who has the oldest horse still competing?

Lovely idea for a thread, a nice bit of oldie appreciation :D

You beat me already tho, I have a 19 year old who is just moving up to to Novice dressage :) She had never even been in a show this time last year so is doing well for an old girl :D
 
I don't compete any more apart from an occasional Trec but that is my choice, not because of him. I have a 24 year old who is fit and well and has done 1000 miles this last year. We did a 21 mile ride on Saturday and he came home full of running and not at all tired from it and we are off to do the Mary Towneley loop with friends next week.
 
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Mine's 22 and still competes - although he doesn't do an awful lot, more due to my laziness than his capability! :)
We did a combined training at the beginning of the year, a showjumping comp, a bit of dressage, a hunter trial and then, last week we did our first ever showing class (I don't DO showing). Did a veteran class and we came 4th out of a decent number of people! Think we've found our vocation for the next few years! :) Am doing a RC combined training in a couple of weeks too. I don't jump the same heights as I used to and just do it for fun but he loves showing off in dressage (not my favourite discipline but I am getting to like it a bit more these days).
 
I knew a connie x tb by Ben faerie who was still doing the odd showjumping and hunter trials at 26 years old! He might have even gone doing it a bit longer but I lost contact.
 
Ooh, oldie appreciation! I don't have any oldies in work at present, but years ago I used to regularly show and occasionally showjump on a 33 year old mare. She was an utter cracker and *loved* working. The only time we were ever beaten in a veteran class was when her mother waltzed into the ring under saddle. She was 40! I've never known anything like that line for living life to the full!
 
When I learnt to ride I rode a 42 year old pony who was truly amazing, although he didnt compete I rode him once a week for an hour on a hack, he looked well and wasn't even stiff and was still going when I left
 
Cheeky was winning at 2'6 RC level when he was 27. He was also completely insane and caused me to retire from more than one dressage test he was so naughty :D We stuck to jumping, where he could ignore me much more easily!
 
Wow some really encouraging replies on this thread, I dread the day my 23 year old says he's had enough but I can dare to dream that it won't be for a while! I can't get out to shows at the moment but we still regularly school, to elem/medium level and he's going as good as ever as long as he has a looooong warm up. He jumps too and is still sometimes bonkers to hack :-)
 
I have a 24 yr old who still Race Rides (100k) Endurance plus the Arab Marathon. She has won the Veteran Marathon for three years running.

A friend of mine had a 40 year old pony who competed in Endurance regularly doing 25 mile rides
 
23-year-old who just got two firsts in elementary dressage. Two seconds in admittedly tiny show-jumping. All classes were pot-hunting as he is way better than that. Sadly his jockeys aren't. So that's what we do and he absolutely loves a day out.
 
Not a horse of mine, but I was doing a 15 mile pleasure ride, a few weeks ago, I tagged along with a women on a 31 year old, who was not a plod.
 
When I first was learning to ride, I rode a pony called Millie who was 45, she had mild sweetitch but was sound and fit as a fiddle! We only did walking and some trotting round the school to preserve her as she had been the yard owner's first pony and had lived with her from a foal!
 
My 26 year old is happily competing in Veteran Horse Society Classes and about to restart his dressage career. He showjumped and evented to intermediate in his younger years and is still so up for it that I am seriously considering whether to let his young rider do a few lower key events with him. I take the view that all the time he's enjoying himself and wants to go out to parties then we'll keep going, gently and sensibly - he will let us know when he's ready to retire. He's been my horse of a lifetime and it's so rewarding to see him passing on the benefit of his experience to the next generation.
 
Great thread, really interesting to see how any are still going well. I would love to know the background to all these oldies, fascinating to see how some can keep going into their thirties and beyond while others are arthritic in their teens. I wonder if there is anything in common, or they just have good genes?
 
Here is Toque at the grand old age of 20 winning the Polo Pony class at Royal Windsor this year, we were so proud!

Toque_zps5df378ec.png
 
This thread gives me hope that my 20 year old might have quite a few good years yet. She is fit as a fiddle, schooling elem/medium dressage, hacking out, jumping weenie fences (because I am a massive weenie over fences). I dread the day when age catches up with her and she needs to go into light work. Hopefully not for a while yet.

I have a theory that these horses keep on going due to a combination of good genes, good conformation, but also, regular work their whole lives so they remain fit. In the 14 years I have had my horse, she has been in regular work 99.9% of the time. Very little time off, or barely ridden; in 2008 she had one month off due to an injury she got from kicking at a fence, and in 2003 spent about two and a half months mostly off, as I was working in New York City and could only see her on the weekends.

Here she is going over some little jumps a couple months ago. [video=youtube;SnHR7dAYCdo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnHR7dAYCdo[/video]
 
At my old local show there was an old boy and his horse always there showjumping! They'd been a partnership for years and years and the horse looked grand if not a bit silvery! Think he was early 30's, and he competed right up until he died a summer or 2 ago.
 
My old boy is 28 and still competing in dressage despite having DDSL. He's recently won the Scottish Veteran Dressage Championship. He's hopefully happy for a few more years yet.
 
Pie is 21 and still showjumping up to 90cm regularly. I dread the day he can't do it any more as he adores his work and drags me onto the lorry when we go to shows.
 
One of my daughters rides is I think 23. She does dressage, hunter trials and hunts all winter. Looks amazing no one believes how old she is. She'd be out eventing and no doubt winning if she would entertain the idea of jumping coloured poles away from home half as good as she does at home but...
 
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