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Here we are, 3 months into lockdown, I don’t think any of us expected for this to go on for a long as it has. I did my last competition on the 14th of March, which is now over 3 months ago. I think this is the longest I’ve have had off competitions in forever! My lockdown has consisted of Furlough, sunburn and Tiktok.
Although I would much rather had been out competing, lockdown hasn’t been the worst thing to happen. Don’t get me wrong I definitely had a few breakdowns in there and it has been a bit of a struggle but we are all coming out stronger the other end. Most importantly it has given me time to do and focus on things I wouldn’t normally. I was on furlough for 2 months from my job which gave me so much extra time for the horses that I usually don’t have.
Something I’ve really focused on during lockdown is hacking especially with the lovely weather. I will be the first to admit I don’t hack my horses enough. Mainly because we don’t have the best hacking opportunities but also because I don’t really enjoy it. As someone that is always looking to improve my riding, I feel like I don’t benefit as much from hacking as I do from working my horses in the school. However riding the horses out is so beneficial for them, not only does is improve their fitness, it is so good for their mental state and attitude. I have noticed In the past couple of months how much happier the horses are.
Being locked in the house all day even made me resort to running. Anyone that knows me knows that I hate running, or any exercise that doesn't involve riding for that matter. Thinking about it I’ve never been very good at any sport besides horses! I’ve always been jealous of those super fit people that seem to enjoy going for a run. So one day I decided to go for a run, it was only 3k and i pretty much collapsed when I got back but I did it. Slowly I started increasing the distance and getting faster. I can now run 5k in a fast (for me!) speed and I’m feeling much fitter in general. Hopefully this will also help me with my riding as there's nothing worse than finishing the course out of breath!
Another non-horsey hobby I seem to have begun during lockdown is Tiktok (Like every other person on the planet!). I have even managed to get a couple videos with over 100k views, including one with 320k views!! Who knew I was that funny? For anyone who would like to see me embarrass myself feel free to check it out, @madisonrosejumping on Tiktok.
On a sadder note, I have sold one of the horses, Finn. He was always bought to produce and sell but he was such a sweet horse it was sad to see him go. He had most of the winter off so he could mature and chill as he was only 4. When lockdown happened and I was furloughed It gave me the time to bring him back into work and therefore was ready to sell. We found him the perfect home though and I’m excited to see what he does in the future!
A few weeks ago, lockdown was eased and we were finally allowed to start travelling for training again. I went for a lesson for a new trainer, Philip Spivey. Me and Oliver were both a little rusty but boy did it feel good to be jumping around a course again! I really enjoyed my lesson and he gave me loads to focus on for when competitions begin again so hopefully I can continue training with him. I am so thankful to HorseQuest for these training opportunities.
As I write this British Showjumping is slowly starting to resume and we are finally getting back to normality! I have entered for my first weekend of shows on the 11th and 12th of July and I couldn’t be more excited to get back into the ring! Looks like my next update will actually include some competition results!
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