How far would you travel for DIY yard ?

scats

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15-20 minutes would be my absolute limit. I’m currently 1 mile from yard, up one road, so about 2-3 minutes in the car. This is a godsend for me and also means I can easily walk it in no time in case of car trouble etc.
 

milliepops

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Mine is 1.8 miles and a 5 minute drive. I honestly think I'd struggle to fit everything in if it was more and I'm really surprised that most of you find that 20 minutes, twice a day on top of (I assume) full time work, all the stable jobs and riding is doable .
it's a lack of alternatives that makes me suck it up. closest I've been (other than having them at home for a few years) was a 15 min drive down country lanes. now I'm 20 mins on A roads, I've had 30 mins of motorways before, so this is much better :p
 

jehsb

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Thank you everybody, I feel a bit better about the distance now knowing that others do it, obviously nearer would be better but I am not willing to sacrifice a decent yard for closer and not suitable ! :)
 

EllenJay

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It also helps if the yard offer services, which could mean on some days you only need to go to the yard once, if you know they can bring in
 

Muddywellies

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Used to be 25 mins away. Two trips a day is 100 mins which is bonkers! Moved to 8 mins from home which was waaaay better. Tho to contradict that, if the yard 25 mins from home was perfect in every way, then the travelling might have been worth it. Depends on what the yard offers I guess.
 

Otherwise

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I lasted a month of driving 45 mins each way twice a day but I wouldn't recommend it, I really came to resent how long it took, I spent more time driving than I did with my horse. 20 mins is probably my limit long term.
 

MuddyMonster

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It would depend on a few things for me:

* If there is a bring in or turn out time - although it doesn't cut down miles, if you can go back at a non rush hour time it makes a difference especially if you work flexible time
* If it's on the way to work - I've been 15 miles away from home but I literally drove past it on the way to/from work and it was only a few miles from work. It had a good YM able to provide assistance one end of the day at weekends or flexible full livery in bad weather & could be called on in an emergency.
* The type of roads - I'd be happy to be slightly more miles away on an A road as likely to be a quicker journey than back roads
* Facilities you get - spending 30 minutes in the car is more doable if the yard really suits you when you get there. The yard that was 15 miles away had great hacking, a school that wasn't stupidly busy in the evenings plus all day winter turnout and I had friends there
* Price - there is no point the yard being the cheapest if you are spending double on petrol if the yard up the road that's an extra £10 a week but miles closer with similiar facilities

For me personally, 15 miles was probably my limit and that was only doable as the yard offered a flexible assistance service at the time and Monday-Friday I was only a few miles away. It was tiring though and I love having him closer these days.
 

mariew

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With other life committments, not more than 15 minutes. I would love a yard with help with bringing in help and holiday/ emergency cover, they are often far and few between though :)
 

Wishfilly

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Mine is 1.8 miles and a 5 minute drive. I honestly think I'd struggle to fit everything in if it was more and I'm really surprised that most of you find that 20 minutes, twice a day on top of (I assume) full time work, all the stable jobs and riding is doable. We don't have great hacking where we are and we considered moving to a friend's place about 15-20 minutes away to improve on that but in the end decided we're better off boxing there once a week for a decent hack than driving there every day. I know you said you wouldn't consider assisted livery but would you have someone turn out / bring in for you? That would at least mean you only have to go once a day and would save a lot of time - especially if that's all you're doing. An hour's drive for 5-10 minutes of yard time is a lot.

Realistically, though, most people don't live within 5 minutes of a yard. Mine is the closest yard to my house with a school and is 15-20 minutes from home and 10 minutes from work. I could probably find a field to rent closer, but then I would have nowhere to ride. It is on main roads, though, which makes a difference, and I can pay someone to turn out in the mornings if needed. Also, as I'm a teacher, I'm not tied to leaving work at 5pm during rush hour, which helps.

Obviously 5 minutes down the road would be great, but unfortunately that isn't an option for a lot of people. I could move closer to a yard, possibly, but then I'd have a longer commute to work, so I'm not sure it would make any difference?
 

Cinnamontoast

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Mine is 1.8 miles and a 5 minute drive. I honestly think I'd struggle to fit everything in if it was more and I'm really surprised that most of you find that 20 minutes, twice a day on top of (I assume) full time work, all the stable jobs and riding is doable. We don't have great hacking where we are and we considered moving to a friend's place about 15-20 minutes away to improve on that but in the end decided we're better off boxing there once a week for a decent hack than driving there every day. I know you said you wouldn't consider assisted livery but would you have someone turn out / bring in for you? That would at least mean you only have to go once a day and would save a lot of time - especially if that's all you're doing. An hour's drive for 5-10 minutes of yard time is a lot.

I don’t have a choice. There are no yards nearer. There are dozens within a similar distance, some are a ruddy fortune, some in the wrong direction, some full livery only and for me, that’s kind of not the point. Saying that, mine is retired so doesn’t get exercised. All routes to the yard involve very busy main roads which can take forever some days, very different from when work was round the corner from the yard and a kid used to ride round, chuck me her reins and run to get her forgotten homework!

I’m extremely fortunate that my sharer still wants to do mornings. I’ve just organised for the yard to bring in Monday-Friday as I can’t physically get there til 5pm and it’s dark. I’m happy to pay to have him brought in early so he doesn’t get caught up in the kicking contest at the gate and I don’t have to wade into a crowd of horses. He got a nasty kick last week on his bad leg.
 

Cocorules

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Yard is the most important thing but longest I did was 20 minutes away and that meant 9+ hours of driving per week for the horses on top of a commute 40 minutes away so another 5 hours plus and I really resented the lost time.
 

jehsb

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Thank you everyone for your replies, having now viewed the yard, which was even better than it looked on paper, the decision has been made ! The set up and routine of the yard fits in with what I wanted, loads of all year round turnout, hacking looks fab, nice school and people doing the same sort of things competition wise as me so I think the journey will be worth it :)
 
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