The Joys of Winter by Zig Zag Eventing

The Joys of Winter

It’s that time of year where winter should really be ending but somehow it’s successfully managed to hang around waaay past its welcome. One day of brief sunshine has you believing spring could be on the way but then the next day your dreams are crushed, and winter has well and truly returned. As horsey people who are more often outside than indoors we bear the brunt of the ‘joys’ of winter so I put together a few things that make you really want spring. …

1. Rain. It never seems to ever stop raining, you can’t remember the last time you saw the sun. In fact, you’re not even sure if the sun exists anymore. Every time you’re at the horses you end up soaked through, no matter how much you check the weather forecast. Thought you’d managed to hack out in the one dry spot of the day? Wrong. You’ll get caught in a heavy downpour and your horse will spend the whole ride with his ears back cursing you for taking him out of his stable and honestly, you’ll wonder why you did too.

2. As if that wasn’t enough the rain also means that there is mud everywhere. Your horse is up to his hocks in it and you’re up to your knees. No matter how thoroughly you brush him there is somehow one spot where there is still mud. Your riding boots will be covered in it, even though you swear you avoided every muddy patch. Your tack will be covered every time you ride out. The fields are a bog and quite frankly your horse would rather not be out in it. Eventually, you just give up and accept the fact that you’re basically 50% human and 50% mud.

3. Oh how we wish for spring when it’s 6am and it’s not only pitch black but also -1 degrees, and you’re still up trying to do your horse before work. Everything is frozen including yourself. The yard is an ice rink which has made trying to get the wheelbarrow to the muck heap a form of extreme sport. You question your sanity and really how worth it this all is as you trudge off into the field to break the frozen water troughs yet again…

4. No matter how well you plan the weather always seems to ruin everything. Back in December you sat down and planned your competition season for 2018, excited at all the events lined up. But, nearly everything you’ve entered in the past two months have all been cancelled due to rain, snow or ice and you’re about to begin pulling your hair out. Your horse is fit and ready to go and all you both want to do is event again. When will it end?!