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Wrap up tight in your winter woollies — for those of us in the UK, at least, temperatures plunged to -7C last night and I suspect we’re all dealing with frozen and burst water pipes, ice-rink fields, and solid arenas today. Sometimes, you’ve just got to embrace it and go for a potter down the line on your fluffiest pony, like Kevin and Emma McNab’s gorgeous kiddos Annabelle and Charlie have opted to do. Smart smalls!
National Holiday: It’s…Measure Your Feet Day! Which sounds an awful lot like ‘…and then buy new boots day’ to me, tbh.
U.S. Weekend Events:
Stable View Aiken Opener H.T. (Aiken, SC): [Website] [Entries] [Scoring] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]
Grand Oaks H.T. (Weirsdale, FL): [Website] [Entries] [Scoring] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]
Your Monday Reading List:
Have you begun planning your 2023 season yet? If hours at the kitchen table poring over the fixtures list are your new normal, you’ll appreciate this update from Liz Halliday-Sharp, who knows all too well how overwhelming the process can be. She shares her thought processes for getting the year in shape, with insights she learned from her years spent competing in the UK as well as being based in various parts of the States. [Whip your calendar into shape]
If there’s one thing I really don’t enjoy, it’s lunging. (Okay, okay, and sheath cleaning.) Mostly, I just find lunging incredibly boring — but I do also understand the benefits, if I were to commit my time to doing it sensibly and properly. These tips from Fizz Tickridge-Marshall make use of poles, transitions, and sensible, actionable goals to turn any lunging session into something verging on — dare I say it? — fun. [Get your lunge on]
You probably know that the Lipizzaners of the Spanish Riding School narrowly escaped tragedy during WWII. But do you know the full extent of the story, and the characters involved in ensuring their safety? This book excerpt will take you down the rabbit hole, and once you get there, you’ll just want to keep on digging. [The dancing horses of Vienna]
Happy kind-of retirement to those top event horses who’ve found a second career. One of those is RF Demeter, formerly ridden by Marilyn Little and now having a delightful time as the dream young rider’s dressage horse. [Catch up with her here]
The FutureTrack Follow:
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I’m in full holiday-dreaming mode now, and my inspo of choice is Laurence Kellard Safaris, founded in Kenya by two former top-level event riders. Beautifully schooled horses and once-in-a-lifetime animal-spotting opportunities? Sign. Me. Up. In the meantime, I’ll get my fix from scrolling their ‘gram.
Morning Viewing:
I started my day with a real case of the Mondays, but this video of a dancing dressage-bred foal showing off with his mum has slowly eked the bad vibes out of me. I can’t cope with his little attitude and flicky toes! May we all embrace the start of the week like this small kiddo embraced his first audience.
