How many of you school in the field

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Rouletterose

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as opposed to a school? was chatting to an old friend today she's a bit more ancient then me(old school) she does a lot of dressage judging through the summer and a lot of it is on grass. Anyways... she said she can't count the number of riders who she overheard saying 'oh but at home we only school on the menage so he won't work on grass' this from riders who didn't get a brilliant mark.

So we ended up putting the world to rights and discussing that in the old days 'old birds' like us did very well thank you very much in dressage comps and we didn't ever go on an arena!! cos nobody had one!

What do you think? have we all become too soft? are our horses too soft too?
 
I want to school on grass as our arena surface is not good at all at the yard I'm on. The riding school I learnt to ride at (mid 70s!) didn't have an arena so that was a track in the field - it was fine :)
 
I think these days people are spoiled by all the menages about. We never had a menage and we still did well lol

Infact we have a grass 'riding' paddock set to one side on my yard and we occassionally hire my friends sand menage but to be honest theres nothing worse than falling on to the sand and getting it in your knickers lol
 
Yes definately in summer.

I think most of us are out of the habit of riding on grass, and that it comes as a shock to most of us (and also our horses) at the first dressage/sj comp of the season. No field is ever as level as an arena either... I also think its not good for the horse's legs to always be on sand/rubber all the time.
 
we school in the field as have no school where we are now,did have school at one yard and think its not a good idea all the time.
They go better on grass as long as its not slippy,then a school is ace.
 
We have no arena at home and my daughter schools in the field most of the time. This year she has qualified in dressage for PC national winter and summer championships and RC national winter and summer championships, and been placed in all but one of those.:D
 
I always schooled my sj'er and games pony in the field - never had an arena lol! traffic cones and home made jumps. One day I got real jumps for xmas!


They both did extrememly well at shows, regardless of the surface. :)
 
When i was a teenager many years ago, we had to either hack out or ride in the field dodgng the grazing horses! Snce going back nto horses the yards have been on all have schools. i think there are alot about now. The second yard we were on let us ride in the empty fileds. the horses were always on their toes then
 
My yard doesn't have an arena so we have to school on grass. Fine in the summer but usually hack all winter (whilst still being able to school, leg yielding, transitions etc). I learnt to ride without an arena and have been using the same instructor and field for 10 years so I'm pretty used to it :)

I think some people have become pretty spoilt with arenas, at one yard I do a couple of days work at, the arena surface became a bit too deep during the dry spell we had...and they wouldn't ride AT ALL, they will only ride in an arena despite the amazing Wiltshire countryside hacking and perfect fields for schooling in.

I could probably count the number of times I have ridden in a school on one hand!
 
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I do as thats all I have!

I do remember when I was younger that I kept my pony at a yard that had a sand school and I only ever schooled in that - fields were for galloping and jumping in! Hence whenever we tried to do anything like showing or dressage in an open field we didnt do very well but the one and only time we did dressage in an arena we won!

I do try and hire out a school now and again, especially indoors just to cover all bases but I do think the 'old school' of schooling on grass has a lot going for it!
 
We don't have a school so I have no option but to school in the field (although i don't do it that often), i do a lot of 'schooling' out hacking. Our field is not flat either so you have to work harder to keep the horse balanced and they do tend to be a little livelier in their own field so it can take a while for them to concentrate! Lol
 
I only have a field to school in! Home made jumps for me too and some dressage markers around the edge of the field. I compete in dressage, show jumping and showing and manage just fine. I do make the most of riding in a school at shows though!!
 
I can only hack 30 mins to a decent school so in the summer I lunge and school (flat and jump) in the field.

In the Winter I'll want to save the field so I'll be hacking 30 mins and back every Saturday :D
 
I am only able to school in the field as there is no arena at the yard I am at. But my fields tend to get a bit wet and don't want to kill any of the grass or what is left of it. How do you guys stop the fields from getting so boggy? Last winter the fields were so wet everywhere kust churned up and squelshed as you walked :(
 
I do, just to switch up my horses routine. I have an indoor and outdoor (Indoors pretty rubbish and only use it in bad weather) I like schooling in fields aswell, my horse used to be very string on grass but after schooling on it for a while he listens to me a lot more.
 
My RI will give me lessons in the field instead of the school. Its sloped which helps with his balance and bum and he goes better on the grass. We do use the school, and we school on the roads too - and we have a small field at the end of the road which doesnt belong to anyone - we use that sometimes now too.
 
Flash_28 said:
I am only able to school in the field as there is no arena at the yard I am at. But my fields tend to get a bit wet and don't want to kill any of the grass or what is left of it. How do you guys stop the fields from getting so boggy? Last winter the fields were so wet everywhere kust churned up and squelshed as you walked :(
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Flash 28 - I'm very careful of the work I do with the horses in the field so that we don't churn it up. I wouldn't want to risk slipping on wet grass anyway. If the ground's too wet, I'll hack instead. I've ridden in the field over Christmas and New Year so it definitely can work!
 
i dont have a surfaced arena - we have a marked out dressage arena on grass that i use when its dry - but tbh i generally use it for lunging only - and again when ground conditions permits

i do all my schooling on hacks - i just find a flatish field with an open gate and go for it - farmers round here are happy with that - if gate is shut i'm not allowed in - there's usally at least one field within a few miles hack or so that i can school in - but obviously i don't do circles int eh same place so the field does not get poached.

ETA - i use studs for comps on grass - jumping, dressage and showing - WH and ridden hunter
 
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fatponee said:
Flash 28 - I'm very careful of the work I do with the horses in the field so that we don't churn it up. I wouldn't want to risk slipping on wet grass anyway. If the ground's too wet, I'll hack instead. I've ridden in the field over Christmas and New Year so it definitely can work!
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Thanks for your advice. Last year and the 1st winter at this yard even when the weather was dry the fields were still soaked. We are at the bottom of a hill and everything just seeps down. Even just going round once will churn the ground up. I am a proper fair weather rider as it is and have oldies so don't do a lot with them really. Just don't wanna kill all their grazing. Will have to get them hacking out by themselves, wish me luck!
 
Nearly always, occasionally when the ground is hard I will hack to the nearby yard. I have set up a floodlight on he end of my stables to stop me bumping into fence posts on the dark!!
 
I am lucky enough to have an arena to ride in at the yard where I keep my horses but I do sometimes take them in a field during the summer to school them. Where I work, there isn't a school so all of the schooling is done in fields and the horses do very well. Having a school to ride in is more of a luxury than a necessity (but it is useful in the winter!) Schooling on grass is good for horses though, as it gets them used to working on something other than 'a perfect surface'.
 
I dont have a school so have to do all my schooling and lunging in the field. I have sectioned an area off though (which also happens to be the end where all the acorn trees are....kill 2 birds with 1 stone and all that!). I cant use it during the winter though as we are on clay and the water doesn't drain away so its far too wet, however, hopefully if I pass my trailer test next month I will box to my instructors once every other week and use her school, and hopefully box to some evening clinics during the week.

Last night I was schooling in the near dark, bit depressing and would be sooo nice to have floodlights!!
 
we do when its dry enough as field needed for grazing.i agree though its important to be used to riding on grass as lots of events dressage included are on grass.our mare prefers grass and usually performs better.
 
I don't have an arena at home so it's always the field for me unless i box the horses somewhere. I do find the field restricts some things i want to do because of slipping but it's also quite nice to have a blast round the outside sometimes. I have a horse that wont jump on grass at shows (spoilt brat from germany) and i'm hoping the new 4 year old will be a bit manlier after working in the field but i a trying to get a school built for the winter, trying and failing at the moment ;)
 
Me! And my boys on their pony. No WAAY i could afford an arena. have to make do with paddock. The arena's I have ridden in tend to be very deep and I much prefer grass, but then I am old fashioned (but only 37).
 
Another one here who doesn't have a school, where I currently am, and neither will I have one where I'm moving to in a couple of weeks. Grass schooling is it for me, and we do perfectly well. Only problem has been that the grass schooling area at the current place is on clay so got extremely boggy when it was wet. Have yet to see how boggy (if at all) the new place will be!

I completely agree with what SJ_Superstars said just above - that schooling on grass is good because it gets them used to working on something other than a perfect surface.

A "perfect" surface is a luxury to me - only attained when I compete in the occasional dressage test!
 
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I schooled on the grass this morning, on a slight slope dodging the former poached areas from the cows. Great for balance and teaches the horse to work on a less than easy footing. I had great fun and Meg went very well.
We do have an area, but often choose not to use it because the landlord can get a bit funny - so we dodge him too!!! lol
 
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