Monday News & Notes from FutureTrack

 

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A post shared by Fred Scala Equestrian (@fredscala)

No doubt, by now you’ve already seen this truly ridiculous video of Ireland’s Fred Scala bringing his top horse Donald (Everon Vivendi) back into work after a prolonged period of time off due to injury. I think I’ve probably watched it ten times now, both because I’m really impressed with how well Fred sits some serious acrobatics, and because I’m quietly delighted that I never have to sit on anything like that ever again. The perks of amateur life!

National Holiday: It’s National Clean Your Desk Day and I. Simply. Won’t.

Your Monday Reading List:

The most-viewed TikTok in the UK for 2022 is…a farrier. Sam Draycott probably wasn’t expecting the general public to be quite so interested when he posted a video of a shoe removal and hoof tidy-up, but interested they were — and now the chap is becoming something of an influencer off the back of his success. It’s a bit of an odd one, but it’s nice to have horses in the mainstream media for positive and harmless reasons, frankly. [Pony pedicures hit the big time]

If you’ve ever rehabbed a rescue horse, you know how fraught the process can be. One of the toughest parts? Resisting the urge to allow free access to food to a horse that’s been starved. Instead, it’s important to carefully — and slowly — increase food intake, keeping a close eye, too, on what, exactly, you’re feeding them, otherwise those sensitive horse insides can suffer catastrophic consequences. [Here’s how to do it]

I feel a little shiver of envy every time I read about the Inter-Scholastic Eventing League. Imagine! Eventing as a high school sport! I would have relished the opportunity — but I’m delighted that other kids get the chance to be part of this very cool program. The 2023 team challenge calendar has just been released, so if your school doesn’t have an IEL team yet, take a look and see if it might be worth setting one up with your friends. [I encourage varsity jacket wearing]

We often see articles and studies about the benefits of horses to folks with various disabilities. But what about the positive impact they have on equestrians who are dealing with a mental health issue, such as depression or anxiety? For those of us who share similar diagnoses, there’s a definite correlation between time spent at the barn and time spent feeling, well, normal. [Horses are an antidepressant (but also it’s fine to take antidepressants)]

Based in the UK, and fancy getting out and about to some events in a volunteer role? There’s loads of great jobs you can do — from fence judging to ring stewarding, you’ll get to see some great sport and drink many hundreds of cups of tea, probably. To get you started, consider signing up for a BE Volunteer Workshop, the dates of which have just been released. [Join the volunteer squad]

The FutureTrack Follow:

 

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A post shared by Steve Heal (@steveheal)

British up-and-comer Steve Heal looks set to have a very exciting season indeed — and there’s even an opportunity to get involved, with a raffle currently on the go that could nab you a syndicate membership in the lovely Hagonda (Holly) for 2023. The impressive mare is stepping up to 4* this year, and syndicate members will get to experience the excitement and joy of horse-ownership first hand.

Morning Viewing:

I’ll never really understand the intricacies of our cousin sport, combined driving, but I sure do enjoy watching the mayhem unfold.

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