What's the latest you ride???

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bumblelion

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As title really, just wondering what the latest time at night you ride is or would ride? This is presuming you have lights whether it be in a ménage or hacking! Thanks in advance! :)
 
My weekly lesson usually starts at about 7.30/7.45. That's in the school obviously. If I'm riding without my instructor I usually try and get on by 7 or I find I can't really be bothered!

I won't hack after about 3pm at the mo so only go out at weekends.
 
On some previous yards I uses to ride between 9pm and midnight as I could guarentee not having to see anybody. That's in the school or off road hacking.

I don't have lights or a school now so can't really do it now, but since I have no fellow liveries to avoid, it's no longer an issue...
 
We have a school with lights, so I mostly ride after work so anywhere around 6pm and 7pm, plus at that time most of the other liveries have gone home so I get time to myself!!! :)
 
I usually get on my second one about 8.30pm on week nights. We have floodlights outside and a small indoor school. I wish I didn't have to commute 1.5 hours each way every day but it pays for the horses... I do feel guilty getting them out of bed to ride in the freezing cold though :(
 
I haven't ridden for ages, as we have no school/lights, but tonight I am planning on trying to ride in the paddock by the light of the landrover!! Fingers crossed we don't end up a bit ar$e over t*ts!!:D
 
I've embraced early morning riding. I find after a day at work I really struggle to motivate myself to ride in the dark....whereas in the morning I have no problem riding in the dark :)
The only evenings I might ride are a flatwork lesson on Thurs & evening SJ once a month on a Fri.
 
I usually ride at 6:30pm and have finished by 8pm (I have 2 horses) im usually off the yard by 8.30 on an evening (we have a well lit yard and floodlit menage)

In winter I only hack at weekends and use the arena 4/5 nights a week

In summer i do 3 days hacking and 3 days in the school (alternate between the 2)
 
chickeninabun said:
I haven't ridden for ages, as we have no school/lights, but tonight I am planning on trying to ride in the paddock by the light of the landrover!! Fingers crossed we don't end up a bit ar$e over t*ts!!:D
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I sometimes ride by light of LR - works fine for me ;) :D
 
Alternate between mornings and evenings. Try not to leave the yard later than about 8pm most nights - I try to maintain a life outside the yard :)

Zimzim, all I can say is 'you lucky sausage' - 6 - 7pm is rush hour on our yard, it is pretty much impossible now to get into the indoor school any time between 5.30 and 8.30 so most of us ride outdoors (in floodlight).
 
At the moment the latest I ride is 7 but it appears the scary horse eating hedge down one side of the school is not scary in the dark (the school is floodlit but not the hedge) so I guess that will be me schooling at 10pm in the summer!
 
The reason I asked was because nowadays since having my daughter finding the time to ride is like mission impossible! I wouldn't ride in the day as I'm home alone with the horses and if I came off no one would know, mobile signal is non existent also! I was thinking of riding once I'v got her to bed and my partner gets home from work. He travels the UK during the week, so the time he gets back varies, however it's generally between 7pm-10pm. The thought of going out there at that time to ride sounds awful!!! Plus I'd feel dreadful for the horses, making them go out into the cold to work! The only other option is nursery!!!
 
Mine have never minded being ridden in the dead of night, bumblelion - I have been known to ride at times officially known to be the next morning ;) :D
 
I tend to ride be at the yard no earlier than 6pm, and tend to leave the yard by about 9pm and ride sometime in that slot. Luckily we have two schools with lights and all lessons finish by six, so I don't have a problem getting in the school, in the whole time I've been at the yard I've only had to share the school with one other person. :D

At our last place they used to have lessons going until 9.30pm.
 
Before I had the livery yard and I worked full time, I used to get to the yards around 6 - 7-30 and be finished riding by 9.
Now, at this time of year I dislike riding after 4 pm. I am here all day so try to fit the riding in whilst it's light. The latest my liveries ride is 9 pm.
 
JFTD said:
Mine have never minded being ridden in the dead of night, bumblelion - I have been known to ride at times officially known to be the next morning ;) :D
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Well I do have an outdoor menage with lights, so I can do it (with motivation!!). Just really want to ride, they've not been ridden in 18 months to be exact! Although the tb was once, a couple of weeks after I gave birth, I was desperate!!! Putting my daughter in nursery for a few afternoons a week is another option, would just feel guilty doing that so I can ride!!! I'd look like "lady done a bunk!". Although I wouldn't be actually, one's an exracer who's most likely gone back to his " straight off the track style" and the other is a lazy lump who only tends to exert energy to turn himself inside out at speed!
 
Well, I am lucky in the fact that we have Indoor school with floodlights at my yard so I can ride as late as I want but I usually don't ride any later than 7pm. If I am hacking out, atm I have to make sure I am back my 4.30pm before it gets too dark.
 
Bumbelion, I'm in the same boat as you, my daughter is 10 months now. I'm getting out once a week at the mo, but that involves my husband staying in or bringing my mum over to look after my baby - my husband works alternate weekends and late nights as he is a farmer.

It's really hard - if I go riding I don't see him either, and I feel guilty asking people to look after my baby so I can ride.

I have no arena to work in, and my paddocks round the house have been reseeded and aren't useable til the spring, so all my work had to be done out hacking at weekends. When they are ready I guess things will be easier, but then the nights will be lighter then too!

I have resorted to sticking my baby in a carrier and leading my horse up the road at about 3-4pm, hivizzed up to the max.
 
Bumblelion I think your plan is very good if you can muster the energy! I'm impressed that you are even thinking about it mind. I don't have kids but I know how lazy I am. I think in your shoes I'd be using it as a very good reason to just sit in the warm! :eek:
 
We have a floodlit school but as there are neighbours very close by there is a school lights out by 8pm rule, which is fine for all the liveries.
 
The school lights aren't working but it's quite near the (lit) road so you can see well enough to school in. Last year when I was doing my masters I would be at the yard at 10 o'clock at night but now I'm a teacher I have to get home as I have lessons to plan for the next day and I'm stressing about work. So I try to leave the yard by 7 or 7.30 latest, especially seeing as I'm back there at 5.30 tomorrow morning anyway.
 
I have ridden very little in past 5 years, I cannot just blame the kids, it is work also that makes it difficult.

I have lost the desire to ride as well. I really want to feel like I used to, I have no other interests except the horses that I can pursue (reading I can still do and skiing is just not something that is practical anymore). So I am planning on just making more time in 2012. I figure if I force my self to start again and start lessons, I will start wanting to ride again. (It just feels like too much effort).

If I do not then, i guess the other practical solution is to start either harness driving, or sell some ponies.
 
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