Having fun with my endurance horse in the snow - PICS!

[Auventera_Two]

@gothedistance;2906716

marta -

Absolutely correct, on both accounts. Rather sad, too. Maybe it would be best if they simply move along to be guests on this thread.

Still no snow here. Just bitter cold and high winds. Ugh! However, I did get my dose of snow through a Happy New Year reply e-mail yesterday from my endurance horse’s breeder (lives in the same state as A2 and is a former president of the CAA). She sent an attached photo of her driving her pair of Arab/Welsh ponies to a bob sled! She said her hubby had to take the tractor out into the fields to plow a path, just so they could use the sled. I couldn’t believe the piled drifts from the tractor blade – almost as high as the sled itself.

But what a grand photo!

Oh my gosh, that CUTE PONY!!! :lol: How sweet!! That just made my day! And look at that happy dog too!!

So sorry you haven’t gotten snow yet, that would be a real bummer. Some years we don’t have this much snow yet, so we are really enjoying ourselves this year!

I climbed the snowbank at the end of our driveway with the horse (while riding). It is probably 8 feet high!

[gothedistance]

@Auventera Two;2905807

The pink tack! …the pad is a Hilason from Ebay. And I have plenty more where that came from!

You know, doing fun stuff like this is the perfect venue for these types of inexpensive saddles. That’s a real thought, and probably a really good reason to pick one up off eBay. How do you like it for daily use? I’ve heard both good and bad, and like to hear first hand accounts.

Ohhh I yearn for the day when we can cross No Hands Bridge

Take a hint from the most famous winner of the Tevis and OD - he hand walked his horse across it! :lol:

[gothedistance]

@Lisa Cook;2905264

I’m all for having fun with my horses, especially in the snow. Heck - I even take them ski joring, too, and we have a total blast. I’m going to a ski joring race this weekend, as a matter of fact.

Great website! And the video of the galloping quarter horse pulling the ski jourer over jumps and through a slalom course was incredible. LOVED the music, too!! I am such a Sawyer Brown fan!

Lisa - are you going to post videos of your runs?? I’m amazed they even have a division for kids 10 and under. Do they use ponies to pull the skier, or horses?

[Huntertwo]

@hitchinmygetalong;2906512

I challenge any of you who are calling those of us who have pointed out some safety issues with the OP’s photos rude to go back and re-read the thread. You tell me who tossed out the first rude comment. I believe it was this one:

It’s obvious that there are some here who feel this is a smackdown of the OP. You’re wrong. It’s a handful of people who don’t see things the same way others do, as goeslikestink says. Where some see “fun” others see potential problems.

And the very simple question that has been asked so many times has yet to be answered: How do you stop the snow tube from sliding into the horse’s legs?

With all due respect Hitch,
These are people I’ve never seen on this forum before. Although, of course everyone has the right to post on any forum.

It just seems odd that they all came out of the wood work the same time A2 posted her pictures and poked and prodded her for answers they clearly could have cared less about… IMO

[Lisa_Cook]

@gothedistance;2906774

Great website! And the video of the galloping quarter horse pulling the ski jourer over jumps and through a slalom course was incredible. LOVED the music, too!! I am such a Sawyer Brown fan!

Lisa - are you going to post videos of your runs?? I’m amazed they even have a division for kids 10 and under. Do they use ponies to pull the skier, or horses?

No, no videos - I don’t own a video camera. Pictures are a possibility, however. Last year my youngest son competed as a Pee Wee (age 10 & under). This year he has to move up, so he’s a little apprehensive about facing stiffer competition!

You can use a pony or a horse. In the picture I posted earlier on this thread, the grey horse I’m riding is actually a grey PONY - she’s 14.1, but built like a brick house. She’s actually speedier than my 16.2 hand Appy who I’ll be riding this weekend - he’s all legs, and still, at the age of 6 with a full season of eventing under his belt, he does not have the most efficient gallop in the world. The pony was born with a fabulous gallop.

I actually just got organizing a ski joring clinic for our pony club, which was held last week. Some folks from the NESJA came and spent quite a while introducing the kids and ponies/horses to the sport in a gradual, safe, and appropriate manner using proper equipment and everyone had a ton of fun. I think we have some new converts to ski joring.

[LostFarmer]

We, being rednecks, always had a winter carnival when I was a kid. We packed the snow and had cutter races with horses. A team on a light weigh sled is a sprint. My personal favorite is the elk hide race. An elk hide is tied to a rope about 25-30 feet long. The cowboy then drags the victim on the elk hide down the arena and around a barrel. Switch places, as in the one on the hide is now on the horse. It is a wreck waiting to happen. It is usually horses that are fresh and haven’t been used much. Dead elk hide is enough to have a few buck and snorts. :eek: The best were the husband and wife teams compete.

LF

[Auventera_Two]

@LostFarmer;2907406

We, being rednecks, always had a winter carnival when I was a kid. We packed the snow and had cutter races with horses. A team on a light weigh sled is a sprint. My personal favorite is the elk hide race. An elk hide is tied to a rope about 25-30 feet long. The cowboy then drags the victim on the elk hide down the arena and around a barrel. Switch places, as in the one on the hide is now on the horse. It is a wreck waiting to happen. It is usually horses that are fresh and haven’t been used much. Dead elk hide is enough to have a few buck and snorts. :eek: The best were the husband and wife teams compete.

LF

Oh, that’s hilarious! Loved your redneck comment too. Way too funny! :lol:

[Mozart]

@Lisa Cook;2905264

I’m all for having fun with my horses, especially in the snow. Heck - I even take them ski joring, too, and we have a total blast. I’m going to a ski joring race this weekend, as a matter of fact.

But there’s a difference between having fun in a reasonable way, with reasonable safety precautions, and having fun in a Darwin’s-Award-Candidate way. And the OP would be the latter, for sure.

Certainly there will always be risk associated with any horse sport, but it doesn’t hurt to take a few more minutes to think things through and at least remove the unnecessary, entirely preventable risks, that I see in the OP.

What iyo is inherently riskier about the OP tubing behind her horse than skijoring (the method where the skier also drives the horse)? I don’t drive so I don’t know squat about harness but it struck me that the only (not trying to minimize it) substantial risk would be if she fell off (resulting in loose horse with tube attached to it), as opposed to a skier, who would be able to disengage himself if he fell, resulting “merely” in a loose horse.

If she doesn’t fall off, it seems to me she would be able to use her feet to brake should the horse stop quickly. Seems to me that would someone’s main concern, having a system to keep the tube from zooming up behind the horse.

[gothedistance]

@LostFarmer;2907406

The best were the husband and wife teams compete.

You can’t walk away from this and leave us hanging. I want details!! What made it the best? Do tell!! Inquiring minds want to know! :lol:

[Huntertwo]

@LostFarmer;2907406

We, being rednecks, always had a winter carnival when I was a kid. We packed the snow and had cutter races with horses. A team on a light weigh sled is a sprint. My personal favorite is the elk hide race. An elk hide is tied to a rope about 25-30 feet long. The cowboy then drags the victim on the elk hide down the arena and around a barrel. Switch places, as in the one on the hide is now on the horse. It is a wreck waiting to happen. It is usually horses that are fresh and haven’t been used much. Dead elk hide is enough to have a few buck and snorts. :eek: The best were the husband and wife teams compete.

LF

OMG…That sounds like SOOOO much fun!! I’d love to be the “victim” and try that, although Elk hides might be hard to come by in CT…:yes:

[Huntertwo]

Found one!! LOL

http://cgi.ebay.com/A-Tanned-Elk-Hide_W0QQitemZ270199883032QQihZ017QQcategoryZ22702QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Anyone up for it?

[Nicker]

[QUOTE=Auventera Two;2906691]
Hu?? :eek: Oh my gosh, you’re right! I remember someone contacting me to ask if she could publish my picture and stuff, and I never followed up with it! :lol: I’ll have to order the issue. Thank you for reminding me!

Oh, I’m so excited about the S&R training! We are at a standstill right now because of the winter, but training should resume in the spring. I’m having a blast with that. Of course, it’s serious stuff, and none of us take it too lightly, but the training for our horses is really amazing. And to be a part of the community in that way is humbling.[/QUOTE]

You can have my copy if you’d like, but it is a tad worn. I read all my horsey mags many times over. PM me if you’re interested.

[gothedistance]

OK. We’ve gone from intertubes to skies to sleds to sleighs to toboggans to rusty car hoods to dead animal skins for sitting on to drag behind our horses in the name of fun. :lol:

Is there anything left out there one could possibly use??

Oh, yeah – a tarp. Great for when you don’t have snow!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpePW1hiXpc

Youtube time!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FeZrvQ2wrM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YN6W0ZtSNpM (Dad gets a turn … and a toss!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i87xT21vVR0&NR=1 (pony says “no way!”)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPCOIDFZ0TA&NR=1 (check out this contraption! soapbox anyone?)

[Auventera_Two]

Oh my goodness, those videos were a hoot!! The dirt sledding has me rolling and wiping tears! :lol: :lol: :lol:

[hundredacres]

[QUOTE=Huntertwo;2907241]

It just seems odd that they all came out of the wood work the same time A2 posted her pictures and poked and prodded her for answers they clearly could have cared less about… IMO[/QUOTE]

Hey, hey now…I saw the cool title that was on the front page for this board for a while and had to take a peek. I didn’t realize visiting different boards on COTH was a crime! I only commented on the rudeness so I realize the fingers aren’t pointed directly at me, but I couldn’t help but take it personally since I rarely (maybe never) post on this board.

[gothedistance]

hundredacres -

Not to worry. The hoop-la has to do with a cyber schoolyard fight in another forum between the OP and another poster, and the OP was stalked to this forum. That caused some anger here among the regular posters, naturally.

Really, it was all too :rolleyes:

Frankly, there are some individuals posting on the forums that REALLY need to chill and not take themselves or this internet cocktail party so seriously.

[Auventera_Two]

Good post GTD. Certain posters I just plain ignore because of the stalking tendencies. :lol: Interesting to note these same people who are so concerned about my horse’s welfare haven’t bothered to post on their other skijoring and sleading behind pony threads. Hmm. I wonder why their horses aren’t in grave, immediate danger?

OH my gosh, sledding on car hoods and dead animal skins! What a riot! I rode yesterday outside with the windchill at 0. I thought - what the heck, I’m young and resilient. Better take advantage of it while I can. Well, I think I frostbit my cheekbones. The horse’s 1/4 sheet kept flipping up over onto one side because of the wind. I managed to get in a couple of nice long canters down the field before deciding it was time for hot coffee and a blanket. :lol:

[Lisa_Cook]

@Auventera Two;2912013

Good post GTD. Certain posters I just plain ignore because of the stalking tendencies. :lol: Interesting to note these same people who are so concerned about my horse’s welfare haven’t bothered to post on their other skijoring and sleading behind pony threads. Hmm. I wonder why their horses aren’t in grave, immediate danger?

Since you asked…for starters, in the picture “small 1”, you are within kicking distance of having a hoof land on your forehead and at no time were the people on the other thread within such close distance to their horse’s hind feet as you are in that particular picture.

[Auventera_Two]

@Lisa Cook;2912157

Since you asked…for starters, in the picture “small 1”, you are within kicking distance of having a hoof land on your forehead and at no time were the people on the other thread within such close distance to their horse’s hind feet as you are in that particular picture.

No Lisa, it might look that way because of the angle of the photo, but the lines are taught, and you can see in the other photos that with the lines taught as well, I’m nowhere near her heels.

For one thing I’ve owned this horse since she was weaned and she has NEVER lifted a heel toward a human, ever. If she were a strange horse that I’m not familiar with, or one prone to flightly heels, I wouldn’t even attempt it no matter how long the lines are.

For another thing - when I tail up on hills, I’m within a couple of feet of her hind heels. She would never think of kicking out. She’s got a working attitude, and trust in her handler/rider/owner. Sure, she’s a horse and has a brain of her own, but isn’t that the chance you take any time you choose to do ANYTHING with a horse? They could kill you in their stall trying to put their halter on.

I guess trail/endurance people just develop a bond and trust relationship with the horse to the point you would trust your life to them, and they likewise. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t ride in the dark, or on umfamiliar trails. When you’re 15 miles from the nearest human help, your horse is your life line. That’s why you spend a lot of time cultivating a strong bond.

If I had any thoughts of - oh my god, this horse might just freak out and kick my head off - she wouldn’t be my endurance/trail partner. It’s just that simple. We were riding a very familiar trail but a tree had fallen down in a wind storm and blocked the entire trail. I walked her into the woods a bit to go around it, and we got tangled up in barbed wire. I had to untangle each leg, and her tail. She was clearly nervous but listened to me, and didn’t panic. She could have gone bezerk and started thrashing and injured us both. She could have started kicking out and smashed my forehead in. But I guarantee I wouldn’t be out in the woods on a horse with such volatile tendencies in the first place. As it was, she stood still to get untangled, and we continued on without even a scratch.

When you ride in a groomed ring, perhaps these are things you just don’t think about. But when you make the choice to spend your miles on the trail you need a horse with a sense of self preservation and with a good attitude and work ethic. One who is willing to kick your head off at the littest bit of nothing wouldn’t be my partner for long.

Of course accidents happen, and even great horses can lose it, but that’s the chance we all take every day that we’re around them.

[Lisa_Cook]

@Auventera Two;2912233

When you ride in a groomed ring, perhaps these are things you just don’t think about.

I do with my event horse, all the things you mention plus more. Trail ride alone for miles? Check. Ride in the dark? Check. Gallop him through the snow? Check.

Has he ever kicked? No, never. Do I expect him to? No, of course not! Eventers have to trust their horses, too. But would I choose to put myself in the position you chose to put yourself? No.