Would you hack....

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Bericote

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5 miles to a xc course, do about an hour of xc then hack back?!

Pony is reasonably fit, but am I crackers? Lack of transport is driving me insane!
 
yeah, don't see why not-when I was a teen we would hack 8 miles to local indoor, jump for an hour and hack back plus hack to meets and local shows (where we would do as many classes as possible to make it worthwhile). If the pony is fit enough and you are sensible, why not? :)
 
That makes me feel better!! Thank you for your replies, he won't do a huge amount whilst there.. I just wanted to have a play in the water do some Diddy fences and blow away the winter cobwebs!
 
Yes, have a rest after the jumping, give the pony a break to graze and have a drink, and you take something to eat and drink.
 
Yes, like MotherOfChickens we used to hack miles to a show, do every single class we could and then hack home. As long as the pony is fit enough it shouldn't be a problem.
 
Thank you all for your replies!!! Suki that sounds like a good idea!! And yes I will be sure to let gp have a snack break and drink :) if I ever figure out how to put pictures up I will do a follow up... Hopefully he doesn't disgrace himself!
 
In terms of the hack there that's less than roads and tracks and not timed... Obviously the average XC course is far short of an hour though I assume you don't mean continuous XC speed for that time :p
 
It depends what you've done all winter.

If the horse has done a maximum of an hour's hack/flat school, for example, then you'd be more than doubling the amount of time you spend in the saddle in one leap and adding a different activity, and in any athlete that would be asking for trouble.
 
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Having a brilliant jumper but total non loader when I was young I had to do this all the time! We did as Suzistokes suggested! Backpacks with lunch, stopped on the way home for a picnic.
Good fun!
 
Bericote said:
5 miles to a xc course, do about an hour of xc then hack back?!

Pony is reasonably fit, but am I crackers? Lack of transport is driving me insane!
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depends on the road I would be on and how busy/safe and how fit the horse was. Thing i would be worried about is if an injury happend at the course (Luckily I arrived when this happend and took said horse home while freind held hers and mine till I got back to do our jumping)

If you do I would have a back up plan in case of emergency
 
Thank you all for your input... It is a local livery yard so if we got into trouble on course I have a couple of friends who I'm sure would assist if the worst happened!!

In terms of hacking there its minimal road work mostly bridleway and tracks which we are very fortune to have plenty of around here I would say a mile tops of road work and that isn't continuous.

I will play it by ear as to how long we are xc for and we're in no rush :)

Thank you all again!
 
Bericote said:
5 miles to a xc course, do about an hour of xc then hack back?!

Pony is reasonably fit, but am I crackers? Lack of transport is driving me insane!
Click to expand...

Yes definitely, I have no transport so always have often hack to hunt, hunt for couple hours and then walk home relaxed my horse is so chilled when I get back it lovely. Good idea for drinks and food. Before you set off home
 
Definitely! I am currently building up my hacking distances solely for this purpose! After what could have potentially been a horrible accident last time we travelled, plus my friend getting rid of her box, hacking to places seems to be the best option. As others have said, take a packed lunch and you'll be fine :)
 
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