 
Yes, me! Breaking mine to harness now, she's 9. She was backed to ride at 3.
No real problems, just slow progress last year because of the weather, and personal stuff. Taking her back a few steps now and hoping to get it done this summer!
 
My youngster got a first premium as an eventer as a two year old. I've had her broken to drive and i'm having great fun with her. All the qualities that would make her a good eventer are good for driving too; she is forward going, brave, calm, trainable etc. If you think about it the warmbloods were originally developed as carriage horses.

To start with it can feel a long way from the control panel but if you have good hands it isn't really that different. Have a look at these websites.

http://www.britishcarriagedriving.co.uk
http://www.britishdrivingsociety.co.uk
http://www.indoordriving.co.uk

What area are you in? British carriage driving have some excellent instructors and driving trials are both good fun and challenging. Indoor driving is held in the winter and the venues are freezing cold.:( BDS covers pleasure drives and showing. There is also scurry driving but that seems to be small pony pairs - so maybe not what you're after.

D is also broken to ride, I've hacked out mostly in walk but really don't feel up to jumping x-country. Not sure what I'm scared of - she hasn't put a foot wrong.:rolleyes:
 
Me! Lost a lot of confidence with my horse, and couldn't see myself getting back on. I went about breaking the horse to drive and after 6 months the horse was going beautifully. I reckon the experience bombproofed the horse a lot and I really enjoyed it!. The horse was only 13.3hh so not quite sure about the height but I reckon your horse would be fine! My horse was 13 years old at the time and took to it brilliantly! PM me if you have any questions :)
 
I had a welsh, which I broke to drive at 13. Neither of us had any prior experience, but I took it steady, and made a good enough job of it that when I sold him he went to driving for disabled, where he's been for the last 10 years. It was the making of him, because he wasn't safe to ride.

Age is no barrier. I don't know about dogs, but horses can definitely learn new tricks.

My experience is that it is the type of carriage, not the colour of the horse that determine whether people treat you as posh/eccentric or start locking up their puppies.
 
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