How far do you travel regularly for lessons/to compete?

NiceNeverNaughty

NiceNeverNaughty

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interested to hear how far people travel to go to riding club, lessons/clinics and competitions? I think Ive always been spoiled having events and lessons 15-30mins from home. Now I am looking at a minimum of 40 mins - but there isn’t a huge amount on there, or really 1.5-2 hours each way to go to say winter dressage or jumping leagues. Am I mad? :rolleyes: Anyone else travel so far?
 
I travel about 50 mins for regular lessons (every 2 weeks). For competing our closest venue is about an hour away and the majority range from 1-2 hours. I'd be reluctant to go more than 2 hours for a regular bd competition as we have plenty of good venues under that. For championships like area festivals, regionals and events like pony camp or stay away shows I'd go further (3-5 hours) if needed but would stay over.
 
our local competition venue is only 15mins away but we regularly go up to 2.5 hours for a normal show and up to 3.5 hours for regionals/champs etc.

training wise atm we travel about an hour to one trainer and the other does clinics at our yard but just starting with someone new and will be going 2 hours.
 
I travel just over an hour for lessons. We are lacking really good instructors in my area and so I find the need to travel. Only down side is I can't afford to have more than one a month due to fuel and lesson cost adding up. Worth it though. For events I would travel up to 2.5 hours.
 
About 50 mins tops. I love it when you have had a brilliant day out like at a competition or fun ride and it starts raining and you have a drive back and you and your horse are all warm and toasty.
 
Enfys said:
4 hours each way for shows is not uncommon.
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OMG that would drive me nuts! I've done a couple of hours drive to MKEC three times to do the 3DE and I've done Wales & West which was a killer to drive to from Solihull but that is it! I couldn't be done with that.

Occasionally I might do a 75 minute journey to a fun ride but thats normally because we have got lost looking for non existent directons. :)
 
dont travel for training atm as they come to me! but would happily travel an hr. Have quite a few local comp places all within 1.5 hrs, 1 in hacking distance and 1 15 mins up the road! but will happily go further afield 2-3 hrs away for a BE, havent gotten as far as big shows yet..... silly pony broke in the summer but if i had/ do (hoping he comes back into work!!!) qualify for something the distance probably wouldnt matter too much as would happily stay over :)
 
45 mins for lessons, 1-1.5 hours for shows. My horses travel quietly but seem to find it tiring in different ways (Kira concentrates hard and Millie gets excited) so anything around 2.5 to 3 hours plus and I stay overnight.
 
Up to an hour for regular lessons, would travel further if special occasion to train with someone as one-off.
Up to 1.5 hours for comps, though mostly these are 45 mins away
Up to 2 hours for eventing so far, though would travel further to go to somewhere good!
 
I'm surprised at how far some people have to travel.

I travel 25mins regularly for our lessons and go up to an hour for comps, perhaps an hour and a half if it was something I really wanted to do.

The furthest we have travelled is for a day at the beach which was 2hrs.. felt like an awfully long day!
 
Lessons - anything from 5 minutes in trailer if dark or 20 minute gentle hack - perfect warm up although I feel a bit guilty on the way home if we've had a tough lesson - to 25 minutes in the trailer. I also have lessons at my yard too. XC Schooling / lessons up to an hour.

Competing - up to 90 mins. Although I have been further in the past I've decided no more than 90 mins now as I just find the whole getting a grey horse clean, driving, competing and then driving home and then when I get back sorting M out and checking on A too much these days, especially if it's a ODE and I'm there hours. Equally, if it's just a bit of dressage of one round of jumps I don't want to drive forever to ride for 20 minutes!
 
Travel weekly for lessons, 45mins and 1 hour each way.

For competitions, as far as necessary, anything from 30 mins to 4 hours each way. Longer than that we do an overnight stop :)
 
20 mins hack or 5 mins on the lorry for lessons. For competitions up to an hour and a half apart from when we've been to Wales for stay away shows which is about a 4 hour drive.
 
I travel 45 mins each way for my regular lessons but can travel up to 3 hours in the summer when eventing. I'm based in Edinburgh and travel down to Cumbria for 3-4 events per season. My others are all 1-2 hours away.

I'm lucky that my horses are both super travellers, however I do make sure they get 2 days off after a long journey though.
 
I don't like travelling out for lessons, as I find it a faff, however when I do, hour max.

Shows, as little as possible. 30 - 45 mins for dressage and sj, as I feel anything over this just ends up being a lot of travelling time for a few minutes worth of riding.

Xc/ode I would go further.
 
Around an hour on average for dressage/jumping, bit more for showing, winter driving is an hour 15 but we've been up to 3 days each way for a 3DE :p 3 to 4 hours would be a pretty local national, but of course we don't do many in a year.
 
Either have lessons at home or at a venue 5 mins from home or another venue 15mins from home. Will be competing at venue 15 mins from home to start with. I used to travel all over to compete but these days haven't got the money or the inclination!!!
 
8 hours each way is the longest so far but that was for a national championship. Normally try to stick to about 2 hours each way for a ODE and within an hour each way for lessons.
 
All the nearest competition venues are an hour to an hour and a half away from me. If I want a lesson it's an hour away though hoping I've found a closer venue my trainer will come to. Rarely travel less than 40mins (for riding club the odd riding club comp).
 
I regularly used to travel four or five hours for endurance rides - it was travel, camp, ride, camp, travel.

So after that anything under two hours is "close". It's 40 minutes to the arena I use for training and some competition, and the equestrian centre I go for lessons. 50 minutes easily to my other competition venue and easily one to two hours for trail rides and any other venues.
 
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