Would you ride?

Honey08

Honey08

Waffled a lot!
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We've had snow on the ground for a few weeks now. By day it melts a bit, by night it freezes hard. Its very hilly where we are. I've managed to ride my two in the afternoons as the ice melts enough to get up our lane onto the flat bit and out onto the main roads that are gritted. I've only been doing quick "round the blocks" as the back lanes (which generally have very little traffic) are still very slippery and I avoid main roads generally. Today there was a hard frost and there is thick fog so I've not ridden. Yet many friends seem to still be going out. Would you? Am I being too soft?
 
Honey08 said:
We've had snow on the ground for a few weeks now. By day it melts a bit, by night it freezes hard. Its very hilly where we are. I've managed to ride my two in the afternoons as the ice melts enough to get up our lane onto the flat bit and out onto the main roads that are gritted. I've only been doing quick "round the blocks" as the back lanes (which generally have very little traffic) are still very slippery and I avoid main roads generally. Today there was a hard frost and there is thick fog so I've not ridden. Yet many friends seem to still be going out. Would you? Am I being too soft?
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Absolutely not - to both questions.

Your horse could slip and incur serious injuries - might even have to be put down. Do you want that?
 
Sukistokes2 said:
No to ice, too bloody dangerous imo.
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I take it that it's not common in the UK to use studded shoes during winters, then. Is it because there is relatively little time when they would be useful, or is there another reason? Around here (I'm Nordic) winter studs are something that's par for the course, but of course our icy season is fairly long and not riding when it's slippy would be impractical.
 
Not soft at all. Today was the first day I've ridden out in 2 weeks, apart from a couple of trips down the track when it wasn't frozen last week. It's not just the fact that the horse could slip on black ice, but the fact that the cars can easily slide too. Someone was killed in the week after their car slid on black ice on a road that had been gritted. Spring is just around the corner, the horses don't mind having a bit of a holiday and it's just not worth the risk to go out when you could encounter ice. As for riding in the fog on roads, that is plain stupidity and putting lives at risk all round.
 
We haven't been out for weeks! Various reasons, including the riders being indisposed but certainly not since the snow. We had to dig the drift at the end of the lane out with the tractor, the no-through road at the end of the lane is never ploughed/gritted (not sure what we pay our council tax for) and the sides of the roads than have been gritted are still snowy/icy. Just to make you a little envious, Honey, we have glorious sunshine today, along with a pretty strong wind. Perfect for mucking out!
 
Lol Pearl, my friend just put a photo on a Facebook, she's at a similar level to you and it's her place (The Llama trekking and western trails place, perhaps you know it?) in glorious sunshine looking down on the mist filled valley which we're in!

Thank you everyone. I'm not soft then! I was feeling a bit "oh should I??" As the lane to the main rds is ok and the mist cleared a bit, but it's back to 100yds visibility again now, so no hi vis would do much in that if a car was speeding towards you.. We all get a duvet day!
 
I don't risk it. I figure one missed ride is worth it if you think what could happen. It's nearly spring, plenty of opportunity for rides.
 
Emma_H said:
I don't risk it. I figure one missed ride is worth it if you think what could happen. It's nearly spring, plenty of opportunity for rides.
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I am in Lees and it is definitely better the higher you go. It got worse as we dropped back from Uppermill but as you say up on the tops/Denshaw/ etc it is much brighter. Seems to be pockets lying in the villages. Down here in Lees it is very foggy now and noticed it just got worse as dropped through Lydgate, Grotton etc
 
They've just ridden past my house. You can't even see to the end of the field. The front one has high vis on, she is followed by another lady with no high vis at all on, followed by her six year old daughter at the back on a tiny pony - again with no high vis on!!!
 
I rode today, full hi vis, went down our private lane then decided when I got to the bottom not to go on the main road and instead turned up and back across the fields. Only a short ride out but the weather hasn't been good for us lately so grabbing what we can without putting ourselves in extra danger. I messed about for ages tacking up hoping it would clear but if anything I think it got slightly worse. It looks like it may be a little warmer at night here this week, so hopefully the ice should clear and normal service can resume :)
 
Frost said:
I take it that it's not common in the UK to use studded shoes during winters, then. Is it because there is relatively little time when they would be useful, or is there another reason? Around here (I'm Nordic) winter studs are something that's par for the course, but of course our icy season is fairly long and not riding when it's slippy would be impractical.
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We don't generally have long enough periods of snow or ice to warrant using studs here instead of just giving the horse some time off.

We tend to use studs for competing on grass surfaces for grip. Our cold snaps that cause bad ice don't usually last very long at all, neither does our snow.
 
If you have any doubts then no ..don't ride...the sun was shining here today and the roads were ice free so set out with high hopes but found still frozen lanes even with the sun shining on them so we truncated the ride..its not worth the risk to horse or rider. You are not soft..you are sensible.
 
Nope. And not just due to risk of horses slipping but what if you meet a vehicle on untreated lane which then brakes suddenly, having seen you late due to fog, on an icy surface? Recipe for disaster. Not a thing you, your horse or the driver could do to avoid inevitable accident. Not worth the risk for me
 
Yes. I'd school! Even if that was frozen and only walking on - I'd do lateral flexing stuff in walk instead.

No way in hell I'd hack in that :eek3@
 
It's amazing how people from other countries view our weather and what to ride in though. A couple of years ago, the day after a heavy fall of snow, I was somewhat surprised to hear a horse trotting up the compacted snow in the lane. When I stated that the lady was brave, she remarked that this was not real snow and her horse had studs in, then went on her way to the roads. She was from the US, on a 4* event horse and was quite happy to go out hacking on the snow covered roads!! Thankfully, the roads were very quiet due to the UK fear of driving in snow and she came back in one piece. I did kind of envy her though, it was a beautiful blue sky with crisp snow.
 
Why ride if there is any risk, spring is coming so this icy weather is not going to last for ever. Play it safe I say, there are enough risks when riding any way without taking some unnecessary ones as well.
 
Compacted snow I would ride in quite happily. Fresh snow to a certain depth too (I love slowing my over excited mare down by giving her a snowdrift to clamber over!) It's the fact that it's melted a bit each day then frozen hard on the lanes that makes it dodgy. Even the slightest pull from the dogs has had me on the floor or doing a Scooby Doo impression this week!

What is scary is my husband was down at the stable when my friends rode past. He came up and said I can't believe X rode out in this. I said to him did he not see Y and Z with her (the ones with no high vis on) and he said no. The drive from our stables to the road is about 40m, that's how invisible they were!
 
katherinef said:
I am in Lees and it is definitely better the higher you go. It got worse as we dropped back from Uppermill but as you say up on the tops/Denshaw/ etc it is much brighter. Seems to be pockets lying in the villages. Down here in Lees it is very foggy now and noticed it just got worse as dropped through Lydgate, Grotton etc
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I went to muck out after my last post and watched the fog/low cloud get closer and closer until we couldn't see the church in village below us, we still had some sun but tbh we thought that we were going to be in the cloud before it got dark. Luckily it went round us and then cleared a bit so that we could see the village again, just before we brought the horses in. The ground is harder this evening than it was at this time yesterday, we now have straw spread around the yard, so that the horses don't damage their legs in the ruts left from when we had mud. Isn't weather fun?
 
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