How many of you are still able to ride in this weather???

[Tiaki]

Just wondering if those of you who have been hit by snow are able to ride at the moment??

We have an outdoor school which I refuse to use at the best of times due to a rubbish surface but it's like concrete at the moment anyway.

The horses are still going out in the day but where we are is so hilly and the compacted snow is just sheet ice at the moment. Even my barefoot mob are slipping and sliding about so I don't think it's at all safe to be venturing out on them.

How are you lot getting on with riding?

xxx

[Twizzel]

Nope school is rock solid and theres ice under the snow. Horses stuck in their stables aside from an hour in the school for a leg stretch as the fields are lethal.

[Lobelia Overhill]

There's an indoor at the yard I'm at, so I'd be able to ride if I could get there! My car won't start!

I suppose I could walk ...

[beks the artist]

No, I haven't ridden since Tuesday last week!!!! Mine are out 24/7 in the snow, well rugged and I am having to put out ad-lib hay as fields are under 3 inches of ice. I am having to fill up water buckets from the house as my outside taps are all frozen. I hate snow. Fed up of this now!!!!

[Tiaki]

Same Beks - I hate snow too and wish it would all vanish now. We have more forecast here for overnight tonight :(

xxx

[Bright Sparkx]

I can't ride atm we have no school and the fields are all rock solid plus I'm not risking hacking out because the lanes around are covered in ice, so now its just a waiting game

[Madbee]

We have an indoor school so it's not impossible, but it's very busy and I've not been able to get in the last couple of days. Also I don't want to tire Bets of schooling since we can't hack, but I'm really not sure which is worse - going round in circles for half an hour or being stuck in without exercise! She gets an hour in the outdoor school for a leg stretch but I really wish we could put them in the field - it's too icy on the track down to the fields though and no-one's prepared to risk it.

This is the first year I have not enjoyed snow :(

[fairyfeet]

No I can't! Field is ice with snow on top and ponies are sliding all over. They can't get back into their stable quick enough when I muck out. Max hates snow and ice. He slipped over last year and has almost done the splits this year. He stood there scared to move looking at me to help him. It really is dangerous out there

[My Crazy Clan]

We have no snow but the ground is hard and its ****** freezing!! still riding!

[angietoots]

Not much snow here as yet - we seem to be in a little bubble at the SW of Glasgow that is not getting snow. BUT the temps have been shocking - as we have nice clear skies the temps have been down to minus 12 overnight (hubby has been dispatched to Derby House to get another rug)!!!!! What little snow we have has compacted into hard ice on tracks so hacking is not an option, and being at home there are no schooling facilities. I'm reluctant to "hack" around our front field as I like to distinguish where Milo can play and where he is "working" (otherwise he acts like a total tube when you try to ride as we are in his "play" area), and the back field is gubbed already and will need major rolling in the spring, so I don't want to damage the front field more than necessary :( So no riding at the moment for me. I want to speak with a nearby farm that is developing it's livery buisness and has an outdoor school about using their facilities, BUT it would involve a short hack (about a mile) to get there - and at the moment the tracks are too icy :(

[Loz]

Not had any snow here really, a tiny tiny dusting. Roads are ok to ride on to at the minute, been leaving it till mid-day at the weekends though. Fields are rock soild so no schooling can be done. Last weekend the tracks round here were too wet to doing anything faster than walk, now they're too solid! I don't like winter. Although do want a day or snow just so I can go sledging!!

[jangles]

I would ride my horse in their summer field as the snow here is nice a powdery, but I'm snowed in and can't get to my horse :(. I feel for all you guys that have ice, I can just about deal with the snow (even though it can ****** off righ now) but I hate the ice, so dangerous!!!

[honeybee]

I'm still riding, been quite lucky the schools defrosted by about 9 and the way my days off work I've been going down about lunch time when everyone else is at work and riding him. Not taking the risk hacking even though its all off road cos I still don't know the tracks well enough.
Days when I'm working luckily the YO loves him so has asked me if she can have a play!!

[FlyFar]

Some people at my yard are riding - I think they are crazy it is lethally slippery and the school is rock hard. Letting my baby have some growing time instead!!

[flambards]

I can ride *hides from rotten fruit being thrown in her direction* :lol:

I have to walk over approximately 3 minutes/a quarter mile to our neighboring barn's property in the snow. I spent a lot of time in the good weather figuring out the path that will work well under snow. Our neighbors have a massive indoor arena :D I'm really looking forward to working in it!
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs005.snc3/11242_1139566686809_1156650047_30686048_6348541_n. jpg

*grins*

[Loony]

I can still hack for now.. we've had no snow at all, it's just very frosty so any puddles are now icy patches but we avoid them quite well. Only trouble is J's mum who I went out with the other day didn't enjoy it too much so I think we'd have to go on our own! And he's a barrstuard on his own :lol: I'll just have to bite the bullet though and go out whilst I still can!

School is rock solid though so I'm struggling at the minute.. B has no turnout anyway so I really relied on the school after work to give him a leg stretch. I can't ride as it's pitch black by the time I get there.

[Spockky boy]

I am manging to ride stilll.

Usually Spock goes out by 8:30am by the afternoon around 3:30-4pm the school had defrosted, so when Spock comes in I tack up and ride. If the school is busy or still solid I go for a hack around the block.

[Belle]

No not a chance, the ground is rock hard and like an ice rink under the snow:(

[gem]

I'm very pleased I moved to a yard with an indoor school :) Not that we've had any snow at all yet..

[CityLights]

Cant do anything at home but two of the horses i ride im still working, the areans are still not frozen one is just pure rubber and doesnt frreze the other is shredding carpet which goes crunchy but doesnt go solid

[rowy]

Nope! No school so dancer is stuck with no exercise though she is still going out for same amount of time with the youngsters.
Can't actually wait till jan and we get out school put in yayayayaya :D

[Ambers Mum]

the snow is nearly gone here and the fields are ice free again. You can't do fast work but you can have a plod about. Sov hasn't been out but the others have been for a plod round the crop fields.

My silly friend rode one of her mares on the icey roads ..I was horrified.

[Burnie]

I managed to ride on Sunday as the yard's all been gritted and the bottom arena is rubber so it was fine to ride on.

A few people ventured out too we just had a sprinkling of snow but it's forecast to be heavy tonight :mad::(

[Bex16]

I managed a short schooling session in our ouside menage, it got too cold for me! The surface has only just gone down so is very springy and lovely to ride on.

[ness]

I haven't ridden for a fortnight-since falling off. I know Kissie will be spooky when she goes out again and the ground is too hard in case I hit the deck again!

[GlenmuirCrusader]

Can't even get the car out the drive way to get up to the horse at the moment. :/
If the snow stays soft [and when we can actually get out the house!] might venture out for a little hack through the fields or something. I can imagine he will be as high as a kite though, so maybe it will be best to wait until the snow has gone [if it ever leaves that is!]
I can imagine the arena is frozen solid as well. Hmm.

[injioho]

We've only got an outdoor school and grass paddocks to ride in. The surface in our school is shocking anyway so never get much riding done in the winter unless it's on the roads (which hardly ever happens anyway because it's always icy!) Hate winter!

[amandaxx1]

Nope I cant ride. The school is outdoor and under snow (and probably frozen solid) and we cant go hacking because of the snow.

Im actually looking into finding somewhere with an indoor school and book a riding lesson – not with Bertie, just as a normal riding school. Im scared of my back getting really bad if I stop riding for too long x

[Meeny Miny Mo]

No snow here but the fields are frozen in ruts where the horses have trodden in it when it was wet and muddy so consequently they are not tunred out at the minute. the surface of the sand paddock is too hard to ride on although is ok for them to stretch their legs for 20mins or so whilst i muck out. wont even risk hacking even if i cant see any ice

[GlenmuirCrusader]

Dougal is very hyper with all this time off and is becoming a pain to handle so going to brave the snow and try and go for a hack through the fields.
I am not looking forward to this.
At least the snow will provide a nice, soft landing. ;)
Wish me luck!