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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 427
 
Location: Midwest Iowa | Hello Florida barrel racers! My husband and I have an opportunity to relocate to Florida. Relocation area needs to be within the Orlando - West Palm Beach area. My focus would be around Melbourne as I could possibly transfer jobs. We want to buy an acerage where I could keep my 3 horses, I have no desire to board them. When we were in West Palm last weekend, we drove around the Florida country and saw a TON of English, jumping, etc arenas and homes. I am not sure about living in a community like that since I barrel race. Had to throw that out there cause it was strange to me to see all these small acerages together.
So any advice would be very welcomed! I am just starting my research of the area but we are SOOO looking forward to this opportunity!! |
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Location: Central Florida | I am in Cocoa just north of Melbourne. Yes, West Palm is mostly english and dressage there is a lot of barrel races in Okeechobee, Ft. Pierce, Fellsmere. St. Cloud and up this way. Also New Symrna area (about an hour north of Melb). Let me know if you have any other questions! :) |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 427
Location: Midwest Iowa | Thank you FloridaPriss, that is great to hear! I knew there had to be some barrel racers somewhere near Melbourne!  |
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 Left Out
Posts: 6797
  
Location: Silex Missouri | YOU ARE NOT LOCATING TO FLORIDA!!!!!!!!! THAT WILL NOT BE ALLOWED!!! AINT HAPPENING GIRL FRIEND!!! NO FREAKING WAY AM I GOING TO LET THAT HAPPEN. YOU HAVE TO STAY IN THE FROZEN FREAKING NORTH WITH ME. I JUST FOUND YOU, YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME. PLEASE SAY THIS IS ALL JUST THE FROZEN AIR GOING TO YOUR BRAIN FROM THE TEMPORARY THAW YOU EXPERIENCED ON YOUR VACATION THAT, UM COUGH COUGH, I WASN'T INVITED ON! |
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 To the Left
Posts: 1865
Location: Florida | There are tons of barrel races around Brevard County, and a bunch of rodeo people have come from Brevard. The east coast of Florida from Jacksonville to around Fellsmere (Palm Bay) is barrel racing country as well as inland. Now, if you go further south along the Treasure Coast (Stuart to Lauderdale) you got English.
Edited by Vickie 2014-05-29 6:52 AM
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 No Name Nancy
Posts: 2715
Location: never in the right place | New Smyrna area has lots |
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Veteran
Posts: 238
| What you need to be prepared for is the sticker shock on feeding your horse. Hay is NOT cheap in FL. Good quality grass/alfalfa mix runs $600/ton and up. You can buy coastal hay for less, but if your horse is not used to it, it will take time for them to adjust and they may never thrive on it.
You can usually find something to go to every weekend, but there are very few week night barrel races in the Melbourne area. That said, the NBHA district barrel races usually draw 100-150 entries and the co-sanctioned can draw 250+. |
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  Damn Yankee
Posts: 12390
Location: Somewhere between raising hell and Amazing Grace | You shouldn't have any trouble finding races for darn sure. And definitely check on Jax for the Shamrock and Fiddlers!!!! Miss those places.
Agree, feed and hay prices are ridiculously high in those areas, and good hay is very hard to get, so be prepared to possibly supplement with stuff like standlees from TSC. |
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 Horsey Gene Carrier
Posts: 1888
Location: LaBelle, Florida | Feed/hay/everything...include fuel into that as well is higher.
Grass is crappier so you will have to take care of it if you want to keep any in your possible pastures. |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 473
| kasaj2000 - 2014-05-29 4:29 PM
Feed/hay/everything...include fuel into that as well is higher.
Grass is crappier so you will have to take care of it if you want to keep any in your possible pastures.
But our WINTERS are AMAZING. |
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Horsey Gene Carrier
Posts: 1888
Location: LaBelle, Florida | AfleetEquine - 2014-05-29 5:39 PM kasaj2000 - 2014-05-29 4:29 PM Feed/hay/everything...include fuel into that as well is higher.
Grass is crappier so you will have to take care of it if you want to keep any in your possible pastures. But our WINTERS are AMAZING.
One of the MAIN reasons I continue to live in Florida. I don't do 'cold'.
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Living in Florida and Barrel Racing