SIEC water last year
Photo: Elysha Sargeant.
This time last year I was busy counting down the days to Sydney 3DE, crossing off gallops and jumping lessons and making sure Shamus was wrapped in cotton wool each night. A year on and it’s a slightly different story. With the Barrel of Fun getting injured last July he has been in the paddock ever since. One major benefit of having a dad who is a Vet that owns a digital x-ray machine is the ability to get your horses checked when they have any issues. While he is not always that handy I do like to make use of this and he was able to deliver good news yesterday. Shamus has full range of motion back in his knee and trots up sound under flexion and the x-ray is also clear of any issues.
Upon hearing this news I was really happy, then following the realization that although he is ok to come back into work he will still need a couple months of slow work, walking, trotting and swimming before I can even think about going back and trying to attempt a shoulder in again, let alone gallop around a 3* xc. Luckily I have a large property to ride on with undulating terrain which will be great for getting his strength back, it will just be a major test of my patience to not pick the reins up and start schooling him too early because I know both of us will get very bored with walking everywhere!
Pippa at jump club
Photo: Kay Coates
This weekend will see my second string horse, Ashmead Her Highness (Pippa) Strut her stuff in the young horse classes at SIEC. I entered her in the young eventing and jumping class for 5yo’s and I am hoping she will go well. Although we have not yet done an event this year she placed 4th in her prelim and novice tests at Clarendon 2 weeks ago and was third in the 1m speed class at Bathurst show last weekend. With all the trade stalls and other horses at SIEC there will be a lot of atmosphere but I am sure it will be a great learning experience for her and because I am only riding on Friday I won’t have to worry about icing horses all Saturday night and then rocking up to the second trot up with a killer hangover… not that I did that last year or anything. With all the extra time I have, I will be helping a mate out at a trade stand in the indoor arena so come drop in.
Despite the lack of stress from preparing a horse for a 3* three day I have been getting plenty of pressure due to the huge amount of Uni work on at the moment. I am down to my final two months and the lecturers seem to be making it as hard as possible for me to graduate. Not quite sure why they would want to make it harder for me to leave the place, it’s quite frustrating. So with only two months before I finish Uni I am beginning to think about my career and life post university. The last three and a half years have flown by and I know I will definitely miss the social side of Uni when I leave, just not the many all-nighters I have pulled to get assignments done on time or waking up at 4 to ride before class then riding in the dark well into the night after getting home.
There have been weak moments when I entertained the thought of actually using my Bachelor of Political, Economic and Social Science degree to get a ‘proper’ job. While this seemed viable I realized it would most likely end up with me working in Canberra and I couldn’t think of many things worse than that! I have basically decided to either to take 2/3 months off after Uni and go back overseas and ride before making a go of it back here. Especially after the great time I had in Germany which I found really beneficial in learning to see a distance more than 50% of the time I would be keen to return. Or go to America to check out how all the Aussies are doing things over there… plus maybe go to Vegas to see how the Star and Crown holds up.
"Any volunteers to join the wolfpack"
So if anyone has some good ideas of places to go or people to go and work with (here or overseas), then throw them at me!
Oh and don’t forget to come say hi at the three day. It will be one of my first times working in a trade stall and I am likely to get fairly bored if you don’t come and buy my stuff, or at least bring me a coffee!
