I guess if you haul in by yourself and plan on staying in a hotel you aren’t allowed at this horse show.
I do have personal feelings about people that pack up at 6pm and don’t return until 8am but this seems to vary by discipline and people often do have a night check person.
That’s a good point. I’ll be honest, one of my horses prefers to be in his stall half the day. It’s the only time I see him really relax. He is the lowest horse in the pecking order, so maybe that’s part of it. Isolation lets him finally relax.
I ship in whenever it is feasible to do so, to save money. I have a strict horse show budget, and I can attend many more shows by hauling in. Plus, that way my horse can be turned out in his field overnight. But, it depends on the horse and the situation: my now retired horse preferred a stall to standing in the trailer, so I would get him a stall, and I went to a lot fewer shows (focusing on quality over quantity) as a result. My current horse and my previous horses have been content and relaxed standing in the trailer, enabling both quality and quantity in terms of showing.
I was curious as to what it would cost to haul to a show, say, 50 miles away. I admit rather than do the math myself, I did some AI research. I guess it depends on how much a stall is, but I don’t think it saves money to haul in and out for multi-day shows. This is ONE way:
A diesel pickup truck’s fuel efficiency (MPG) will significantly impact the fuel cost. A truck hauling a trailer will get lower MPG than when driving alone. Let’s assume an average MPG of 10 for the truck and trailer combination and a diesel price of $4 per gallon. For a 50-mile trip, that’s 5 gallons of fuel (50 miles / 10 MPG). At $4/gallon, the fuel cost would be $20.
Hauling a trailer, especially a horse trailer with its weight and potential for bouncing, causes additional wear on the truck (tires, brakes, engine, transmission, etc.). A common estimate for wear and tear is around $0.10 to $0.30 per mile, so for 50 miles, that could add $5 to $15.
If you are hiring someone to haul the trailer, you’ll also need to factor in their time. A reasonable hourly rate for a driver could be $20-$40, and the trip might take 1-2 hours depending on traffic and other factors, adding another $20 to $80.
Tolls might be a factor in some areas.
Therefore, a reasonable estimate for a 50-mile haul could range from:
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