Do you drive?

[mgranch]

We drive!! My husband has two minis Rocket his 4 year old that he uses for everything and Logan his coming three year old that we lightly started this year for his debut in 2009. I have Lily who we started driving this summer and she has done great and my Joe who is the trouble child of the group but we are working thru it!! We prefer trail driving and belong to a local driving group where we drive with mostly big horses and it is a blast!! We also show in our local shows, do parades, and next year will start CDE's. We have shown in AMHA and still would if there were a show near us but it was moved. Our horses aren't real fancy but they do 8 mile trail drives alongside draft horse teams and really show the big horses what big hearts look like. Our club is amazed at our minis and what they can and will do for us. In fact several of them are getting minis now!! We have the Ozark Pleasure Harnesses, two EE carts, one Jerald and one Graber show carts and my Hyperbike!! We love to drive more than anything and what a fun thing for an old married couple to do together!!

 

[Sterling]

I show drive and drive for pleasure and enjoy it very much. My boy Hershee knows his job and does it well. I would one day like to try CDE. Unfortunately the grounds that used to hold these events around us no longer do. So it may just take us a little longer to add that event to our roster. Anyway....here is *my* boy. LH Hershee's Comet.

 

[susanne]

Mingus and I are still both very green, but we love driving!

I was fortunate to have Portia Kalinka coach me in training Mingus, along with pointers from Leia along the way and by literally devouring the writing of Heike Bean. He's now a very well-behaved, safe driving horse, but we have a long way to go as far as fine-tuning and style. We dipped our toes in the water at our first driving trial this fall, and are now looking for a driven dressage trainer. Our plan is to continue Mingus' training for ADS-style driving and then to start Flash and Scarlet.

The more we learn, the less interest I have in breed show driving and the more we are interested in CDE and ADS, but I've learned to never say never. I would love to see Mingus compete in roadster, but trussing him up in an overcheck and trotting in circles holds little appeal to me.

 

[hairicane]

I love to drive and so does Paul. Its the most fun thing to do with a mini or shetland to me. I have never had a lesson but used to own and ride big horses for 10 years. I thought I was a fairly good rider but driving is a new thing. I have never had a lesson but guess the old riding experience has kicked in. This year was my 1st time driving my own horse at Nationals and I drove 1 horse, Moss Grove Rio Rhondo that I got from Field of Dreams Minis(love u guys!). Rio and I just click and he trusts me. He is my dream horse and what a mover. We showed in 5 classes of which 4 were western country pleasure and we won an 8th, 2 third places and a National Reserve Champion all in classes of from 16-30 some horses!

Most everything I own can move. Thats pretty much a requirement for me. Here are some of my broodmares and youngsters. Several of my mares will hopefully be trained to drive every yeaar.

This is Rose with her 1st filly. This is what i like to see in my pastures

These are 2 weanling appy foals from this year trotting around just after we all got home from Nationals

And of course Mr Banker will be trained to drive one of these days

And this is a mare i just got. I was told about her and for some reason I had a feeling that I "needed" this mare. By the time I went to get her she was no longer for sale. Well i did manage to get her pretty much sight unseen. So here she is fuzzy and out in the pasture on her own. Oh YEAH

 

[ClickMini]

Well there sure are some nice horses on this thread...LOVE the pretty photos too! Here are my driving horses:

Ally, 8 years old, trained and driven by yours truly. I love this mare. We have had a LOT of fun together over the years! Her specialty is Combined Driving.

Flirt, now 4 years old, has National titles in Country Pleasure and Versatility, as well as a reserve champion in Single Pleasure Mares, for All-Stars.

Esprit, 3 years old, just learning to drive now. I have had him in the cart a few times now, and just love driving him. He is going to be my all-around gelding, performing in shows and also Combined Driving. I adore this horse!

I am also training Alladdin to drive, and hopefully Gaia. Alladdin's brand new silver cart just arrived!!! It is beautiful beyond my expectations! I can't wait to get him hooked to that cart. Will definitely post pics then. Next year will be starting Colors FOR SURE. She is Esprit's 3/4 sister, and her movement is incredible. I can't wait to see how she does.

Hope more people post their driving horses! I am loving reading this thread!

 

[ThreeCFarm]

I drive minis, so far in Country Pleasure only. I'm actually a fan of that type of movement, over the really high, knees in the air movement. I know, I'm in the minority when it comes to minis.

I'd love to try some CDEs, just haven't found the time yet.

Anyway, I rode and trained big horses for years for Western Pleasure, Trail, Hunter Under Saddle, Over Fences, etc. It wasn't that much of a change switching to training my own driving horses. Of course, I had to get used to not being able to use my legs to cue the horse!

The first horse I ever drove was an old gelding that was in pretty bad shape when we first got him. We got him fattened up and feeling better, and he taught me how much fun it was to drive.

The first horse I ever trained to drive was Bob, and I've had him since he was a yearling...he's now 9 years old and not going anywhere! I show him off and on, every few years it seems, as I like to get my breeding prospects shown. Bob shows in Country Pleasure. This year, I finally had some pro pics taken of Bob. He went Top Ten (6th) at World this year, his only year to ever show at World (he's also only shown at Regionals once, and that was as a three year old), and he's once again semi-retired. I still use him for parades, driving down the road, etc, but I'm busy with my son and his pony right now. Have no doubt, Bob will be back in the show ring again sometime soon! He'll never be permanently retired, LOL.

He's too much fun. Even my five year old son can drive Bob.

Here's OMP Pizazzs Yessiree Bob: sorry the pics are so small, I'm having issues with Photobucket today. These are off my website.

I still have my original harness I trained Bob in, one of the Ozark Pleasure Harnesses. It has held up VERY well and I have shown in it too. Bob is wearing it in the above pictures. I use an easy entry at home, and when I show I'm lucky enough to be able to borrow a friend's Graber.

 

[twister]

I drive around the farm and on pleasure drives, I haven't actually driven in a competition yet. I intend to show my Munchie next year at some local shows and see how we do. I am very interested in cde's and want to try one next year at the training/beginner level. I have the cart in the pics which was made for me by a local mennonite and I now have a graber cart as well for the show ring, I have to get a new harness for the show ring yet.

 

[ClickMini]

Yvonne, that is a WONDERFUL cart, and you sure live in a picturesque area! I would LOVE to drive there! Where are you?

 

[HorseMom]

I'm training my stud to drive and learning about CDE. I'm hoping to take him to at least one event next year. We have to get over the scary water monster first. Yvonne, I say this everytime I see that cart. I love it.

Heather

 

[Davie]

I drive and I love it. Had my stallion (now gelding) Red Hot trained when he was 3 and he is now 16 and took a break this last year. He was shown in SPD, then Roadster and now is a CPD boy. I don't trust myself to start a new driving horse so they all go over to my trainer, Pat Elder, Rosa Roca, for a month or two then they come home and I finish them out.

Next year I'll have my hands full for sure as I'll have 8 driving horses.

TMM Destiny's Daily Double

2008 Res Nat'l Champion Amateur Ladies WCPD and will be out again next year

Rocking M Remingtons Super Snazzy

Country Pleasure Driving, Under

Redrock Something Flashy

Country Pleasure Driving, Over

Mini h Smokin Most Wanted

Western Country Pleasure Driving, Over

Kickapoos Hello To Hollywood

Country Pleasure Driving, Over

Silver Plates Stoli

Single Pleasure Driving, Under

Clarion The Gold Standard (HOF) (My new boy leased from Lyn Jacobs)

Halter, Roadster, Single Pleasure Driving, Under

Britt Helm Red Hot N Rollin (will give him one more year to get his HOF as he is too close)

Amateur/Youth Roadster, Under

OPPS, can't forget the youngster that will be showing halter this year as he has to grow up some before he joins the Driving Group (owned in partnership with Pat Elder & Leesa Conley)

Indian Creeks Painted Rooster (aka Joker)

Halter, Color, & Showmanship

I have 2 Jerald Closed Wheel carts (one purchased new, the other used) and all my harnesses come from Ozark Mountain. Will be looking for a Open Wheel cart this next spring.

Come on SPRING, I can't wait!!

 

[DrivinTime]

Awesome thread, and it's really cool to see all those beautiful driving horses!

I've been driving my "old girl" (she's 20) for a couple of years now, just on the trails and around the neighborhood, but I'd love to do arena driving trials and - maybe - CDEs someday, so I now have my youngster in training, and we just signed up for lessons with a wonderful driving instructor, so I am getting really excited about learning how to do this "the right way."

And, I was lucky enough to ride in a cart with a very nice CDE driver (of big horses) at a recent Continuous Driving Trial, and had a total blast! That really got me hooked on the whole driving competition thing. So, I'm hoping to take lessons as time and money permit this winter, and then maybe have a youngster who can really fly this coming summer. (Don't worry about my old girl, I'll still drive her, too, or maybe my daughter will drive her if she's home.)

Sorry, no driving pics yet (I can't drive and shoot, if y'know what I mean) and Crystal looks like a wet bath mat these days with all that fur...

 

[twister]

Yvonne, that is a WONDERFUL cart, and you sure live in a picturesque area! I would LOVE to drive there! Where are you?

Amy I am in Southern Ontario and where I was driving is a pioneer village called Westfield Heritage Village. The carriage driving club I belong to held a pleasure drive there on October 5th which is when the pictures were taken.

Yvonne

 

[twister]

I'm training my stud to drive and learning about CDE. I'm hoping to take him to at least one event next year. We have to get over the scary water monster first. Yvonne, I say this everytime I see that cart. I love it.
Heather

Thanks Heather, I love it too.

Yvonne

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

Again, thanks everyone for chiming in! This has been a great thread and I've really enjoyed reading about everyone's driving horses and of course looking at the pictures. Again beautiful horses and beautiful carts.