How many of you have to box up to hack?

[ed&arch]

I’m thinking my only option to keep mine going this Winter is to box up, park up and hack in a quieter area.
Our road is getting increasingly busier and with a fairly nervous Section D, I’m wondering whether not to even risk hacking down our roads and boxing up to go somewhere different.

Worried how much extra time it’s going to take up, but interested to hear how many others do it?
Thanks

 

[Mari]

Me. I live in a rural area so narrow twisty roads with maniac drivers. For me it’s just not worth the risk of something happening. Horses are not machines or inanimate objects as some drivers seem to think. Depends how far I go but usually allow 2-3 hours.

 

[doodle]

I box up and take robin to a friends yard for a hack. Hacking is ok at yard but good to go out with my friend. Robin seems to love it.

 

[Maryann]

I did it all the time when the pony was younger and it is time consuming. I allow an hour on top of my ride although the actual driving is only about 15 minutes. The quieter lanes got him used to traffic without scaring us both stupid. Now he is pretty steady on the road and we do more other stuff I tend to ride out from home most of the time. Funnily enough I was just thinking this morning that it would be nice to go for a ride from my friends' yard but it is 'scoot round the block' weather here today.

 

[Goldenstar]

Yes we do this a fair bit twice a week at sometimes of year .
we tend not to when we are autumn hunting as there’s enough trips out but once we are hunting we often take horses to beach on Sunday .
we also go and ride in a nearby forest and in the Ingram valley .

 

[Flowerofthefen]

I box to our local woods quite often. The drive is about 15 mins. I put saddle on before I leave yard so just have to pop bridle on and off we go. It's a lot nicer ride than dealing with our roads!

 

[Bobbit]

Me! We have a farm ride and one other hack along quietnroads but for anything else and to get to longer rides we have to box. We go out twice or three times a week. I've got really speedy at getting ready and loading to get off somewhere! The yard is perfect for what.we need in every other respect so we just have to deal with the hacking or lack of it.

 

[chaps89]

I do. I have a surprisingly large amount of choice when it comes to hacking but it's fast, busy suburban roads. I have to say, most drivers slow down but the ones that don't scare me.
So I box up twice a week as a general rule. Once a week I go a bit further afield to a farm ride which I know is good, safe, off road riding all year round. The other time I try to go to more local woods.
Even so I'd say it's still a minimum 2-3 hours out, easily 4 if I want a decent ride. It's a PITA tbh.

 

[Goldenstar]

It’s does takes time no matter how snappy I am we can’t do the woods in less than two and half hours if you have decent ride .

 

[Rowreach]

I did it for years, no way I could ride straight out of the yard but we had a wonderful forest/mountain hack about four miles away. I reckon it added about 15 minutes either end of the ride, but it was made easier by having a lorry (so no messing about hitching/unhitching) which was parked up handily, and I always travelled them tacked up, both ways.

These days I have good road hacking on the doorstep but it is still nice to go to the beach or a forest ride occasionally.

 

[McFluff]

Me. You’d need to have a death wish to ride on the roads round here.
15 mins drive to the beach or the woods.
I allow an hour on top of my usual ride time, including hitching and unhitching.
It is a hassle and I’ve hardly got out this year, but that’s mainly due to Covid and the fact it made all our local spots too busy.

 

[Nicnac]

I do and have done for past few years as traffic (and driving) has got so much worse. Can ride about 1/4 mile from home and get to country lanes but they are often worse than main road. I have great hacking about 6 mins drive away. Travel tacked up both ways and in a lorry so no faf. Adds 20 mins in all but worth it imo as stress free hacking.

 

[stormox]

Me. I live on a very busy A road with massive arctics, coaches and caravans. so almost every day my horse goes in the trailer ....

 

[Red-1]

I have rides of up to around an hour, maybe a bit more, that are safe enough, but they are only on walk/trot ground. If I want a blast, I box out.

It took longer before I had a little 3.5 tonne box. Somehow the little box is effortless.

 

[scats]

I box to local farm rides, though we do have off road hacking around our farm- about 40 acres but you can do a few different routes around the tracks and at the moment we have access to the full fields which is great for fitness work.

 

[ycbm]

I box to avoid half a mile of nasty road, takes 5 minutes. I sometimes have OH drive me out and drop me off and I ride home, for variety.
.

 

[Lintel]

Me- as well as hack at home though!
I like some new scenery every once in a while ?

 

[GinaGeo]

We do - not worth battling with our roads. We box out to the local (20mins away) forestry commission.

I’m very quick. I put saddles on at home. Box up. Quick bridles on when we get there. I travel home in saddles again. We have a little 3.5t lorry. It’s so easy.

We go a couple of times a week at least ?

 

[MuddyMonster]

I used to with a previous loan horse that was kept on the owner's yard.

I hacked him from home but hacking was limited so topped up a few times a week to nice local hacking.

I remember it feeling long winded and it certainly added time on. Plus parking at various places could be difficult if busy, but we did have nice rides.

It was also a pain if the lorry or car/trailer was off the road for any reason.

 

[alexomahony]

I do I can ride to where I want to ride, but it’s about an hour of roadwork to get there and though it’s very safe, I just find it so boring!!

It’s much easier to box up and drive 15 mins to the woods rather than ride there!

 

[SpotsandBays]

Once I kick my butt into gear and sort out A trailer license I will do. I hate riding on the roads (previous accident, all involved were fine but it shook me), and most of our bridleways have been hardcored

 

[Cob Life]

me!
the roads here are terrifying and we come out onto it with a blind corner either side. There also aren’t any bridle ways or byways, only footpaths, despite being really rural.

 

[PeterNatt]

I am so sorry to read that the roads have become so hostile that you are unable to ride safely on them anymore. Maybe we could create a searchable listing of everywhere in the U.K. where one can 'Park and Ride' so that it would be easy to find different locations to do so.

 

[Sugar Plum]

I am so sorry to read that the roads have become so hostile that you are unable to ride safely on them anymore. Maybe we could create a searchable listing of everywhere in the U.K. where one can 'Park and Ride' so that it would be easy to find different locations to do so.

PeterNatt, that would be brilliant. My biggest issue is I always go to the same place as I don't know where to park for other places. It would super useful to have a 'this is where you park' followed by where the ride is, if there is any road work and so on