[drivingpairs] Re: Weighing carriages



One additional issue. 
I do not believe that the weight of a carriage and its occupants to be is as 
a significant factor in pulling as we make it out to be, within limits. 
Another major factor is road surface. 

Knowing that the following statement will not be agreed to by all, The 
difference to a horse in pulling 800 Lb. and 950 Lb., I believe is minimal.

I have a fair amount of experience with horses and coaches on long distance 
drives involving 125 to 225 mile trips with four to five teams.  

A Ttypically loaded coach today will weight between 4500 Lb., and 5000 Lb. 
with the heaviest that I am aware of would run about 5600 Lb. That suggests 
that 
horses we use today and are reasonably fit and trained can pull 125% of their 
weight and do so over a number days, over lots of gravel and dirt roads and 
in quite hilly terrain.  

The Amish certainly do this as matter of course every day and even in the 
heat as it was done 100 years ago.  Despite what may think, many of the Amish 
are 
good horsemen and often have horses that they have for years. But their 
horses are in great condition. 

I have not found significant difference between my 16 hand thoroughbreds and 
other teams. If anything the thoroughbreds tend to have more "bottom" than 
other breeds particularly the heavier breeds.

On the 204 mile coaching run from New York City to Saratoga Springs, NY trip 
I weighted my team at the beginning and the end and each day taped the horses. 
Surprisingly each horses actually gained a bit of weight. Now that might 
suggest that I do not feed well at home but it certainly says that horses are 
not 
overly stressed by such an event.

Turn of the century when roads where not as good as much of what we now drive 
on now, most of the coaching horses were 15' to 15' 2" hands in height. 

Road surface makes a huge difference. A turn of the century article I read 
many years ago side the difference between smooth hard surface and gravel for a 
coach was like 6 times harder to pull and sand being 10 times greater t pull 
then gravel. 

Many of you know that I had a pair of very light 15 hand horses, Chewick and 
Chumnly that I used for 20 years both as a pair in CDE and in team. Their 
pulling power was legendary.

Douglas & Queenie Kemmerer
Middleburg, VA 20118


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