With the arrival of summer, many of us are enjoying heading out of the yard on adventures with our equine best friends. Here is a list of 10 things not to forget to pack into the lorry when leaving the yard! Make sure you write them down on our packing checklist!
- The Horse!
Yes, it sounds silly (and a VERY obvious thing to take!), but when we asked our followers on our Facebook page what is the ‘best / worst’ thing they left at home, an alarming number confessed to having turned up to a show or clinic without their horse. A couple even admitted to leaving the rider behind too! - Bridle Numbers
Your bridle numbers are such a small but important thing at shows – and SO easy to forget! We love packing our bridle numbers into a small bag such as our eventing wash bag. - Wet Wipes
Wet wipes are brilliant for cleaning up last-minute spills, stains, and dirt. You can get great reusable ones now too and pop them all together in a small horse show essentials bag. - The Tack
We can’t count the number of times people have turned up to an event missing the girth, saddle, or bridle! It is such a frustrating situation, especially if you have travelled far. Did you know you can also use horse-patterned double oven gloves to cover your stirrups and protect your leather saddle on a budget? (You can thank us for that horsey life hack later!) - A Copy of Your Dressage Test
No one wants to be learning a dressage test last minute at a horse show. We love using the dressage arena pads to help us learn the pattern. - Water
It is important that horses have access to clean water. Do you know how much water a horse drinks in a day? We looked it up and were shocked to realise that the average horse weighing 500kg (around 15hh) can drink up to 30–50 litres of water a day! When it is hot or your horse is working hard, this can increase because of sweat. Remember, not all horse show venues have an accessible water point! - Snacks!
Grumpy rider? Give them a snack. Happy rider? Give them a snack! Hungry horse? SNACKS! Snacks are the biggest horse show hack going! - Plan
Never leave for a show without a plan. We all know plans can change, but you can never be too prepared! We love using our show planner book to track and plan everything from costs, show results, class timings, and more. - Cash
Horse shows aren’t known for having the best signal. Events often take place in a field where there is no reception. When it comes to buying those famous cheesy chips, you won’t want to be stuck without a way of paying. - A Sense of Humour!
Perhaps the most important thing you can take with you is a good sense of humour. If we wanted everything to go to plan, we would be competing on bikes or machines and not an animal that can be unpredictable. Emily’s drawings are testament to the fact that things can go disastrously wrong for all of us. If you need to cheer yourself or a friend up, why not grab one of our greeting cards and pop them into a frame!
