Driving

Carriage Auctions, You Going?

goodhors — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 02:08:49 GMT

Tis the season for carriage and driving related stuff Auctions. They are all over the nation. Is anyone saving their money to go "shop"?

I plan to hit Topeka next week, Friday. More for visiting than buying. Am taking a nice cart to run thru the sale. Hope it sells well for more spending money! Also will see what odds and ends are there that I need. Lots of stuff does go thru the sale.

Also planning to attend Martin's Carriage Auction in Pennsylvania, Oct 16-17 as the first stop on our vacation. Again more for socializing, but we often find very interesting things at the sale. Always an education with the stuff being sold. Item may be the "only one like it anywhere" and no one has ever seen another like it! Usually a lot of really fancy sleighs, ready to drive at this fall sale.

I have seen the ad for Sale down south, which we have never been to. Rumor says it has lots of animals, but is improving on the carriages they sell. Does have lots of draft stuff and wagons for them.

There are sales further west, haven't been to them but maybe someone else has and could tell us about it. Waverly Iowa is coming or was held recently. West coast sales should be soon, Small Farmers Journal is the one I am thinking of.

So tell us about any sales you attend, bargins or treasures to be found there!

AQHA World Show pleasure driving classes

874019 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:57:03 GMT

I got to wtch a little bit of the video on the AQHA world show driving classes. Pretty cool..no isues and hrses really working. Of course a little hard to tell given the quality of the video ..but no hea bobbing, crabbing or jerky motion. really the horses were moving well and I enjoyed watching the classes. I cannot stand watching WP classses and rarely do. Interesting to see how well the Winner of the Am and Jr class will do in the future..nice horse.

Sigh..... Needing to say goodbye..

tonvic — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 04:17:22 GMT

After 30 years it is time to say goodbye to my first driving pony. She is 32 and will not make another Wisconsin winter. I have had her for 30 years and driven her most of those retiring her about 4 years ago. We travelled many miles together, did a few parades, some winter sleigh parades, but mostly trail driving. It has been a challenge trying to fill her pony shoes. She taught me how to drive, I did have a few accidents with her but nothing serious. She was always ready to go, loved to trot, very trustworthy, in general a fun pony. Saturday is the day. I am already dreading it. I won't be here, my goodbyes will be said before. It truly is a chapter closing in my life.

What would you do?

tonvic — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 03:21:38 GMT

I have a very cute grade pony about 40 inches tall and about 8 years old. I had started him driving a few years ago and he was doing quite well until..... we had a blowout. I ended up injured, life got in the way and we didn't do anything with him for 2 years. This summer we have hooked him 3 times and each time ended in a full blown runaway. He is very skittish about everything. Today I was ground driving him and came to the realization that I am not up to the training he will need. So, my question is do I spend the money and send him for training (He would be spending some hard labor time at "Amish Camp") and hope that he becomes the driving horse I want or do save the money and look for an already trained driving horse? If I do the latter, my current pony would probably need to find a new home. (might be tough in these times and since he is not a kids pony or driving pony his future would be uncertain) You can see him at http://tonvic.tripod.com/horses/id8.html though the page is way out of date.

What do you drive? How about driving mishaps?

Pleasure Horse Girl 16 — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 00:03:48 GMT

I drive my minis right now, but I am planning on getting the set up for my 'big' horses too! I like driving and have trained 3 minis to do it!

But as a person who got no driving instruction and I taught myself as I taught my horses I have had a few mishaps.

There are two that actually got me out of the cart:

1)The first time I hooked up my miniature horse (Nugit), I trotted them on the gravel and he kinda had a little freak out experience and well, reared up and spun himself around in the harness, breaking a small piece of hardware on the harness. It was not a big deal and he has just been a little sweetheart too! Not to mention two 1st place trophies in local driving shows!!!

2)Someone gave me this mini that had not had much human interaction in 2 years, she is 3 going on 4 years old now. I just got her last fall. I had done ground driving and stuff, she was pretty solid, but I knew she could still be spooky. She was doing extremely well, and then all of a sudden (while trotting on the gravel), and bolted, I was able to hold her back some and she threatened a few little hops like she may rear, that is when I bailed. She ran away, ran back. I drove her again some more when she got back and she was a good little girl for the rest of the time :)! No more spooking bolting, nothing! I learned that she had been one of those little kid ponies, in the little bit of interaction with humans she had, that ran off with little kids, bucked them off, and reared up with them. That explains a lot! Also the first time I hooked the harness up to this girl, while tightening up the girth, she threw a nice tall, straight up in the air buck! I am glad she is much more accustomed to human interaction now and is much less likely to spook.

Anyways...tell me about your experiences and which horses you drive! Do you drive the same horses you ride, or drive minis like me? Maybe you have full sized horses or ponies that you strictly drive? Tell me about it! Have you ever had your horse run off with the cart? Do you have a sleigh or a big buggy? How about those budweiser clidesdales?

Thanks, this could be a fun forum!

First show in Harness

874019 — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 19:37:01 GMT

We did it!! We avoided the million horses dragging around in various draw reins and tie downs, got in one good practice in the arena by getting up early and into the ring. Had a good practice..unlike several competitors who tried to practice while the ring was full of other horses and had major prooblems..glad I was awatching and not trying to drive. Made it into our class without any problems by hitching just outside the gate and won the class!!!! Woo Hooo Won the circuit award too!!! Judge hated my cart and harness. He did have a good point because I did not use my show cart as I have been driving only witht he training cart. I am still using breeching and used it in the show and he did not like that either. But we had a nice forward walk a good normal trot and a good working trot and hint of a strong trot. We transitioned well from walk to trot and within tro and had a good stop and nice straight back. Woo Hoo A year in the making.

First drive away from home..awesome

874019 — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 17:03:27 GMT

I drove Bubba at the fairgrounds yesterday in the rodeo arena. He soo earned his feed. Despite the arrival of a horde ofpoorly supervised children and that includes a Mother who was angry that I asked her kids to quit running a yelling in the grnstand bleachers I had a great drive. I was able to work him in the walk jog and trot and herresoponded to my hands great!! Whho Hoo. i guess he is ready for the show nest wekend. I plan to show him in Pleasure driving as well as his alla round western and english classes. We have been working toward this for a little over a year and he has done great all the way. Since I am very new to driving I had my dressage instructor who has driven in the dressage and marathon classes help me after some of my dressage lessons. She cam to lend a hand and other thatn trying to get those kids to settle down she reallly ended up being there to give me a driving lesson. No wreaks No spooks. Yeah Bubba the Wonder horse.

Harness for shows vs for training?

874019 — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 19:08:26 GMT

What harness do youuse when you show? Is it the same type as in training?

Great American Horse Drive

adambaker — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 09:42:51 GMT

Dear fellow riders,

I am pleased to inform you that you are all invited to take part in the 50th Great American Horse Drive taking place in between May 6th to May 11th 2009 at Colorado, USA. This event is organized by Sombrero Ranches, Colorado. For more info about this event visit http://www.sombrero.com/custompages/horse_drive.asp

Getting to finally hook up the cart..this weekend

874019 — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 21:38:01 GMT

My horse and I have been working toward driving. We have done the ground driving, long lineing in two reins, dragging the shaft trainer and other things. It loks like we are ready. I am both excited and a little anxious. Is there anything els I can do to help my horse and myself be ready?

Starting a Carriage Buisness

theShepherd — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 00:52:10 GMT

Does anyone here run or was ever part of a carriage business? As a kid I always loved going for a carriage ride in the park at the local farmers market or at the pumpkin patch. I'd like to look into starting a little side business of my own on top of our small farm. How did you get your business up and running, and did it fair out pretty well, not looking to make a ton of money just enough to have it pay for itself and the feed for those massive drive horses.

Seeking dealer for Betathane harnesses

Lil White Terriers — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 16:46:36 GMT

I am trying to locate a dealer for "good" Betathane, not Biothane, harnesses, and, I am finding very few. I have a harness that was made by a lady in Oregon, who has gone out of business, that is very attractive, but does not fit my Cob. I really would like to find one as nice as my first one is.

Betathane is more leatherlike than Biothane. It is also more supple. I LOVE my Betathane reins, actually, better than my leather ones. Leather gets slick when it gets wet... not Betathane. It is great stuff.

Does anyone know of any sources?

New to driving

equipaws — Thu, 29 May 2008 08:22:35 GMT

I have always had a serious interest in driving, but unfortunately don't know anyone that does it. What is the best way to start a young horse to drive? Where is the best place to buy driving equiptment? Is there any good websites or catalogs I should look at? Any help would be much appreciated!

Tips Please

tcschulte — Tue, 20 May 2008 03:08:58 GMT

I have been driving my pony for a while and I plan on taking him to fair. Is there anything I should be trying to work with him on??? Things like going through obstacles or what... I don't know! Could someone please tell me!!!

Just starting out

Dukey — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 00:08:05 GMT

My dad has a large mini, almost pony size, you can see the pic of him on my pics, he's the white one. When we bought him, we were told that he knew how to drive, and ride. Well, my dad has had him for almost a year now and he wants to buy a cart and drive him. Can someone tell me how to get started, measuring for a cart and what are all the accessories needed? Also, where can we get a cart from for a decent price. It won't be used for shows or anything so we don't really care what it looks like, well it needs to be decent. I'll have to go to the auction and see if they have one. I hate going there. I always come back with tooo much stuff. lol!!!!

Bringing a horse back to driving...

xBetterBeSocialx — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 15:35:17 GMT

In a few months, I am going to be starting a Mini in harness again after several years of not being driven. She is a very level headed horse and I am used to driving, but I was wondering if anyone had any tips to help get her back in harness sucessfully. Unfortunately, I don't have any information about what she did before she came to our barn, but I was told that she was well-broke to drive.

Thanks in advance for any tips!!

what type of bit to drive in?

MJClark — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 04:54:57 GMT

Hi,

What type of bit do you prefer to drive in? why?

My driving headstall came with one. It's a snaffle with short lower shanks.

Thanks for your info.
Monica

Combined Driving

Grace and Lila — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 23:13:34 GMT

Hi! I've taught my pony to drive, and would love to try combined driving. I don't think I would compete, but I would be really fun to do something like that at home.

I know a little about it, but I don't know were to get started. Here is how Chloe drives.

Dressage- When I ride her she is very good, and I have try to have her come on the bit while driving and I think she did. We really need help with steering! Transitions arn't our strong point either! She has always been a riding pony(I think) so when I taught her to drive transitions were hard. She is very sane and has never done anything stupid(yet).

Marathon- I have never had her do anything that involves driving over or through anything, Bbut she has driven on the trail a few times and I've ground driven her on the trail a lot. As I said she is sane and easy to train, but under saddle she does things that can't be done with a cart behind you(bucking, sharp turns and seeing how close she can get to something without hitting it)

Cones- Our steering problem won't help!

I am 13 and both my parents work, and I can't drive without them there. I have miles of trails and a pretty big ring, and cones and balls, so I have most of the stuff, I just need a plan. Can you help me??

One more thing. I trained Chloe to drive by my self, and when I was introuducing her to the harness she didn't like the blinkers. I don't use them, and she is fine. Is this ok?

hitching and driving alone

MJClark — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 04:03:28 GMT

Hi,
If this were a perfect world, I'd have someone with me while hitching up and
to go for a drive. However, much of the time I do my horse hobby alone. How
many of you hitch up and drive alone? How do you go about doing it? Do you
tie up the horse while brining up the carriage? Hobble them? This could be a
problem. I've read that the horse should not be tied while hitched.

It must be easier to do this with minis than the big guys.

Thank for your input, comments, suggestions........
Monica

New to driving, where do I get started?

dmmalpert — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 21:34:53 GMT

I have several horses and have trained them myself for general riding and trail with natural horsemanship. I would like to teach my mustang filly to drive as I have always wanted to have a horse that would pull a cart, and she is a little too small to carry my weight for general riding. None of my horses have ever been taught to drive, and I know nothing about how to teach this concept. What is the best way to get started? There don't seem to be many videos that teach this, at least not that I could find online. I'm not a fan of using trainers, I prefer to train my horses myself. Is this something I can learn, maybe from videos, or I am going to have to enlist the help of a trainer? I don't have anything against trainers, but most in my area do not employ natural horsemanship techniques, and everytime I try to use one of them, they really screw up my horses.

how to mail a harnes and hames w/collar

MJClark — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 04:02:18 GMT

Hi,

This may seem like a silly question, but I could use some advice.

I want to sell a harness w/collar and hames, but how do I package it to mail it? I didn't have that problem when I bought it.

The collar is huge w/ hames and the whole thing bulky.

I've never mailed anything like this before, how do people do it? Just put the whole thing in a huge box?

Thanks for any advice.

Monica

what's ADS, CDE.....

MJClark — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 04:30:12 GMT

Hi,

What do the initals stand for? different types of driving clubs? styles of driving?

What are the other initials groups that I left out?
I know some allow pnumantic tires to be driven.

ADS, CDE, ETI, ADT's,.........

where to get pnumatic tires and innertubes for carriage

MJClark — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 03:49:58 GMT

Hi,

I've been trying to find inner tubes and tires for my cart. I've tried mortorcycle and off road bike stores.

The size that's on the side of the tire is 3.50 25

Any help would be great.

At what age do you start..............

Oldhoss — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:18:46 GMT

..................doing serious carriage work with your colt?

I know there are physical development issues if you start riding one too early, and I was just wondering about driving.

I guess If you start too early, you might have to buy bigger sized harness as the bugger grows.

YAH MY NEW HARNESS pics and it FITS!!!

Qrtrhorser — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 05:09:06 GMT

Whoohoo I LOVE it! I wasn't sure at first it would fit, it looked so big and Cosmo's so small (apperently only in my head lol) it fits great! It is the Pleasure Delux Harness from Smuckers whatcha think how do you think it looks? I took the harness pads of my other harness but I'm thinking of getting Yellow or Baby Blue?