Hunting - in full sole pads? To stud or not?

[mrussell]

Im thinking of hitting the field again this winter but my horse wears full sole Cyteks (so he has no toe to dig in). He is sound in them and fit to hunt BUT they dont give great grip for climbing banks and coming down off fields on the roads.

Im thinking of trying some road studs in them but dont like the thought of travelling for any length of time in studs on roads.

Has anyone any experience of using road studs?

 

[Clodagh]

No, I just use road nails. Can't help, sorry, as I have no experience of your shoes. Will ask fellow groom tomorrow!

 

[kick_On]

i'm unsure what
'full sole Cyteks' are
BUT my opinion would be not to stud out hunting as hunting is a great teacher of balence, to both horse and rider. And IMO i feel using studs shorten the life of gg legs when used on hard surfaces, as studs makes the angle of foot incorrect on hard surfaces increasing pressure in leg, on the bit you don't what extra pressure on.
I've also had a horse of mine kicked with studs and made a very big wound compared with kick from gg without studs
Can you have road nails fitted all round ??? which would help with road work

 

[mrussell]

Cytek shoes have tungsten pins at the toe and heels. They have superb grip on roads but because they are flat and wide they arent great in the wet - although his nibs manages in our hillside paddocks perfectly well wihtout me on him! To look at they are very similar to natural balance only there is no sole showing , only the frog. The toe is taken right back to create a rocking motion, mainly for horses with ongoing heel pain.

He is sound in these shoes and I tried to go back to Natural Balance but he couldnt adjust to them so Im stuck in these.

I find them slippery on wet clay (cantering) and I know round here (Suffolk/Essex) our hunting is mainly up and down fields and over ditches (no jumping as such) which worries me.

I would compare them to full sole pads so if anyone has ever hunted in a pair of them, it would give a similar picture.

 

[kick_On]

thanks for info on shoes,
How much road/hardsurface work is their around you then??? Cos i would suggest that would be your deciding factor. How old is you gg, is it well balenced?? I've hunted a horse with sole pads, my farrier not happy bunny about it but i found no problem, apart from when gg when lost shoe and then hobbled home

 

[mrussell]

Id so 20/80 split - more fields and plough than roads but what Im really concerned about is slipping on the mud in the cyteks.

they dont have the benefit of a "edge" like a tradtional shoe.

GG is 13 but hes not terribly well balanced with a rider on board. Hes never gone over but then Im careful what i do in the shoes just incase.

Thanks for info on sole pads - did you stud or just run on them as they stood?

 

[kick_On]

I've never put studs in for hunting, cos i am very keen on them learning to keep a foot in each corner. We had pads due to thin soles and would bruise very easily and then you would lose the season.
We also do have a bit of road work and i'm not keen for that reason, but when i event i always use studs - but i've finished hunting.
Mmm... difficult one - Does you boy listern to you?? or Does his go hell for leather and stop when everybody else does???, Does he have a self preservation button?? Can you try blapping him around a few fields and see what he does??? and if wobbles and you feel unsafe i would put them in and just be careful on road and ride in verges - But i would try if possible not to use BUT that's me

 

[mrussell]

blapping? heehee. Took him for a burn up a muddy track tonight and he seemed fine but didnt have to do any cornering. We do a lot of clambering up and down banks in this area which is my biggest fear.

I dont think Im going to know until I try..... thanks for your help!

 

[Sage]

Hi C, Studs sound like a bad idea to me, they (the studs) must represent a danger to yourself, the horse (yours) other people and their horses, what about if you have to go out on road? I suppose if your an Anti and Dragging then maybe you don't venture out onto the tarmac. The whole enterprise sounds quite hairy to me, you wont know if there going to be a problem until your right in the middle of it and face down in the mud !

 

[mrussell]

Exactly.....tho my farrier is of the opinion that its going to make precious little difference round our way as grassland is so limited and everywhere is clay or plough.

Are you still hunting?