Do you drive?

[Irish Hills Farm]

I was just wondering who drives and who doesn't.

If you do drive, what class(es) do you drive in? What class(es) would you like to try? Do you drive a shetland or a miniature?

If you don't drive, why? No interest, expense?

My first driving horse was a miniature gelding named Irish Hills Lit'l Crescendo Jackpot, who I trained myself. Jackpot was mainly shown in Country Pleasure and he did earn his HOF in and he is also a Multi-National Top Ten driving horse.

I also showed Jackpot in Roadster classes and had a ball!

My next driving horse will be Wall Street Rock E Livingston, aka Baylee. Baylee is currently in training with Ernie Lambdin. Baylee is a classic shetland who will be hardshipped into AMHR in 2009. I'm told Baylee will be shown as an open pleasure driving horse.

Another horse that I'm having Ernie finish is Graham's Hula Girl at Heart. Hula is registered ASPC/AMHR and will be shown next year in Country Pleasure classes.

As far as expenses go, when I first started to drive I bought a harness from Mini Express for $250 I believe, and used it at local shows for a few years. Actually I believe the first time I showed at Nationals in 2000, I used that harness.

My first cart was an easy entry cart that I used at local shows. Before attending Nationals for the first time I did upgraded to a nice showcart made by the Amish. I believe the cart and cover at the time was just under $1,000.00.

I feel that Graber puts out a nice show cart that resembles the Jeralds for just over $1,000.00 depending on the options you choose to put on the cart. I have upgrade to a Lutke Harness and told Dale I wanted the works, so we know that carried a nice price tag. I know Dale also offers several different styles of harness and options available for them. And of course you can pick up nice show carts and Lutke Harnesses for sale on the LB sales board from time to time.

So, whats your experiences, thoughts, and/or options?

 

[Kendra]

This year we had a show string of 7 horses, 6 of them are driving horses (though they do other stuff too!) and the 7th was a yearling. We show AMHA, and have 2 or 3 horses in each driving division (Single, Country, Roadster), also a team. I did a Pleasure Driving show this summer as well, and plan to go to some driving trials/CDE's next year, as our schedule allows. My grandad drives an eight horse hitch that he does parades with all summer too.

So yeah, we drive!! We're home to 24 geldings right now, and every one of them is either trained to drive, or is started in harness.

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

Who Kendra thats great!! Both that you have so many driving horses and that you have 24 geldings!!!

I so want to try CDE, I think that has to be an absolute blast!

 

[Celtic Hill Farm]

I Went to driving camp, and also have given cart rides. Acutally the first Horse i drove was a stallion, he was really cool. I just had him offered to me, for a veary irisistiable price, but my parent's didn't go for it. I'm acutally fliping out, i really want to drive my donkeys, and i got a harness, the just need more work!

 

[Katiean]

We drive country pleasure. Our first mare we drive at home. She is a wonderful road horse but I don't know how she would react at a show. She pulls our farm wagon and the easy entry cart (not together). We now have mares 2 and 3 trained to drive. We have shown mare 3 and we are looking forward to showing both mares 2 and 3 this spring. Because we are not well to do in the pocket book we only get to go to what ever shows are close. Which means if we drive in AMHA shows we only get to go to the two in Reno. This year we want to also go to the regional show. We would have gone last year but I got sick. Maybe if I can find some shows in Sacramento we may get to attend those too.

Oh, and I started driving on the race track when our 4-H had a driver training class where they picked 30 kids out of all of the county to learn how to drive and care for harness race horses. I bought my first Standardbred mare when I was almost 16.

 

[Leeana]

Well i do not really have any driving horses right now, for the most part my interest lays only in the halter horses but i must say i am really itching for a driving horse, i have a yearling colt right now that i think would make an awesome western country pleasure horse, in fact i am considering buying a harness and starting him ground driving, he is really really matured mentally and physically for a yearling too. Just ground driving rig ext, no cart..might be something fun to mess with this winter with him, he is very level headed too so.

Really, i guess to me its just a little intimidating...if i was to get a driving horse i want one broke broke broke trained, also..i really do not have much of anywhere to drive around here...a large indoor arena just a few miles from here so if i wanted to drive would have to hook up trailer, load cart/harness/horse and drive down there. If i had a pasture where i could drive, or a trail or something that would be nice, just no where here to work a horse in the cart...

 

[Taylor Jo]

I just started driving my Oreo who is a 33.25 miniature, this year. We started out in Country Pleasure but he didn't go fast enough for the class so we switched to Western Country Pleasure. I'm going to put him back into training as he's 4 now and hasn't been trained since just before he turned actual 3 so I'll see how she works with him. I didn't drive him till this season cause we'd moved out of state and a whole bunch of things were going on so I didn't show all season before last.

I like the Western Country Pleasure, it's a much slower paced class and I feel comfortable there, I just wish they had MORE of them, like a ladies class a amature class, and just not an open class.

Also, if my horse could go fast enough and I had my Houghton set up for it I'd like to try the Sulky classes, but for now I want him to succeced in what he's doing in just this Western Country Pleasure Class.

Money, HA it's always a problem. I just sign up and close my eyes..... I show in the AMHR Circut here in Mo and IL.

I bought a starting out show harness for I think $235, from a club member where I used to belong and she sells new ones. Well their now going for $300 I've been REALLY happy with it. Looks good enough for the show ring and pracitcal enough to work in. I used it for Nationals and didn't feel the least bit intimidated. I have a Houghton show cart that I did in a trade that cost $700. It was well worth it. I'm REALLY happy with it. It had a tear in the seat and I took it to a local upholster and he made me a new one for $175.

I think I'd like to train my filly for cart but trying to decide whether to do her in cart or jumping and haven't decided yet. Going to take her to the trainers and have her get a feel for what she might like and what she might be good at coming up when she hits 3 which will be in a few months. I also want to train my Oreo in jumping, but like I said I'm just concentrating on the driving part right now, I'm more interested in him getting prolific in it.

Irish Hills I really like your Baylee, nice horse.... TJ

 

[Marty]

Ahhhh good one Sheryl.

I've driven a handful of times and so did the boys. It was fun but not my passion. I'm a rider, not a driver. I find it difficult to wrap my brain around the concept that the horse is way out there, several feet away from me, and there is a contraption that I don't understand between us. Should the horse blow, he could get very hurt in that rig, and I'd feel helpless. If I ever got a cart, it would have to have brakes put on it.

About 3/4 of my horses would be great candidates for driving. And my new stallion Mountain Meadows Bey Pepito's daddy Baylee sure put the moves on his son and that boy should totally drive as well as Nick and most of the mares. So for a while, I was scouting around for a used harness and cart that I could just practice and fool around with here on the farm, not for show, but I simply do not understand the technology of knowing if a cart is sized right or balanced correctly, wheels, and shafts etc. and that scares me. I don't have a clue, no help on it here at home and I'd never get things adjusted right and I don't want to risk hurting any of the horses . I would make such a big mess out ot it. I do like watching roadster classes the best; I think they are way fun and exciting, and my candidates for that would be Merry Beth, and Holly. But I guess for me its a lot less complicated to just saddle up the Son-Man and go for a spin on him if we want to and I know I have complete control by riding.

 

[targetsmom]

YES, I drive and love it!!! I learned in college in the 1960's, but am still a novice, I trained the two minis that I showed last year, but I did get help from a CDE- type trainer. So far I have only shown in Pinto and local shows, but hope to do AMHR, AMHA, and /or CDEs in the future. I am very pleased with how Ruby and Princess are doing, and they have done pretty well in the show ring too. At Pinto, some of the competition is carriage driviers, with wooden wheeled carts and no checks, while others also compete in AMHA. Princess has done quite well against that competition and I think would do well in Western Country Pleasure and CDEs. She also did a demo this summer going around a cones course against teams of big horses and loved it! You can see Ruby in my rotating avatar.

I knew I was going to like driving, so selected our minis with that in mind. I like long strides and suspended movement, but not necessarily high action (think dressage and CDE). I started out with an easy entry cart which I used at one show in 2008, and in the past year have bought 3 more carts - a Graber, a wooden wheeled cart, and a used Jerald show cart. The latter is so we can show Ruby and Princess in the same classes. I am currently training our 30" stallion (see photos on the photo forum) and a 34" mare that is open for 2009. My rule is if you aren't pregnant, you learn to drive! The stallion will likely do the 32" and under classes and the mare will probably just drive visitors around the farm! All our horses also do halter obstacle (even the broodmares) and most of them jump too.

BTW, I just bought a fabulous book from England on CDE, called Sports Driving, which covers everything from equipment and schooling to dressage, cones, and marathon. Author is Amanda Saville. There are also chapters on problems and competition, and tons of color photos.

 

[dannigirl]

We love to drive. We have 7 geldings that can drive nearly anywhere. We have one that drives great, but has gone mostly blind and we are working to get him to trust us. He is beginning to trust and is wanting to go again. We have a mare and 2 geldings currently being trained to drive. We have one that we have driven, but he just didn't get it last year, so we are backing off on him to try later again. And lastly, we have a mare and at least 6 boys that will be started this winter. Since we are finishing the 3, we will be starting 2 or 3 more and then, when they are to the 'needs miles' stage, then we will start more. Keeps us busy.

We mostly drive open pleasure, but have got one or two that are better in country. We may even have one for the new western pleasure.

We are hoping that by getting them at least close to being ready to drive in the ring, we may be able to find some of them a good home, but, if not, they will then get totally finished to work for us in our pony/cart ride business.

Angie

 

[MiLo Minis]

Of course I drive!!!

I drive because I can't ride anymore and I need to be able to feel the wind in my hair from behind a horse. If not just as good as riding, driving ranks right up there!!!

I drive MiLo's Willie Be Good in CDE and Pleasure shows. He is my old standby, bold, faithful, done it all kinda guy who I love dearly. I started him over 20 years ago now and he is still going strong!

I started my mare, Jem Dusky's Dream, driving and then bred her as a 3 year old. Drove her right up till I couldn't get the harness done up any longer. She had the year off with her foal and then I brought her out to the AMHR shows this year to show in Country Pleasure with her long flowing stride.

I am presently working on 3 year old Ari, who needed a little more time to mature mentally before being introduced to the stress of working in harness. He should go Park Harness with his action! These photos were taken when he was just strolling around the paddock. When he flies he goes above horizontal and almost knocks himself in the chin!!!

Also working on getting 3 year old Manny ready for my daughter to drive.

And 2 year old Jessie who will take over from Willie when Willie is ready to retire.

Every horse on the farm that is old enough has been or will be in harness at one point or another as I breed for driving horses and if they can't drive for either physical or mental reasons I don't want them in my breeding program.

I LOVE ALL the driving classes from Park to Pleasure to Roadster to cross country, cones and ALL!!!!

I use a Graber show cart for in the ring, a Mennonite made Meadowbrook for cross country and several various different easy entries for training in. I have a Freedman harness for turnout and a couple Ozark Mountain carriage harnesses for showing, a custom made working harness for training along with a Mennonite made nylon, a biothane and a leather harness for training.

Did I mention I LOVE to drive?!!!

 

[Relic]

My fave guy drives yahoo ...like a fairy but l think he's going to be really good at it one day and we've been working on him weekly since summer. He's going down to the US to spend some time with a trainer for a few months in early 2009 so hopefully he'll drive more macho once he's back.

His buddy build like a brick you know what

The kid 7 months old has started wearing parts of the harness weekly to get her used to things so she isn't as spooked when the time comes to get serious..

 

[hobbyhorse23]

I was just wondering who drives and who doesn't. If you do drive, what class(es) do you drive in? What class(es) would you like to try? Do you drive a shetland or a miniature?

If you don't drive, why? No interest, expense?

So, whats your experiences, thoughts, and/or options?

You could say I drive.

I've only got one mini (33.5") and he's never going to make a halter horse in a million years so it's a good thing that boy was born to be between shafts!

We compete primarily in CDE's here in Washington and Oregon and hit the AMHR circuit in between, showing in the new Western Country Pleasure class. We also jump, do liberty, obstacle, obstacle driving, Reinsmanship and/or Disciplined Rail Driving when they're offered and I've pondered adding Showmanship and Versatility but haven't bothered for budget reasons. I'd love to try Roadster but Kody just doesn't have enough speed for that.

Like Marty I prefer riding but since that's out of the question with such a little guy driving is a nice substitute. It takes a bit more work to get that feeling of one-body partnership, but it can be done!

I am VERY proud of this little horse and all we've accomplished together. We're moving up to Intermediate next year which is the last level before FEI/International competition and the highest minis are currently allowed to attempt and I believe Kody is going to be the smallest horse ever entered at that level. No matter what he's going to be one of only six, possibly seven minis in the country to ever show Intermediate and I think technically that's "in the world" as the U.S. is the only country that lets them compete.

Needless to say we're going to have fun! He's also earned his first Stakes Championship in Western last year and I hope to take him to Nationals in 2010 if time allows.

My first harness was the Ozark Mountain Carriage Harness for $400 and I still recommend that as the most versatile starter harness for those who want to do both ADS and AMHR-type shows. I generally recommend a Frontier easy entry cart as a beginner vehicle for around $450 and would move up to a Graber as a budget-friendly show cart. Camptown/Chimacum Tack Sport Harnesses are THE synthetic harness of choice for CDE's in this area and paired with a wooden-wheeled Graber or steel wheels on your Frontier can make a great combined driving turnout.

BTW, I just bought a fabulous book from England on CDE, called Sports Driving, which covers everything from equipment and schooling to dressage, cones, and marathon. Author is Amanda Saville. There are also chapters on problems and competition, and tons of color photos.

Oh m'God, someone I know has it!!

Mary, I love you! I've got questions about exactly what that book covers and would love to pester you about it. Can you email me at "lagibson at-sign evergreen health care . org" (no spaces) so we can talk about it? My personal email and PM boxes are all full.

Leia

 

[Reignmaker Miniatures]

I too LOVE driving. In fact I love it so much that I no longer own a saddle horse at all. It started with driving one mare who came to me well started in harness and I found that when I had the time to take a horse out I always chose to drive rather than saddle a horse and ride so eventually I just accepted that I wasn't going to ride any more and driving is more my thing now. I drove for the first time in my life (other than ground driving a horse to be saddled later) when I was 19. A team of Percheron x thoroughbred mares who had power to spare and lots of fire but were very well trained. After that I never gave driving another thought until we got the minis and I tried this little mare. The rest as they say is history. I too try to at least start everything I own in harness. This year since my favorite mare was doing the mommy thing I convinced my husband that his team couldn't be a team until they were good as singles so he took one and I the other and we drove them. I have a 5 year old (newly gelded this year) who was started in harness as a 2yr old then given some time to grow up a bit who will be getting some miles and finishing touches next summer, 3 youngsters who will be 2 in the spring who I will start very lightly , my husbands stallion who he started 3 years ago who needs some finishing (he is a bit of a handful so hubby tends to avoid working him lol) next year when the driving arena is complete maybe he'll get back to him. I've got 6 single harnesses of different styles, sizes and quality and 2 team harnesses. 3 carts, a wagon and a 4 wheel cart (the name of which escapes me at present)that is really only for parades (which I have sworn off locally)

 

[love_casper]

I DRIVE!!!

My driving horse is my rescue mare Ghost. (WOW I reallllly need some new driving pics!).

She is around 36" and not registered so we don't show.

But I think she would like it that way, papers or not. She couldn't handle the harness requirements for showing, I don't think.

- She has never worn a checkrein..... the day I got my harness in the mail and sorted out all the parts, the first thing I did was take that checkrein OFF! And it hasn't come out of that box since.

- She gets very mad if the breeching is too loose to be effective, so driving her without that would be a bad idea. She's built really down hill, which I think may contribute to that.... If she has to stop the cart from the saddle, it shoves itself foreward into her withers.

- She also doesn't like blinders either. She's the closest thing I've ever seen to a "bombproof" horse, when she can see everything. When in the unlikely event something scares her, she just stops and stares, until she figures out what it is, never outwardly physically spooks. But when I put blinders on her, she becomes a flight animal, and when something scary sneeks up on her and suddenly leaps into her feild of vision, she turnes her head all around trying to see it, dances about, prancy. She's a much safer horse in an open bridle, and happier too.

So she takes me for little tools around town, going through the Baskin Robins drive thru, over to Starbucks, stuff like that.

This is a VERY old picture. I need new ones so bad, it's hard when parents work though so by the time anyone's home to take a pic we're out of daylight. Hmmm.... maybe this weekend if I remember.

Anyway, here's all of her.

I do want to do some showring driving, so I just might recruit Charm next year.

Of course he's going to need his own cart and harness because he's 31" and wouldn't fit in Ghostie's cart if his life depended on it. I might just have to dig out that checkrein for him though, he's a little food monster!!!

Charm

And I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to be able to drive my girl Princess, buckskin pinto with amazing action. But, alas, she only has one eye. I do believe that's against showing rules in the registry, and she hasn't exactly got the temperment to do pleasure driving around town like Ghost does. The thoughts of Prin's mind: "Lalala dum dee dum - ooh look food! - lalala - boys! - lalalala - what's that? - lalalala - wheeeeeeee let's go - HEYLOOKALEAF!"

But sometimes when I'm untacking Ghost from a drive, and Princess is in my face we sometimes play dressup with that harness and boy does she look good! *sigh*

see wouldn't YOU want to drive THIS!?!

Oh well I'll be breeding her to Freedom (avatar) in the spring, and hopefully we'll get a flashy moving colorful horse like her! Also breeding him to her mother, so maybe we'll get something like Princess either way!

 

[garyo]

Gary and I are very novice drivers still.

We have our little gelding Sandy (Henningtons Sandy Stepper B) who I absolutely love. He gets very bored going round and round the house but loves going down the road. He did well in his first and only show except for feeling like he was on high octane. Never having driven in an enclosed arena and the thunderstorm outside may have had something to do with that.

Then we also have Windermere's Power Stroke our six year old shetland gelding who really is on high octane. He has modern motion in the cart and loves to trot.

Keely helped us to train our very own bay mare Kahlua who will be four in February and hopes to make her show debut at the Mini-O-Rama show in November in Country Pleasure.

We are also currently training Kahlua's Dad, Magic a bay and white pinto to drive.

And last but definately not least we have Buckeye WCF Lightening here about half the year. (We share him with Keely) He is an absolute gem and made Gary's dreams come true at Nationals when they won the reserve championship in Gentlemen's Western Country Pleasure.

Gary's Dad who will be 76 in December has driven everyone except Magic. He and Gary's Mom even drove Kahlua in a parade with honking horns, applause, sirens etc. You can see everyone on our website I think.

Ruth

 

[CKC]

I've driven over the years(pretty much self taught... could always use more lessons) and love to show and trail drive. I would love to do CDE sometime in my future. We just got a dead broke driving gelding over the summer. We have rolling hills and small children. Between the two I don't know when I will find time to drive. I would have to probably go to my neighbors house to drive. They were lucky enough to buy the only piece of flat land in our area. We do have some trails behind the house. Some of my neighbors ride on them. I have not been on them yet.

Lucky you Ruth! AND congratulations to Gary! I love Lightening!

Kim

 

[shorthorsemom]

In the early 70's I worked at a race track exercising standardbred horses. I also drove ponies single and double over a few years in the 70's and 80's working "pony parties". I did some beginner navigating on full sized horses on CDE at prelim level.... Now I have two minis, two boys we are training to drive with the assistance of a sweet and patient instructor. I love it and so do my boys! I went to a CDE training event this past weekend that had 4 mini entries as well as full sized horses at all levels from beginners to advanced. It was called the "teddy bears picnic" and it is a yearly event to give people a place to train and practice as well as compete. I loved it and would love to have CDE as my goal someday. These minis did cones, dressage and marathon and were adorable as well as talented. I could even see my boys being a pair someday. It will take awhile, but it is so nice to have a goal no matter how far off it is.

 

[afoulk]

We drive here also. Love it. I have been trying to find a number for someone that handles the Graber carts. Anyone know how to reach them.

 

[Sandee]

We started learning to drive with our first mini. He had been shown and knows everything! He taught us to drive. The cart is from Lignite Carriages and designed more with cross country in mind but we used it for parades. The harness came with the horse and as we learned more discovered that it didn't fit him anywhere!

Then we got our stallion and at age three I sent him out to a trainer. I got a used cart from a lady in Wisconsin and a used harness from her too but at least it was fitted! We played around with many bits before we (the horse and I) came to understand just what worked. The trainer says he's just plain lazy so he doesn't GO! Last year I drove him at Natls and won 4th in Western Country Pleasure 32 and Under. This year we got the championship in that class. I love him but he's too laid back for anything but this class and halter.

My filly came here at 4 1/2 months and I've done all her training. She only 3 this year and got HOF in Halter Obstacle. She's also well on her way in jumper and hunter and at the end of the season we started driving. I had purchased a new harness (in the $650 range) at Natls last year and it looks very nice on her (not the one in the picture). She has more get up and go than my stallion. She compteted in her 3rd driving class (Mare Country Pleasure Under) at Natls this year and placed 7th out of 12. I think she has potential and I'm excited and anxious to drive her. (picture from Western class at her 2nd show)