When we moved from racing in Maryland to Finger Lakes (upstate NY) we built a 30 stall stable - stalls back to back in the middle - with a 15 foot “shedrow” around the outside of the stalls and an indoor arena (gates that lined up with each aisle) at the north end of the building. We rounded the corners of the tack room to widden the turn at the south end of the barn. We lunged and broke the youngsters in the arena, but put serious gallops under the older horses. The winters were long and cold (I once galloped at minus 26 degrees - I froze, but the horses LOVED it!), but when the FL race track opened for training our horses were ready to breeze and run way before other locals who had been stalled all winter!! It was great for keeping my show horses going too!!
Just thought I’d pipe in about Bowie’s hacienda (I’m stabled there). I love it! I’m one of the few that finds it extremely helpful. I’m in barn 2, so its a short short walk to the entrance, and a short walk home. Less trouble to get into to and from training, and my tough horses relax and will go in a nice frame (from my days of showing I’ve found it is helpful to make them use their muscles).
However, I cannot STAND when people who don’t understand how useful the indoor track can be go by me at an open gallop standing in their irons letting their horse zip along. The whole POINT of me taking my horses in there is so they have less to look at and less distraction, so they focus more on the task at hand.
[QUOTE=Hunter’s Rest;6375813]
The Kentucky Training Center in Lexington has a 5/8ths (?) one.
Hickory Tree Farm has a 1/16th mile one.
Buckland has one.
Lots have them.
I galloped on that one at Belvoir many times! Even schooled hurdles on it!!
You can work a horse at the KTC. Its awesome.[/QUOTE]
The training center in Lexington doesn’t have an indoor track anymore. Wish it did, it’s pretty miserable in the winter.
Bonita Farm has one-- two rows of 25? stalls that face in plus feed, tack, hay, and wash areas, and then a dirt track around the perimeter of that, and then the exterior wall. I imagine it would be REALLY nice in the winter, plus it makes for a nice confined space to handwalk layups/ hotwalk.
Doublete - We used to be stabled at Bowie many years ago. (We lived only a 1/2 mile from there) and I used to gallop the SUPER tough/nut jobs in the hacienda and know exactly what you mean getting passed by a speed freak. Getting pulled up and out of there when there was heavy traffic was also a trick. How about passing one of the gaps that went to the inside stables and meeting a wacky horse walking/cooling out in the inside shedrow (horses walked clockwise - galloped counter clockwise) ??
I used to board at a place in Michigan that had an indoor track. I believe it was originally owned by the Fishers.
You can see the stalls and a bit of the track around them in the last picture on the facilities tab. http://hiddenhollowequestrian.com/Facility/tabid/56/Default.aspx
Before the indoor arena was built, the track allowed for riding in the winter. Jumping lessons were even held on it.
Crosscreek- I have a filly that taught one such person… I never speed around the hut, but this particular rider does. I told him to watch her, she’s all of 14 hands and quick on her feet. She decided around wasn’t going to be her style that day, and turned left into the shedrow at the far gap… He couldn’t stay with her cuz it happened so fast and landed on his feet in the hut… I dont think he ever let her go like that again… LOL>
We have one at the family farm in MA that you can gallop in. It actually goes around the outside of the 35 stall barn. The dirt is winterized. I don’t have any pictures of the racehorses, but here I was putting the first ride on my horse Jeffrey:
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i245/wtryan/Jeffrey/DD1stRide3.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i245/wtryan/Jeffrey/DD1stRide2.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i245/wtryan/Jeffrey/DD1strideGettingOn.jpg
There was room to put some small jumps on the inside of the straightaways and the racehorses could still gallop around the outside. Of course it was usually empy for galloping and I did not jump when another horse was out there… Was great all winter and at night.
[QUOTE=doublete;6396289]
Crosscreek- I have a filly that taught one such person… I never speed around the hut, but this particular rider does. I told him to watch her, she’s all of 14 hands and quick on her feet. She decided around wasn’t going to be her style that day, and turned left into the shedrow at the far gap… He couldn’t stay with her cuz it happened so fast and landed on his feet in the hut… I dont think he ever let her go like that again… LOL>[/QUOTE]
Some people just can’t take your word on something…they need a picture!!
How about the “track” in the woods?? Every gallop there?? It was another good place to take a tuffy, but you had to gallop right handed and make sure you didn’t get in the trees!! No “speedsters” out there…they couldn’t make the turns.
The track in the woods has been gone for many years… Ive heard about it though… Turned into a subdivision.
I used to gallop in the woods at Bowie, oh the memories! :eek: There were usually two kinds of horses there, horses getting legged up after a layoff, or super tough half a nut jobs because they were too hard on themselves on the racetrack. The corner by the gate was always interesting, and so was going down the hill and turning left into the woods. I also remember one horse making it down the ravine, minus his rider…
