xc schooling in rain / ground conditions would you?

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minimex2

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ive paid for xc schooling tomorrow, eventhough no rain forcast tomorrow weve had 48 hours of solidly rain so not sure whether to go.

would you still go or cut your losses?

thanks
 
I would call the venue and ask what the ground is like. They might cancel you anyway and close the course if it's really bad. I don't mind XC schooling in the rain or on wet ground - I can't make it sunny and dry for a comp so it's good to practise in those conditions.
 
chestnut cob said:
I would call the venue and ask what the ground is like. They might cancel you anyway and close the course if it's really bad. I don't mind XC schooling in the rain or on wet ground - I can't make it sunny and dry for a comp so it's good to practise in those conditions.
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This :)

I tend to raise an eyebrow when people compete in the same weather conditions, yet take a rain check on schooling days when there isn't the same time constraints or pressure so potentially less room for error. But then I am from the old school that if the mud is below the hairline of the hoof, you still go :D

If you are local to the venue, pop up there and check yourself. What the venue thinks is okay, might not be for you/your horse.
 
The ground was so hard around our way, 24 hours of rain was needed to improve it anyway. I imagine it is now perfect! We don't event July/August as our mare hates hard ground yet relishes wet soft going so we would be out there like a shot!
 
I would phone and check its still on , and I expect they would let you drive ver and see for yourself about ground . Ay doubts don't go , but If you were hunting you'd be out in thick mud yeh I know not going so fast most of the time but if your happy you and horse can cope then go :)
 
I'd be more concerned about hard ground but why not stud up according to the ground conditions? If you don't have stud holes, I think it depends on your horse and the level you are competing at but generally I think most horses cope well with a bit of mud, it's the downpour on very hard ground just before you go that makes it slippy without studs.
 
Yes! But tailor it to level of experience. If a young/inexperienced horse, absolutely don't want to put them off, but do need to get them used to mud, so keep the fences simpler than you otherwise would, as the challenge lies in the ground. If a more experienced horse, use the ground to help them learn to cope with mud!
 
Hard ground is more likely to put us off than soft ground. Your horse will compete in many different types of going so the experience won't do any harm - you just need to ride according to the conditions and don't take risks.
 
I actually think more people need to school in less than perfect conditions. I taught a novice xc lesson last weekend, and most of them had never ridden/jumped on grass, and their horses were so obviously used or arena surfaces. Even the nearest farm ride to us (Somerford) has a large percentage of artificial take offs and landings.

I do agree that you should scale down the fences that you do initially until a young one inexperienced horse is confident on grass/muddier conditions.
 
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