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Post by antares on Dec 12, 2011 18:29:46 GMT 1
I've had my big boy on loan since february and his owner insisted that he was shod, it was in my loan contract and was her wishes so I stuck to it.
As I bought him last week I have decided to go barefoot, I am really hoping that we will be able to still compete SJ, WH and XC on grass even without shoes and studs. Does anyone have experience of competing barefoot up to 1m classes on grass?
Any personal experiences would be greatly appreciated along with tips for the transitional period
I will report back my findings as we go along
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Post by tikkatonks on Dec 12, 2011 18:53:43 GMT 1
Neither of mine are shod, do SJ WH XC and stressage. Although one is a baby and not been out on grass yet.
At the trailblazers championships WH one of the judges noticed Arnie had no shoes but didn't say it was an issue. Guess it might be a problem county level??
Can't remember him slipping SJ ever, once on a downhill into a very scary fish jump XC I noticed him slip and lose confidence, but other than that no problems although some places stick fine stones in front of the XC jumps which is a bit of a pain, have missed out a few jumps xc schooling because don't fancy landing on stones.
He was a little less forward SJ on grass mid summer when it was hard but I quite liked that ;D
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Post by Mellymoo on Dec 12, 2011 20:01:11 GMT 1
I've seen loads of horses competing unshod round here, and they all seem fine. I have jumped Jos once since he had shoes off, and he was fine. He has better traction unshod than he did shod. A tip for the transition period - get hoofboots if your boy gets sore. I only had fronts to remove, and got boots for riding the day after the shoes came off. Jos loves them, and he is better in these than he ever was with shoes on.
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Post by june on Dec 12, 2011 20:12:54 GMT 1
Our lot play polo barefoot with no issue. They've played in all sorts of weather conditions and don't look any different playing to the shod horses or the ones wearing studs.
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Azrael
Grand Prix Poster
Posts: 2,733
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Post by Azrael on Dec 12, 2011 21:18:11 GMT 1
Roxy isn't quite good enough at jumping to do that height but I've never had a problem with her jumping because of the lack of shoes. The only time we've had any real slipping was at a show where it rained really hard and everyone was slipping whatever they had on their feet, so bad they'd given up and told everyone they didn't have to canter.
I've never had any negative comments about the lack of shoes, even at competitions where every other horse had shoes on.
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Post by andyt on Dec 12, 2011 21:21:03 GMT 1
My 17.1hh Irish Sporty Horse is bitless and barefoot. We are still in the transition phase with the barefoot but it is going really well and she seems to love it. We are off to dressage lessons next week so I'm pretty much in the same boat as you. We'll have to compare notes!!!
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Post by KoLaTo on Dec 12, 2011 21:48:25 GMT 1
Mine compete in everything barefoot, not that height but never had a problem with slipping, i have one with front shoes on now and he slips all over the place on the muddy field and pulled one clean off Saturday morning at the end of a skid, the others carried on hooning round without a slip in sight.............
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Post by antares on Dec 12, 2011 21:56:29 GMT 1
Andyt yes we will have to compare notes as my boy is 17.1 ISH too although he's a heavyweight. I had his shoes taken off last week and he will have his first barefoot trim in a few weeks. It will be a while before his feet are in good shape, the farrier has left him with upright feet due to heels being way too long and toes filed off! Luckily he has quite strong feet so hopefully the transition will be ok. It is encouraging to hear that peeps are able to compete to an ok level
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Dec 13, 2011 0:01:47 GMT 1
Both of our ladies Crystal and Inaya have no shoes on and Crystal has been shown up to National level without anything being said .............. mind you a fair few arabs are shown barefoot! They both go over all surfaces with no trouble, they have better grip as well on bad ground, never had any troubles with them at all, apart from a few minor things.
Good luck
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Post by Yann on Dec 13, 2011 0:38:22 GMT 1
I have a friend who showjumps and events her barefoot warmblood x mare at a local level and she has always said that she would shoe and use studs if she affiliated and starting jumping bigger more serious XC tracks.
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Post by BJMM on Dec 13, 2011 9:35:23 GMT 1
I jump Blaze at local level SJ up to 1m. When it was very slippery after rain in the summer she was one of very few horses that didn't slip, and she is VERY forward going when jumping!
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Post by mags on Dec 13, 2011 12:50:01 GMT 1
While I agree that I have much better grip riding bare or booted on some surfaces (particularly tarmac), I'd be lying if I said that I don't have to deal with slippage on other surfaces. At the moment, I am really fed up with the amount of slipping and sliding on muddy, leaf-covered trails when out hacking at trot/canter on our forest tracks. I am aware I'm a bit of a control freak and simply hate the feeling of a foot slipping, even if my pony just powers on, apparently without a problem. I happen to know my friend (whose shod horse I rode on tarmac, noticing quite a few the slips) doesn't even notice her horse slipping, so maybe I'm just hyper-aware. I'm not sure how other barefoot people manage to avoid slipping completely? In any case, I'd say that you should go with whatever "gear" you feel most comfortable and confident with. As for the transition, I'd just make sure your horse is comfortable. IMO, there's nothing to be gained by exercising a horse that's sore. If you need boots for comfort, then get some. The more comfortable miles you can put on your horse the better.
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Post by laurac on Dec 13, 2011 17:19:43 GMT 1
I did a lovely long distance ride with my loan TB in the summer foot perfect even at flat out gallop on the grass ;D
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Post by ladyndibs on Dec 13, 2011 18:27:16 GMT 1
I jump Blaze at local level SJ up to 1m. When it was very slippery after rain in the summer she was one of very few horses that didn't slip, and she is VERY forward going when jumping! OMG yes she is, great to watch
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Post by andyt on Dec 14, 2011 21:12:57 GMT 1
Andyt yes we will have to compare notes as my boy is 17.1 ISH too although he's a heavyweight. I had his shoes taken off last week and he will have his first barefoot trim in a few weeks. It will be a while before his feet are in good shape, the farrier has left him with upright feet due to heels being way too long and toes filed off! Luckily he has quite strong feet so hopefully the transition will be ok. It is encouraging to hear that peeps are able to compete to an ok level Lots of riding and hoof boots initially seems to work well. My wife's 17hh heavy weight Hannovarian (with awful feet!) is also now in transition - seen an improvement in his feet already, after just 6 weeks.
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