have i bitten off more than I can chew?

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TarantuLove

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My horse has been out of regular work for a month or so due to my exams and lack of time.

He LOVES hacking out, but I am a nervous rider (he can be excitable and spooky)

There is a sponsored ride at the beginning of September that is 12k (7.5 miles?) that he will have to travel to (about 2-3 hours in the box)

He is an older boy with arthritis but it doesnt seem to be bothering him too much atm.

My main issues are a) will i be confident enough to handle it? In a new place he will more than likely be bouncy/hyper.

b) Can I get him fit enough in time? Will be ok travelling that long in a box then doing the ride?

I mean the sense of accomplishment when finishing would just be amazing for me because its a very big challenge - somewhere new and getting my horse fit.

What do you reckon?
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I don't think the distance will be a problem for him but I personally wouldn't travel that far for a sponsored/fun ride. Remember you have to get back as well! I won't go more than an hour for a fun ride, ideally 45 mins TBH.

Isn't there anything more local than that? We have loads of them on around here ATM so I wouldn't travel that far.
 
As long as you have time now to ride and bring him back into work I would imagine he will be absolutely fine. You have enough time to get him fit and to build on your confidence - the more you can ride him in as many different places between now and then the better. I would put together a programme of what you want to do (include a few lessons which will help with your confidence too) that way you both have a target to work towards. Just break it down into manageable chunks.

Good luck with it.
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Agree with chestnut cob on the distance for a charity ride.

You will easily get him fit enough for that distance in a month or two but I just couldn't be bother with the travelling, I assume there's a special reason you want to attend this ride?

I dont'think you'll have bitten of more than you can chew, these rides are supposed to be fun and the organisers and other competitors are usually very helpful and understanding. If you do go and he's a bit hyper you'll have help at hand and once you get out on the ride most of them settle quickly.
 
I can understand you wanting to do that ride - its beautiful parkland. Just bear in mind that there is still a lot of other stuff going on there on the sunday - apart from the show jumping there is the hunt and hounds etc. If you can go to a few shows between now and then it would really help you I think!
 
Its an awful long way to go for a 7.5 mile ride which would probably take you about an hour and a quarter to complete. As for the issue of whether your horse is fit enough, I am sure he wont keel over walking 7 miles, they walk up to 15 miles a day in search of food in the wild without a problem, and thats foals, and old horses too. A good basis for improving fitness is road work, and you can build this up from a 30 minute hack to an hour within a coupld of weeks easily. Gradually incorporate some trot work building up to a hack of walking and trotting of about an hour and a half in duration, ie 60 mins walking, 30 mins trot in weeks 3-4. Gradually increase length of hacks, and distance and do some work up gradients if you can. Instead of going for a fun ride why not see if you have a uk chasers course by you and hire that out instead and hack around that, or go for a beach ride if you live by a beach.
 
I can understand why she wants to do that ride - it is on the sunday of the Burghley horse trials and you get to ride around the parkland - some of it the X country course - and it is the only time the 'public' can ride there.
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I can also understand why it seems like a long way to go for a 'fun' ride. It raises money for one of the injured riders charities if I remember rightly.

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