Next weekend, heat, competitions

[millitiger]

I decided it was too hot to take pony out yesterday- he has only been in the horsebox twice so not a seasoned traveller so wasn't worth it.

Instead it was bath time for both 2yros, I my big ginger, he is starting to look like a proper horse instead of an overgrown foal.
And my Welsh pony is just perfect, loves the fuss and attention and always the happiest little person.
You can tell the height difference from where they come up to on the outside light on the stables

 

[humblepie]

I decided it was too hot to take pony out yesterday- he has only been in the horsebox twice so not a seasoned traveller so wasn't worth it.

Instead it was bath time for both 2yros, I my big ginger, he is starting to look like a proper horse instead of an overgrown foal.
And my Welsh pony is just perfect, loves the fuss and attention and always the happiest little person.
You can tell the height difference from where they come up to on the outside light on the stables

View attachment 122651

View attachment 122653

They are both lovely. How exciting going forward.

 

[teapot]

A blessing after the endless months of rain, cold and frozen surfaces though? Still not an unusual temp in grand scheme of things.

No it isn’t, but you’ve got to factor in horses being far closer to their winter coat stage than they would be in June/July. We all know coat change can put them off colour, regardless of whether you immediately clip or not.

 

[MuddyMonster]

I've been carrying on as normal - well, riding slightly earlier for long weekend hacks - but pony is fit & not bothered by the heat. He's been keen to want to trot and canter as much as possible (he geniunely wouldn't if he didn't feel he could or wanted to, enough past experience tells me that) Most people I know that are riding regularly have clipped to help counteract the coat issue.

I think you just need to be sensible, listen to your horse & err on the side of caution if unsure.

 

[Pippity]

I went down to the local show, but horse was feeling far too well (we lapped the field in the go-round, despite my best attempts to apply some brakes - oops!) so we came home after one class where we came a well-deserved last. She was absolutely fine in the heat - barely even sweating - but I was a revolting mess in tweed.

 

[webble]

We had a lovely fun ride, set off early, took it slowly and stopped for drinks and pony snacks, there was enough of a breeze to make it ok

 

[palo1]

No competing here but it is horribly humid. I worked one horse in hand this morning in a rain storm and then felt regretful about not riding this afternoon but that horse has already done their bit! Now though, just as I have made time to ride horse no 2 it has become horribly hot and airless again so will not bother. Both unclipped horses (fine/araby type coats) are sweating standing in the field even though we are quite high up). I am very glad I don't have the heat of competing and the extra management of horses in this weather; never mind them, I really don't enjoy this lol!!

 

[j1ffy]

We went to my dressage trainer’s for the first time since December. We were both a sweaty mess after our lessons (travelling was fine) but both recovered quickly with plenty of fluids and cold showers!

People from my yard were out eventing and doing fun rides and hunter trials with no issues. Horses for courses but I think mostly it’s about being sensible - if your horse is fit, you take plenty of water and follow best practice for cooling off - it shouldn’t be an issue. If your horse’s fitness is borderline for the activity, has underlying health problems or is known not to deal with heat, adjust plans accordingly.

There seems to be a lot of judgement and absolutes on social media these days (not just talking about HHO).

 

[TRECtastic]

I did a fun ride with TP today , he is a little black hairy cob , but very fit
I clipped him and thinned out his mane last week in preparation
Took plenty of water which I sloshed over him when we got back
He had a great time , could of gone round again
The weather was cooler today though , I wouldn't of fancied it yesterday

I'm off for a bit of open water swimming to cool down in a bit

 

[Flame_]

I'm planning on going to the last flint and Denbigh fun ride of the year on sun.

I think I saw you this morning! I was on a bit of a mission to get out after being a bit late arriving after a bit of a detour. That ride's my favorite one. It's slow going but absolutely gorgeous and my super little horse worked really hard just slogging up some of those climbs. I'm planning to take horse down to Red Dragon this year so this ride ended up being perfectly timed for us (and the weather was great today after all ). A perfect end to a fortnight off work, just got to face up to real life again tomorrow.

 

[SEL]

I think 33 degrees is unusual for September!! It was grim here yesterday and I was relieved horse box problems meant I'd cancelled my clinic 10 days ago. Ponies hacked but definitely didn't appreciate their early morning rides - I think they spent most of yesterday in the shelter. The humidity had me dripping just standing in the shade.

Broke today and rained which feels lovely.

 

[webble]

I think I saw you this morning! I was on a bit of a mission to get out after being a bit late arriving after a bit of a detour. That ride's my favorite one. It's slow going but absolutely gorgeous and my super little horse worked really hard just slogging up some of those climbs. I'm planning to take horse down to Red Dragon this year so this ride ended up being perfectly timed for us (and the weather was great today after all ). A perfect end to a fortnight off work, just got to face up to real life again tomorrow.

Ah I missed you, there are some fab pics up on the Facebook page. We are staying at the gables next weekend so I wanted to get some hill work in. It was a lovely ride wasn't it. @Flame_ did your sat nav take you over the hill on the single track road? Mine did and it wasn't fun!

 

[Flame_]

@Flame_ did your sat nav take you over the hill on the single track road? Mine did and it wasn't fun!

No, thankfully me and OH both remembered from last year not to go down the really crazy looking Welsh roads Google Maps has no issue with. We just carried on a blooming long way round that added on about 20 minutes to the journey. Have a great time at the Gables.