Ok, hands up. Over the past few months, how many of you have fleetingly considered abandoning this sport we adore so much in favour of something warmer . . . like knitting? As we drudge through our once-pristine fields, knee deep in mud so sticky there are untold welly-victims lying below, it's difficult to remind ourselves why we do this.
Not only is the act of caring for our beloved beasts relentless and often cloaked in darkness at this particular point in the year, it's also a complete lottery as to whether we’ll be able to get to the few events that we’ve been able to train for. We’ve lost count of the number of abandonments over the past six months (from hunter trials to showjumping competitions and arena eventing). Flooded arenas, desperately muddy courses and winds that would whip up even the sturdiest pony to join Dorothy in OZ seem to have become the very depressing norm.
So what can we do to make it better? As you know, PADDOX hosts a huge variety of equestrian events, but did you know that this includes social get togethers too? Sometimes hanging out with like-minded people, and sharing woes can bolster us for another week of mucking out and filling haynets, wistfully dreaming of the days when our four-legged-friends don’t need constant rug changes.
Make your daily routine as slick as you can, whether that’s preparing feeds the night before, hanging rugs somewhere so they stay dry or ditching hay nets all together for a little respite and letting our horses eat in a more natural position from the floor (may not work for the hungriest of ponies).
We’ve togged ourselves up in fine waterproof style this year, because if there’s one thing that’s destined to make the 6am mucking out and feeding routine harder, it’s being damp. Search Vinted for second hand, water-proof brands and find a pair of boots that keep your feet dry and warm. Best of all for us - a wooly hat with torch making those haynet filling mornings a snipsy bit easier. Waterproof gloves have been a revelation . . . although we still can’t tie a haynet wearing gloves . . .
Event abandonment though? Well that always comes as a real blow and it’s hard to see the time spent training as wasted . . . but it isn’t. Time spent working with your horse is only ever going to be a good thing - growing your bond, improving your shared skills and as we all know, being with your horse is brilliant for mental health (despite the aforementioned). Switch the mindset, because each hack, each time spent working on your flatwork will help you elsewhere down the line. That rainy day with the high winds is a day for researching your next event on PADDOX and for keeping you and your horse dry! PADDOX also has an indoor arena category so this is perfect for those struggling to train with the never-ending rain and darkness.
So don’t give up, winter can’t last forever (fingers crossed), soon the sun will shine, the fields will dry and the grey ponies will be grey again (if you know, you know).
PADDOX is the UK's only comprehensive equestrian event listing website. If you want to find an event for you and your pony we probably have one in our database.
Here is just a sample of our UK-wide listings - or why not Search for an event near you