HACK 1000 MILES
Hacking isn’t merely a fun pastime for everyone. Leading competitors use it as a fittening tool, some employing tracking technology for a more scientific approach. Mel Beale finds out more
HOW CAN A horse’s fitness be measured and improved? It can certainly be a focus during hacks, perhaps with certain distances in mind in preparation for fun rides, endurance
classes or maybe TREC. Plenty of equestrians hack out simply for the enjoyment factor, though, and don’t pay much attention to the fittening aspect, provided their horse is happy covering the distances he needs to do.
Either way, however, fitness is a key part of keeping a horse healthy and comfortable under saddle, whether that involves covering a few miles a week or more, as eventer Nicole Mills and endurance rider Linda Cowperthwaite explain…
Nicole Mills events to four-star level and hopes to make the step up to five-star in 2024 with her top horse, Fearless W. She has a string of horses, from youngsters to those at four-star level, and all of them need to be fit and ready for their jobs. Exercise beyond an arena therefore makes up a vast proportion of their programme.
However, as Nicole explains, fitness is about more than just speed or stamina — other factors, such as balance, also contribute.
“The downside of where I’m based in Rutland is that we don’t have great road hacking. I keep riding on the roads to a minimum because they are just too busy. Fortunately, to make up for that, I can use a big cross-country field,” explains Nicole. “The terrain is really varied — there are flat areas, undulating areas, and a bit of an incline. I ‘hack’ out there and do schooling — movements like leg yield, shoulder-in and travers, so the horses are learning to balance all the time, plus they are strengthening their core. It’s about getting their steps in, but it’s also about balance, too.”
To add in more variety, Nicole makes use of several gallops.
“Because I’m locked in by busy roads I have to be more inventive in terms of what I do. I consider going to the gallops as my ‘hacking’. I go to three or four different ones to give the horses a variety of experiences. For example, I use a flatter gallop for prolonged trot or canter work, and one with a steep hill for incline training,” says Nicole. “My horses do everything they would on a hack there, such as walking, trotting uphill and cantering uphill, and they also learn to trot or canter downhill. The latter is bri
