2020 round up and 2021 plans...?

[Muddywellies]

Absolutely no plans whatsoever for 2021. After a year of true heartbreak with family bereavement, very difficult conditions at work, and the obvious covid, I've also had massive horse and confidence issues and stopped competing. How you can go from affiliated dressage at a decent level, to pretty much zero, is amazing!
So for 2021, absolutely no plans whatsoever. Try to enjoy life again, reduce stress and pressure, more holidays, see where things go with the horse but with no fixed plans. Just 'go with the flow' I guess. Oh and lose weight and get fit. My own personal health needs to be more of a priority than it was!

 

[!CobsCan!]

Had a fairly good year in 2020 surprisingly! Jumped some things on the older boy I never ever thought we would clear and generally had a blast in our last year competing and doing riding club. Began trick training and agility with him aswell. And got another horse! Polly, 15.2 cob mare, 8 years old and a green as grass! Love this little (big) girlie and I'm so pleased with her despite her being the one to cause the jaw incident. My goals for 2021 is bring polly to the Riding Club Camp (pony club camp but for old people!) Bring her to some ODEs and compete in some online agility comps with Beano! (The older boy) non horse related I would love to start running again!

 

[jkitten]

2020 was the year I got back into riding after being out of it for 20 years. Really amazed by how much I still love it! The first several lessons were just finding my feet again, and then lockdown happened (again), but last week my instructor was really complimentary about my progress, and I must admit I could feel the improvement too.

2021 is going to be about figuring out where I want to go with it and how I'm going to get there. I'll be upping my lessons to twice a week, and considering whether to try sharing a riding school horse. If things go well, I'm hoping to be able to realistically consider a horse of my own towards the end of the year!

 

[Red-1]

2020 has been a stressful one. Started with a lovely sports horse, was unbelievably stressed by mum being ill, sold that horse, bought a sick-note teenage cob, Rigsby. Mum has just died (Friday), funeral is on 31st December, so it ends a chapter, still in 2020.

For now, my plans for 2021 are to keep on keeping on, sort out the huge amount of paperwork, see if I can get Rigsby to be a happy hacker, hopefully buy a more sporty horse to run alongside, whereupon Rigsby can be for friends to hack out, and for me too when I feel like it.

But, in all honesty, it will be a success if both Rigsby and I get through the year healthy and with me regaining some spirit.

 

[Michen]

2020 has been a stressful one. Started with a lovely sports horse, was unbelievably stressed by mum being ill, sold that horse, bought a sick-note teenage cob, Rigsby. Mum has just died (Friday), funeral is on 31st December, so it ends a chapter, still in 2020.

For now, my plans for 2021 are to keep on keeping on, sort out the huge amount of paperwork, see if I can get Rigsby to be a happy hacker, hopefully buy a more sporty horse to run alongside, whereupon Rigsby can be for friends to hack out, and for me too when I feel like it.

But, in all honesty, it will be a success if both Rigsby and I get through the year healthy and with me regaining some spirit.

I hope 2021 is your year. X

 

[dorsetladette]

2020 certainly threw us some curveballs. My low key plans to get B2 going under saddle gave us all an emotional roller coaster ending on a real low when deciding not to carry on. Plan B was to get him out in hand showing but Covid put a stop to that. Being left for a few weeks in the field (handled daily, but no groundwork or 'stuff') saw him revert back to a nervous unhandled 3 yr old, so the decision was made to send him off to live on a hill with as little stress as possible. This left B1 on his own, with only sheep for company, he was fine but I didn't like it. So started looking for a 3yr old to bring on (to show if it ever happens). Fell in love with a 6 month old colt foal and he came home 3 days later. He has been terrorising everyone ever since.


Aims for 2021. Get the legend of a pony B1 out to some riding club shows and dressage comps. With all the B2, livery, baby pony stuff I'd let B1 slip on to the back burner and forgotten how cool he really is. Baby pony (known as Rob the Kn*b) will be out at a few breed shows and exploring the countryside with his uncle B.

Most of all - I plan not to take things to seriously and enjoy the little things, the things we usually overlook whilst aiming for better and looking for the future. I really hope everyone's 2021 is better than 2020. X

 

[Ambers Echo]

I wrote a very vague 'plans' post. Reflecting my meh feelings about post Amber life. But I think I need to get inspired by the possibilities offered by Toby. My dressage was always the weak link on Amber. She was more than capable but quite fizzy and my riding was - let's be honest - awful! So Operation Learn to Ride and a new dressage trainer means I feel that I should set some dressage focused goals with Toby. My goals are:

PB in a test at an ODE - that means sub 34.
70% + in a prelim test

And also

Double clear in a BE80 at some point next season.

Not sure of those which will be hardest!

 

[MarvelVillis]

Love reading everyone's update. Who would've thought at the start of 2020 we would've been in for the year we had...

Horse wise, this year, my youngster turned 3, and I've introduced him to long reining, we've been doing lots of in hand walks, had his wolf teeth out, been bitted and introduced to tack. Was hoping to take him to his first show but that went out the window! Our plans for 2021 are to move to a bigger livery yard with more facilities, increase the long reining/in hand walks and then hopefully get him backed and broken in spring/summer. Very excited to get him going!