Hi, my name is Obladi and I am obsessed with trailers and horseboxes - tell me what you use for horse transport?

[obladi]

I finally got a pony for dd1 in November. He is lovely, 13.2, NF, a bit green - he is only 6 - but bombproof in traffic and very easy to stop (a bit too easy...forward going he aint!). I ride him once a week (I'm 5 7 and 10.5 stone but like to think I am very balanced, certainly don't feel unbalanced on him and only walk and trot). dd1 rides all weekend, BUT WE DON'T HAVE A TRAILER/A CAR THAT WILL PULL A TRAILER/OR ENOUGH MONEY TO BUY A CAR THAT WILL PULL A TRAILER phew, sorry to shout. Dd1 (12) is brilliant with him and hacks him out around the lanes and has started working him in the paddock a bit when it is dry enough, we are thinking of putting a couple of small jumps in there for her. But the lack of transport is beginning to do my head in - she can't go to Pony Club or shows or anything. Occasionally a friend will give her a lift somewhere but it is really out of their way so it doesn't happen very often. What do you use to transport your horses?

We have a Landrover Discovery (an old P reg one - love it) and an Ifor Williams 505. It's a great combination and works well for us. I can sympathise with you. I don't have a trailer licence, so rely on DH to transport us anywhere, which rules out a lot of stuff during hols, etc. Also he likes us doing things as a family, and towing horses around the countryside doesn't fall into this category. So we don't get out much either.

OMG I am so jealous. I am thinking of buying a 3.5 tonne lorry! I won't need to get a trailer licence OR a 4x4...

We have a 2 litre diesel Zafira which we use to tow a hired trailer (£35 a day). I am ancient (well, 50) so have trailer entitlement because I passed my driving test so long ago. We have spent the equivalent of buying a trailer on hiring, but haven't had enough capital to get our own (because we've bought too many horses recently).

It does feel a bit wasteful when we just go to Pony Club for a couple of hours, and is a hassle because we have to fetch and return the trailer, but I feel that Gd and her pony need to do stuff like pony club, so we bite the bullet.

We shouldn't need to buy another horse now for a few years, so hopefully this will be the year we get our own, but really we need a bigger car to tow with, so I'm looking at whether a small lorry might be cheaper (I can always dream!)

That is interesting that you tow with a zafira. Dh has a BMW 5 series estate I wonder if he could tow with it...horse and hound says NO!

You have to check the maximum tow weight for your car, then work out weight of trailer plus horse and make sure you don't exceed it. The Zafira copes fine with one pony but I wouldn't use it to pull two.

just checked, it says maximum weight is 2000kg, a bateson deauville ahs a gross weight of 2300 so thats out...

but a derby (one pony) is a gross weight of 1700kg so that might be ok...

We tow an Ifor Williams trailer with our Hyundai Santa Fe - can take two ponies no problem. Our trailer is basic but this means that it is light - trailers like Equitreks take a bit more pulling.

We have a cheval liberte 1003 which we pull with a 1.9 passat estate absolutely fine (pony is 12.2hh). Have also used a passat estate for a Bateson Derby and Ifor Williams 403 with no problems. We have been told by a friendly expert that it's legal for me to tow a light single trailer with passat (something to do with MAM and kerb weights) without taking the test although I could run into difficulties when DD wants a 16.2hh!

There is a really helpful website:www.towinghorsetrailers.co.uk which gives weight combinations etc.

BTW-the figures you are quoting for the Batesons are the maximum laden weights, not the weights of teh trailer. So our trailer's weight is 560kg but it's max laden weight is something like 1700kg (more than we can legally tow with our car). Dpony weighs about 350kg so we come in well under the 1500kg we can legally tow.

So complicated!

This is similar to ours (although we don't have the XL, just a standard single which makes ours lighter) www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Cheval-Liberte-1003XL-Single-Horse-Trailer-/330675621543?pt=UK_Horse_Wear_Equipment&hash=item4cfdcd8ea7

i THINK to be legal you have to take into account the Maximum weight, or 85% of it. So you may be illegally towing....its a minefield!!!!

We bought a pony in July,and after a few months the lack of transport began to niggle,so know how you feel.

I bought an Ifor Williams 505 at a horse sale auction in Dec,but had nothing to pull it with,my 9 year old Mondeo would end up with a burnt out clutch if I tried with that.So I did a lot of research on MAM weights,towing capabilities ect and am hopefully picking up a 07 KIA Sorento this week.I am old too,so don't need to take a trailer test,and the Sorento is built for towing,so will still be legal to tow with once we get dd2 a pony.

I had a thread on here about boxes,towing ect,and Horse and Hound was very useful too.

Incidentally,in case it is useful,the actual unladen weight of a 1990 505 is 950kg and the MAM is 2340kg-I rang IW and asked them-they were very helpful.

Used to have aged 7.5 ton lorry shared with a friend. Do you have a local bridleways group who might have someone wanting to share? Or local riding stable?

You may find bigger lorries are less expensive as you need an older licence or an extension to a newer one.

can't remember exactly but we're definitely legal at the moment-I was paranoid!

Annoyingly I didn't pass until 2001 so I'll need to take a test. Mirage I am very envious of you - in fact envious of anyone with a trailer. Trailer envy!

Obladi you wouldn't be envious if you knew how nervous I am about towing. There is a PC rally on 11th Feb,so I'm going to have to spend every waking hour practising reversing a trailer around cones in the field before then.Plus new car is an automatic [apparently better for towing] and I haven't driven an auto for over 10 years and never in the UK.

DH hasn't seen the car I'm buying yet-I put a deposit on it and then rang and told him afterwards.He didn't know I'd bought a trailer either until I texted him afterwards to tell him.He has started to worry if I mention that I'm going out now.I went to the bank yesterday and got a text saying 'try not to buy anything else on the way'. Ah well,at least it isn't being wasted on shoes and handbags........

I have just (like 10 days ago!) Bought a Landrover Discovery (x reg) so that I can tow a trailer. We are on the lookout for an equi-trek atm and I will have to take my trailer test (DH doesn't though) and I am so bloody excited!

First outing already planned! :o

Mirage - before I go anywhere in my trailer I have to make absolutely certain of the parking arrangements and am often there way too early so that any reversing can be done before anyone else arrives. I'm fine as long as I don't have an audience, although probably don't do it the conventional way - lots of shunting rather than serene reversing in a straight line.

We bought a Wessex trailer ages ago because it was lighter than most of the others - they seem to have changed a lot, but if you look at the link it gives the weights which may help. It's certainly been fine for us, we used to tow with a Subaru Forester but it was pretty gutless with more than one pony so moved on to a Discovery (had 2 of them) and now have a Landcruiser which is fab. It's an automatic, the suspension goes up and down which is handy for hitching up and pulls 2 horses with barely a murmer.

www.wessex-trailers.co.uk/product_categories_GO.asp?CategoryID=8

frosty that'll be me too.We currently get everywhere early because my dad who tows us frets if he hasn't got loads of time,and I always worry that dpony will start to arse about being loaded/unloaded,so allow lots of time just in case.I'll be even earlier when I'm doing the driving-I can't do anything with people watching.

I've got a Ford Ranger pick up. It is a tank, very long wheel base so you need to know what you're doing if reversing with a trailer on the back, but it does tow anything in any conditions. I love it, even though it is old, battered and so mud encrusted you couldn't pick it out of a line-up right now .

For DD's pony I borrow a gorgeous Ifor trailer from a friend. Luckily we have so many favours going back and forth that I can borrow the trailer whenever I need it. Not often the car is worse looking than the trailer (not with the VWH anyway) but that is the case with us.

Callisto I would have liked a Ford Ranger-our local gamekeeper has one and it copes with everything effortlessly,but as DH has a 2 seater,my car has to be the family car, a pickup wasn't the best option for us.[My other fave was a Toyota Hilux,we used them on the building site and they are unkillable.]

I WILL have a pickup truck one day.

As a people carrier it is a bit rubbish. Despite being ridiculously long (I don't think I've ever found a carparking space that will accomodate the whole car) it is quite small inside - rather like the tardis in reverse.

Get a specialist trailer reversing lesson. Lots of places do this for caravan, boat, etc towers.

I had 1 a few years ago , £60 for 2 hours and worth every penny. I'm now one of those annoying pony club mums who turn up, whizz the trailer back, round a right angle , into a tight space and unload.

I'm proud of my hard earned ability to reverse.

.... But I'm also kind enough to help those who ate stuck.