Wonderful job by the driver in keeping the situation calm, and getting things back under control. Things can easily get out of hand with one horse, let alone 8! Great job.
My daughter has been driving ponies since she was 12 and can do a team of eight. Anyone thinking this is easy is a fool. Nice driving Hank you never panicked and the horses knew it.
This is a man who KNOWS his horses AND what to do when things may go a bit wrong. Keep up the awesomeness and hopefully you have family who want to learn all they can from you. Beautiful job!!
Even though things didn’t go as planned this video really showcases the power of an eight horse draft hitch. It was awesome seeing them pull that wagon up that bank.
Very, very well done! It shows great skill and confidence in helping your team maneuver!!! I was chewing my nails watching until you got back down that hill!!!😳😳😳 Way to go!!
Sometimes the best laid plans fall apart in front of us...Well done teamsters..everyday, everydrive, everyteam on any given day can be unpredictable and different..You held it together, men. Well Done.
hensonkimberly ~ 👏🏼👏🏼 Excellent comment! 👏🏼👏🏼 I've had my share of unpredictability. Open land driving and arena driving is very different to me. I feel that I have to... "alway try to be prepared for the unexpected yet knowledgeable that I won't always see it coming" (my Grandfather and teacher 40+ years ago). 😉
I can't even get 8 of my co-workers to work together as good as these horses and the teamster did. Absolutely impressed and absolutely wish the skill was passed on more. My dad grew up and as a child worked with teams. I've only sat in on one or two plow days behind the lines, I'm beyond impressed.
Way to keep calm hank! My grandfather drove the hitch for Schlitz beer in parades before I was born! I tell ya Hank, Much respect for sticking with your team and working them through! Without your dedication and commitment, we would be watching an entirely different scenario unfolding!
Hank was the 80 year old youngster in the back .. lol .. Nolan was the teamster . What everyone didn't know was he dropped a line while pulling up slack line .. he's made that turn a hundred times . Just goes to show you carp can hit the fan at any minute .. Love all the feed back though thanks everyone !
davycricket3016: The best piece of advice we ever got from our old and crusty driving trainer was to tie the reins with light cord to the vehicle, so that if we dropped them we could recover.
Not at any time was this team out of control I have driving horses I would know so for all of you to say negative stuff is just unbelievable truly an amazing job I bet none of you could drive an 8 horse team
Lizzy Hodges ~ I completely agree! Too many "equestrians" or those with no horse driving experience making judgmental comments. This team did a excellent job working together. I've only gotten up to a team of 4 outside. It's a whole different ball game than the arena.
Good job for all the folks involved. Loved how the 'footmen' were counter balancing the wagon as it came down the hill and no one panicked, just took care of the situation. Very impressive, but truly tense for anyone who has driven any hitch at all. Even for me, a single horse 'whip'.
@@be-happy that was the only hitch of 8 . We had about 10 teams out there . We did have a 6 up mule team with us . The rest of them were 2 or 4 up hitches .
Sometimes things get a bit hairy... But they held it together and avoided a wreck, so it's all good. (And why I'm usually satisfied to drive one pair at a time!)
Bloody hell.. I'll take that guy "Hank" as an instructor any day (other than misjudging the corner) to keep his head and his hands and bring it all back together again, awesome driver.
I can't even imagine p and crap like that happening! Hell I had a hard enough time with a single, driving in downtown Dever!! (Worst job I ever had with horses...ethical fucking nightmare) Hank is damned good at what he does!!
There is not a lot of people that can handle a six up. Most of those came out of the picture barns and have long passed. 8 ups were used mostly as freight wagons on the flat . If it had been a 6 up he would have made it on the first swing. If it had been me I would have ha to move the lead back a couple. That man showed a lot of skill, doesn't men I' am gonna loan him my truck ! If you had to, you did good .
folks, if you want to take video, stabilize yourself and take the video....its very difficult to watch when the camera is going every which way....stop, sit, and hold still
I am really impressed with his driving ability and his being calm under pressure. What doesn’t impress me is the handling of the camera and the language the men around it are using. Their graphic conduct is not good.
The idiot who kept saying woah, woah, woah, should not be allowed around the camers. Very annoying! These horses could have been badly injured because of the driver's incompetence.
Only part done right was the teamster keeping them horses from turning back around DOWN that hill!!!!! Maybe should practice with 4 up some more before you tackle 8 on this kind of road :/
Can you not tell he's in a wagon himself, and his horses are trying to move? He already said his team was trying to catch up to the other wagons ahead of him. YOU try holding a camera pointing backwards in an emotional situation, all while trying to steady a team of horses that wants to move forward... good luck with that! On top of that, there's no springs on those wagons - they're jarring even when you're moving along at a calm walk.
That was bloody stupid. And the reason the horses started to run is because they saw the hill and automatically they will start to pull. If they can't steer the whole team don't even try. And why the hell would you even risk your horses with this. Imagine would could have happened in a terrain like that.
Saartje05 none of this was planned, the drivers only mistake was the first turn. He took it too sharp. The horses got nervous, got antsy, went too far, started moving and instinct said not to stop. I'm experienced with large draft hitches like this, and I'd say the driver did an excellent job handling his hitch. Now as for the breed he's chosen for horses... Well I guess you can't fix him for that.
Alan Ward, I agree. We all make mistakes, and fixing those mistakes is what's important, and he did that just fine. But I think you're wrong about the breed. Shires are great! I've driven Percherons, Belgians, Clydesdales & owned a Shire. They're all great. I wouldn't disparage any of them.
