Eventing a 16 year old - do you?

[Sally-FF]

Hi all

16 year old had 3 queit years due to my new job, before then he evented up to novice successfully. Is 16 too old to start again? to look at him you would think he was 8! Starting fitness work again and he feels amazing. I think it is just me worrying for no reason!! Only want to aim for intro as i am a wimp these days!!

What are your 16 year olds doing? are you carefull with ground etc

thanks

 

[Ahrena]

My horse will be 15 in May and we're going strong.

He feels like an 8 year old too so I treat him as such. I hope to estsablish him at novice this season and maybe further next year (my trainer seems tom think so!).

I woudn't run him on very hard ground, but I wouldn't any horse. He gets supplements and soon will have an equibrillium massage pad, plus regular physio to keep him in top shape.

If he shows any signs of needing to slow down, I'll listen but for now he is happy and keen to do his job.

 

[Lolo]

Go for it- start slowly and work up. I competed my old boy at 2'6-2'9 until he was 26 or so, and he did open teamchasing until he was 19... We listened to him carefully, never pushed him (he pushed me!) and were very careful of the ground. But he was going strong right up until his last months!

 

[Archiepoo]

i think it depends on the horse! minors frolic was in the olympics after major colic surgery at 16 wasnt he?

 

[ajf]

Listen to your horse! If he wants to do it, go for it. If he says 'nah' then don't!

My chap will be 18 this year. Mum hunted him yesterday and stay out much longer than she was hoping to (he was home by 4pm after hacking to the meet as well!), as she didn't know how to get back to a road! Her words were 'he didn't stop pulling all day!', she's not happy

He will hopefully do a couple of UA ODE's this year and maybe a BE Novice on a day ticket (he competed 5 years straight doing Int/2* so he's a little bu**er with me at smaller stuff! But he'll happily do pairs babysit baby ponies with Mum riding round 2'3" stopping after every fence, and never going out of a SJ canter if needed!) but he doesn't enjoy the hard ground anymore.

Lennamore is 18 or 19 this year and he 'popped' round the olympics to!!!

Enjoy him and do what he wants to do x

 

[Nicnac]

Dictated by the horse - 16 is no age these days. Master Monarch evented until he was 19 and Lenamore is still going as are a host of other 'oldies' at high level!

Intro should be a walk in the park for a 16 years who's evented at a higher level (think Ensign who is 18 this year!)

 

[PolarSkye]

As others have said, if your horse is fit and up for it, then go for it. There are a couple on our yard who affiliated for the first time last year at the grand old age of 17 and are still going strong.

P

 

[Leg_end]

I evented up to Novice on my 20yo pony As long as they are fit and feeling good then go for it.

 

[NaeNae87]

Dictated by the horse - 16 is no age these days. Master Monarch evented until he was 19 and Lenamore is still going as are a host of other 'oldies' at high level!

Intro should be a walk in the park for a 16 years who's evented at a higher level (think Ensign who is 18 this year!)

Lenamore retired after the Olympics.

But I agree with the point you are making. 16 is not old, espcially in eventing where a 4* horse is considered young as a 10yr old.

My boy is rising 15 and he never acts his age.

Your horse will tell you when he can't do any more. I would take it slow and let him go for as long as he is willing to.

 

[brighthair]

I couldn't see why not. My old boy carted me round 90 mind cross country schooling, pulled like a train and was fresh as a daisy the next day!!

 

[mil1212]

Why not! I am considering eventing my 17 year old this year, he has had a couple of quiet years due to one thing and another, and now feels super fit and keen. I wanted to find a few BE90 opens to see how he goes. I think my problem will be keeping a lid on the dressage and stopping him XC!

 

[DarkHorseB]

Lenamore retired after the Olympics.

.

No he most definitely hasn't! He is back at CP's new yard and entered for Lincoln He is 20 this year and will be heading for Badminton I would imagine if all goes well.

OP as others have said if he feels fit and well go for it and have fun

 

[anna22]

My boy is 19 this year and shall be making his debut on the eventing circuit in 2 weeks
He show jumped until he was 8, was ridden quietly until he was 12 and the turned away until last autumn... when I got him I expected a hunter/hack, but he just keeps on improving and feels amazing! I am careful with him, I always warm up an cool down properly and we do lots of stretches and relaxation exercises.
If you horse tells you go for it, then give it a go.
Lets fly the flag for the 'veterans'

 

[Apercrumbie]

When I used to do pony club the star member of our eventing team was a 26yr old. He could run circles around any of the younger ones and I'm not talking 2'6 stuff either, quite easily clearing 3'6 xc. 16 is nothing at all these days.

 

[Nicnac]

Lenamore retired after the Olympics.

Really? Funny that as he's entered for the OI at Lincolnshire next Saturday

 

[gillianfleming]

I was a bit confused about the Lenamore post too, as i knew he had arrived on Caroline's new yard. Nearly had her off too

 

[FlipFlop5]

Mine is 19 this year and planning and keeping going at BE100! We've never pushed him too much and he always has a good break between comps

 

[jenki13]

My old 14hh pony I used to show jump up to 3' on a regular basis, 2'9" ODEs and even completed a 2'11" ODE he only stopped because of his useless rider . He was 24 when I got him & I competed him for 2 years before he did his check ligament slowing down after a gentle canter on the fields.

We were careful about competing on hard ground, used the Ice-mud-stuff (can't remember what its called) after competing, had him on cortaflex and made sure he was 100% fit for the job & he loved it!

Also I plan to aim my 14 year old mare for my Pony clubs Intermediate SJ team this year & possibly get to our 1st ODE! I did get asked "is she a youngster.. about 6?" the other day though haha

 

[floradora09]

My TB had evented to PC open level in his prime, and then spent a few easy years doing showing/fun rides/hacking. When I bought him aged 15 he'd been out of regular work for about 6 months, and was building up fitness gradually. It worked well as the first year was spent getting to know him and so he wasn't pushed very hard and we built up gradually, and then I spent the following two summers doing low level eventing (80/90cms)- everyone used to say how well he looked and were always surprised to hear he was 17!

He's now off games due to ligament issues behind, which I think were more due to cavorting around the field than the eventing, although it is possible they began more chronically over this summer. Just build up slowly, and enjoy!

 

[kiritiger]

i think it depends on the horse! minors frolic was in the olympics after major colic surgery at 16 wasnt he?

Miners Frolic was 14 when he went to London but yeah, if the horse is feeling up to it then why not?

 

[TarrSteps]

As above, if the horse is sound and keen, there is no reason not to.

You do need to be mindful though, particularly about fitness and choosing his runs. The biggest problem with dropping horses down is sometimes a less experienced rider needs to jump/compete more for their own education than is ideal for the horse's soundness (many older horses in pro strings jump very little at home) but so long as you monitor the situation he should be a mine of fun and education for you.

One qualifier, if he needs vet support or other management, do it before you have a problem. Older horses will come back more slowly and less efficiently from a problem so best to avoid if possible. While there are many, many horses competing at top levels well into their teens now, I'm not sure people always understand how carefully they are managed and supported. And it's not always the case that dropping a horse down will negate the need for such care - you want him to feel and go his best so he can enjoy his job for you. I do think it's generally best to avoid any extreme prevention with an older horse, though, as they usually have good coping mechanisms and should be left to get on with it.

Which is not to put you off at all! 16 is no age if he's still loving his job. I just find sometimes people are quick to say look at this or that horse, without presenting people with the whole story.

 

[dianchi]

Im taking my 19yo out on her first season eventing this year!
She is also playing horseball in national league, popping round SJ and dressage upto elem

She hates to be doing nothing!

 

[Jo_x]

I thought Lenamore was only retired from international competition, as they didnt want to travel him too much? It was announced before the olympics but they relented for London as it was within the UK

 

[CaleruxShearer]

I do indeed! My warmblood is 16 in June this year and is eventing at Novice, has been since a 6 year old. He's still as fit and *touch wood* as sound as ever, and actually at the moment feeling like he could go round an advanced!

However I do completely agree with TarrSteps in that they do have to be managed properly. I think a lot of it is about listening to the horse as an individual and seeing what they are mentally and physically happy doing and then working out your own routine around that. For example mine isn't on a joint supplement, he spent a year on Equine America Cortaflex just because I thought he should be but honestly I couldn't feel any difference so I took him off it. I now also have found my own little fitness and work routine for him, I do more hacking than work in the school, the horse is 16, he isn't going to forget how to trot a 20m circle! However I do do a lot of schooling a supple-ing (is that a word?!) out hacking, so asking him to really stretch long and low whilst I canter and trot off his back, stepping away from my leg as soon as I ask, leg yield or shoulder in for example. When I do him in the school, maybe twice a week I will only do 25 mins or so with a short walk down the drive before and after to stretch him.

When I jump I do a lot of little bits of gymnastic work to keep him thinking and interested. I also don't give him time off as in a 'proper' out in the field no work type break. It makes it so much more difficult to bring an older horse back into work injury free if they have been totally let down. So when he has his break in the winter he just hacks in walk and a bit of trot, 2 or 3 times a week, just enough to keep the basic fitness and suppleness.

I do choose his runs carefully, I know he prefers to be slightly on top of the ground rather than running somewhere that its likely to be very soft or holding, thats just his preference though. He doesn't particularly get treated any differently to how I'd do anything else after an event, washed off and legs ice gelled then bandaged then the next morning legs unbandaged and washed off, trotted up then he'll go out all day, then the next day he'll just go for a walk.

Hope some of that is useful, I realised I have waffled somewhat there!