Set the Pace Issue 89 August 2020

ICELANDIC HORSES IN THE UK

?

What did we do

What problems did we encounter and

? ,

overcome

anything

,

What

if

did we

?

learn

-19

COVID

"

'

I don t want to piddle

'

on everyone s chips

-

.."

but

Caroline Roberts

C

Plus

VID-19

S N A P S H O T S

TABLE OF CONTENTS

05 07

'

This month s resilience award

'

winner and why we re grateful to have them in our community

Primary Care and juggling life

19

during Covid

by Caroline

Roberts

12

Covid

19

The Learning Curve

28 SET THE PACE

.

19

Snapshots including

5

minutes with Aidan Carson

:

a piece by

Richard Gledhill

#

Rideoutracism movement and

find out more about the founder

2

/

Wondering if you can travel to the yard or view buy a horse Can you have lessons or a farrier visit again

Get up to date Covid

19

?

advice for horse owners across the

united kingdom from the British Horse Society

CLICK HERE

“

A pony is a childhood dream treasure

GUEST EDITOR

.” –

.

: '

I can t quite believe it s time to write my comments

here

again

.

The

past

few

months have been a blur for all of us but goodness me

,

the Icey community here

in the UK have been amazing supported

,

encouraged

.

and

You have inspired

each other and I think I speak for more than just myself when I say how grateful I am for our amazing Iceys during this difficult time

.

This issue has a number of contributions regarding Covid experiences and as we go forth into

the new normal we look

forward to sharing your experiences

.

N

S E T

T H E

P A C E

A horse is an adult

Rebecca Carroll

NATASHA SAUNDERS

'

?

3

SET THE PACE

Summer

ICEY Friends

2020

oreviD aruaL AUM | octaY nagaeT tsilytS | nosoJ onibaS rehpargotohP

LOCATION MAP

A

.

s you can see from the map Click add to map

we are very widespread in most Click on the edit icon

(

of the UK literally from Land s End change

your

,

’

to north of John O the

numbers

growing

(

Groats and add Europe

are

(

!) .

details

you

to

want

in

name

the

box

)

add photos with the camera icon

map

’

,

ipad only

’

It s great to see You

;

grow

you

can

:( ,

yourself to the map

.

PC

don t

add than

&

Mac

.)

that

a

here

and

enter

.

to

but

horse

interesting clicking

postcode in the search bar

need

if

do

any

you

more

want

to

change your icon from a teardrop

you can view and edit to

on a phone but not add yourself

Click

postcode

no Brexit in the Icelandic Click save

Chat Group the

in

’

). ,

pencil icon

,

the

or

something

you

can

paint

do

.

pot

If

that you

your stuck just drop me a PM and

.

I will help you out

4

more by get

19 SET THE PACE

|

2020

SUMMER

Through this difficult time a few people amongst us have had more challenges than most

.

I feel truly privileged as guest

editor to be able to recognise the following people as recipients of the Set the Pace Resiliance award this issue

The

first

Colyer

resilience

who

pressed

award on

goes

regardless

to

:

Thalia

of

many

setbacks in her plan to have Aspar in her back

.

garden

During that time she has done a bang

.

up job of being the leisure rep for the IHSGB An

extremely

difficult

task

through

COVID

but Thalia found innovative ways of keeping

.

the Icey crowd in touch

Well done Thalia and

.

thank you for your resilience

,

The last

and by no means least

.

,

award goes

to Caroline Roberts Throughout lockdown she has

forged

,

through

working

in

the

field

of

primary care whilst battling her own worries

.

and stresses

Caroline has still found time to

engage with the community and continues to be a voice of reassurance and reason in these

.

confusing times

.

Thank you Caroline for all of

your hard work

5

EVERYONE THINKS THEY HAVE THE BEST HORSE IN THE WORLD. NONE OF THEM ARE WRONG A

WARM

WELCOME

,

Sarah Rose

,

Sofia Eng

,

,

,

,

,

,

Stecak

,

-

,

,

Carola Krokowski

,

,

Voigt

-

,

,

,

, ,

Máni Hilmarsson

,

,

,

, ,

Holly Eldridge

,

,

,

,

-

,

, ,

,

Issy Langrish

Rebecca

,

,

Nettie Phillips

,

Einar

-

Uschi Heller

,

Ella Scott

,

Rose

,

Hazel Lynn

,

James Green

,

,

Laura Diehl

Jacobs Eva

Tracey Walsh

Leeanne Davies

6

,

Ute Maria Löw

,

Gal

,

Ása Jelena

Michaela Benbow

Amanda Boyd

, ,

Nicola Jobson

Ellyn Jonsdottir Norris

Master Saddle Fitting Consultant

Jane Gullan

,

Jacques Philippaerts

Monique Verbeek

,

Harriet Woods

,

,

Olesja Shevchenko

Anne Marie Tom

Jaime LeGault Elenbaas

Lisa Gordon

,

Lyndsay Sharp

Samantha Clarke

Emily Maudsley

-

,

,

,

Tina Beck

Alastair Graham

Ómar Runólfsson

Alexander Harriet Kristkindl

,

,

Amanda Graham

Carol Ålmo Lengweiler

Pippa Davis

Burrows

,

Lisa Garrett Loewenberg

,

Hermannsson

, ,

,

Tina Veysey

Myra van Beek

Joan Todd

Esther Sills

,

,

Alexandra Hall

Gaye Donaldson

Ellie Stokes

Susan Rovinski

,

!

Nicki Helga Barnett

Aims McMorrow

Peter Mendy

Çäthy Šmäll

MEMBERS

,

Jenny Strähle

Aly Gee gee

Faye McGinley

NEW

Susan Francis

Elodie Rummage

,

,

Fiona Hunt

Victoria Biggs

OUR

Sarah Williamson

Jodie Gordon

Liz Killen

TO

Liza

,

Vicki Marvin

Gustė

’

ny old year It s been a fun

, ? , eh

COVID-19 AND PIDDLING ON EVERYONES CHIPS

As

Tim

y be aware many of you ma

nt through and I sadly we nging bulent life cha massively tur ptember events last Se be was going to

‘

,

2020 , ’.

and

our year

’

Well

BY CAROLINE ROBERTS

that s panned we all know how out

!

Surprisingly

,’

I ve found the

iting lection and wr process of ref icle to be a this short art cess heartening pro

,

giving Tim

and nce to revisit and I the cha year hts from our review highlig

,

using on the rather than foc e all llenges we hav immense cha faced

,

personally and

professionally

.

Working in Primary Care has meant that my team has had to respond flexibly to

,

constant changes in national guidance

-19

understanding of COVID

which has been updated regularly as the

.

continually develops

Implementation of new policies and procedures has been fast paced and we have

:

;

had to adapt quickly to the enhanced standards of infection prevention and control

;

desperately try to source PPE during the early stages of the pandemic

extended

’

clinic timings and providing care in alternative locations to respond to our patients

.

needs

;

Maintaining a service with a reduced workforce has been challenging

,

and their families have not been immune to the virus measures

have

reduced

our

,

numbers

whilst

the

-

staff

so sick leave and self isolation

need

to

shield

our

vulnerable

.

colleagues has also limited the number of clinicians available to see patients

All

whilst maintaining safe social distancing and reassuring our patients that we remain

.

open for business in the safest possible way

,

Fortunately

our practice was using

technology to deliver remote consultations via telephone or video calls prior to the

,

’

.

pandemic so reducing face to face consultations hasn t been too problematic

7

...

CONTINUED OVER

COVID-19 CHALLENGES CONTINUED

This

has

freed

our

face

to

face

appointments

for

those who really need to be seen and has allowed greater

flexibility

to

build

in

all

.

the

,

associated

administration into the working day Also with support from relevant members of the multidisciplinary team

,

our patients have been empowered to take a greater

-

role in their own self care emerge

from

the

.

Another other positive to

pandemic

is

how

positively

our

patients have responded to this new way of delivering services

;

service

delivery

this has meant exciting changes to future

changes forwards

in

.

,

as

the

primary

local

population

healthcare

adjusts

provision

moving

"COVID-19 will continue to present challenges in the months, if not years, ahead." /

,2

As the Clinical Coordinator Matron for a large

,

surgery practice

it is my job to

.

ensure our team is fully prepared should there be a second COVID wave

’

’

,

I really don t want to be the person piddling on everyone s chips

/

,

but remaining

positive as we approach Autumn Winter is proving tricky already as we are due to

.

start delivering the flu programme in the next few weeks

,

GP practices must deliver mass vaccination programmes efficiently and safely

-19

whilst COVID

.

remains a threat

,

reduced capacity

This must be delivered by a workforce with

as we continue to protect vulnerable staff from frontline work

-

.

and trust that our staff will not become infected and need to self isolate

If

a

COVID

-19

vaccination

becomes

available

then this will also need to be factored in but right now

,

.

for

, ,

use

I love my job

it would be good to take a brief step off

! ’

the hamster wheel to reset the batteries

I m sure that

my health and social care colleagues would all agree that we could all use a pause at least

.

...

CONTINUED OVER

8

to

COVID-19 CHALLENGES CONTINUED

Whilst I promise not to get political you

1 have

the

opportunity

to

,

if

support

There are some people who touch our lives in

incredible

’

improvements to pay and conditions for

don t

all carers

strongest

,

nurses and allied healthcare

(

and

have

,

,

to

unexpected be

the

ways

loudest

.

They

or

the

but they quietly affect the way

professionals not to mention the myriad

we feel

other low paid key workers

the way we want to be It s funny we have

greatly appreciated

I

’

don t

that

’

hasn t

COVID us

imagine

-19

have

this

otherwise

.

goodbye changed

,

,

among by

,

and

friends

to

. ’

‘

during

of

loved

ones

,

or

saying have

with new rules affecting social

,

,

truly appreciated thank you

Building

resilience

important to have help

us

There

through

are

very

‘

is

challenging diverse

grieving

process

itself

that has

the been

,

times

anxiety

,

or

when

,

.

’

I m

years

to

come

.

My

own

grief

is

that

support

of

my

Icelandic Horse world

.

friends

in

.

I

feeling

any

issues

may

be

,

,

by knowing

affecting

physical and mental health needs

CONTINUED OVER

the

9

your

.

complicated and I am truly thankful for the

life

so do remember that your own GP can

how

some

in

to

there is no one size fits all answer

repercussions

for

’

is

As we are all

help you to look after yourself

continue

it

have developed over the years to help with

tragically interrupted for many and will

;

practices

unique

meant

easy

tools in our toolkits

control

has

.

not

overwhelmed for when life

This

’

but your support has been

distancing and infection prevention and

.

;

the

COVID

logistics

our

us

Tragically many of

whether The

one

affected

.

family

to

social media

’

pandemic

it would be

yet to meet lots of Icey friends outside of

there s

been

lost

time

.

),

the way we relate to others and

...

COVID-19 CHALLENGES CONTINUED

I

would

encourage

everyone

to

contact

.

your

surgery

if

you

,

support options that work for you

need

we all share is our wonderful Icelandic horses friends

in

(

our

‘

immediate

Icey

.

,

. ’ –

finding

!).

.

throughout COVID

,

Of course

one joy

Tim and I are lucky that we have two

family

otherwise known as the orange stick ladies

through thick and thin

in

As a minimum it has been important for both

Tim and I to remember to find time for something that we enjoy

lovely

help

Auntie

Hayley

and

Nanny

Anney

Both of these lovelies have been with us

It was so very lovely to include them in our

.

little social bubble as soon as restrictions eased

I know that many of you also kindly share your precious steeds with others not in a position

‘

to

keep

their

own

.

horses

’

.

Sharing

opportunities

for

others

to

find

their

Icelandic grin is so very rewarding

Tim has been shielding as he is in the

,

have diabetes and asthma

,

’

extremely clinically vulnerable

.

so am in the high risk group

,

home since before lockdown sanity

‘

,

category

whilst I

Tim has been working from

and getting out to our private little yard has been his

.

especially during the early stages of the pandemic

,

.

Many of you will not have

been so lucky as yards have had restricted access

CONTINUED OVER

...

" We WILL emerge from these dark days"

10

COVID-19 CHALLENGES CONTINUED The adverse impacts on mental health during enforced lockdown and ongoing social distancing guidelines are significant and we are sure to see further repercussions as

.

restrictions ease

,

,

All anyone can do is follow your own national guidelines but most

.

importantly only do what you feel comfortable with

♥

We WILL emerge from these dark days

♥

*STOP PRESS

I can report that some of our worries have been met head on during Ruth Farm

-

&

’

Bridget Colwill s joint birthday bash at Oakfield

,

.

and we not only survived but had a smashing time

A

heartfelt thank you goes to Mo for organising this and to everyone who came together to celebrate whilst maintaining

.

all social distancing guidelines

Tim and I will be forever grateful

.

for this initial foray back into the wider world

Congratulations to all involved with the arrival of Yma from

, 11 2020

Blaenwaun born July

11

e h s t ' Isn e l b a r o ad

WE WE ARE ARE LOOKING LOOKING FORWARD FORWARD TO TO NICK'S NICK'S SUNSET SUNSET CELEBRATION CELEBRATION AND AND THE THE SHOW SHOW 11TH 11TH –– 13TH 13TH SEPTEMBER SEPTEMBER 2020 2020

We have had a good number of entries and will be offering all classes. We will not be having a fancy dress ride around the village on the Friday. There will be updates and entry checking on the Facebook page as with normal shows and I will be sending out emails with Paypal invoices in the week before the show.

Thank you all for your kind words and your innovative solutions to making the show happen.

Really looking forward to seeing you in a couple of weeks,

Mo

For the show entry form

12

please

CLICK HERE

SET THE PACE

On an even footing by Kristin Sørensen

,

WOW

I

had

.

difference people

never

but

who

I

thought

am

helped

,

was Pernille SĂŚbye

a

pair

impressed me

make

of

with

the

stirrups

.

Ophena

decision

.

I have never felt confident or comfortable

,

might be because even

when they are lace up boots will

be

.

too

long

because

,

my

the left boot right

foot

is

longer Short boots have always felt like they did not keep my foot at the correct angle

(

since it has a tendency to drop foot

)

and I

have always felt the stirrup leather against

.

the inside of my leg the bareback boots are great

,

make

Heather to

me

,

,

Venables and

the

suggested ones

'

I

got

the are

waterproof has a zip so I don t need to undo the laces and they had a removable insole which

was

very

similar

thickness

to

the

magnetic insole so I replaced it with that and added

my

should

help

boots

.

normal keep

insoles my

to

would try

make like

on

feet

top

,

so

correct

they

in

the

...

CONTINUED OVER

13

that

to

,

Ophena

,

Catherine Holland and Heather Venables

I have forgotten anyone else

riding in short boots

I

could

much

thank I

the

know

it

I am sorry if

SET THE PACE

Heather was here when the stirrups arrived

,

on Thursday help

so it was also great to have

unpacking

and

trying

the

.

magnets

Unfortunately we forgot the camera when

,

we went to the horse today get

some

photos

of

the

.

saddle on another ride when

I

had

,

webbers

.

missing

attached

really

stirrups

on

the

It looked so weird

the

looked

so will try to

stirrups

like

to

something

the was

,

Mounting from the ground felt odd

since I just had to get my left foot above

,

and near the stirrup and hope it attached it

,

did

(

but felt odd since I only had my toes in

might be a slight issue with a size

39

a

),

boot

.

37

foot in

but I manage to mount without

issues Afterwards I got Nigel to readjust my left

,

foot

so

it

was

slightly

.

stirrup that felt better

Putting my right foot in the stirrup was

.

easy Out on the road it was a slightly odd feeling

that

,

stirrups

I

.

constantly

my

will I

feet

just

have

got

to

Nigel

stays

stop

to

in

the

checking

adjust

my

left

foot once because I thought it was close

,

to the side of the stirrup but I think it was actually

,

sitting

straighter

than

nicely

the

I

remember

ever

foot

seems

,

it

so

being attached to the base of the stirrup

.

must really help

I never felt the webbers

against my legs

so was an absolute joy to

,

,

ride in short boots

.

never thought I would

'

experience that My right foot didn t seem

(

as straight as left toe seemed to be more

),

outwards

so might need to be sure I place

.

it correctly when I put the stirrup on

...

CONTINUED OVER

14

further

in

the

Teddy

bear

was

on

,

best

behaviour

for

most of the ride then a guy kindly stopped

-

,

his sit on lawnmover while we went past when

we

had

gone

past

the

,

bend

he

! ,

started it again and teddy bear spooked Later teddy bear had a bit of a stumble

but my feet stayed in the stirrups during

,

.

these incidents so I am very impressed

One thing I still need to work out is how to get

my

feet

out

of

the

stirrups

ended up doing that for me

!

,

Nigel

I have now

watched the instruction video on how to do it

(

yes

,

that does feel so wrong needing

instructions

for

that

!).

I

am

just

hoping

I

might be able to work out how to do that by

twisting

and

lifting

my

foot

,

since

reaching down to do it with a hand will be difficult for me

.

Anyway teddy bear had

been so good today spend

too

long

,

so did not want to

dismounting

.

so

happy

I

have found some stirrups where I do not need to worry about keeping my feet in them

,

it is a really weird feeling that the

stirrup just follows the foot design

must

be

very

good

,

.

Do think the the

tread

is

supposed to be slightly angled and to me it just felt perfect

!

For more information

visit

.

.

www ophena com

15

Article reproduced with permission

-

.

First published in Countryside Magazine

July

2020

16

17

18

19

the learning curve When Mo asked me to write about my experiences with Duna during lockdown initial thoughts were training clinics

,

……’

, ,

no competitions

my no

no stories of interesting rides

’

out to hold the reader s attention

,

how am I

going to write about essentially zero Icey activity

? ’.

happened

’

There s nothing to say Perhaps instead

how we coped

?

,

,

not much

I could talk about

What did we do

?

What

problems did we encounter and overcome What

,

if anything

,

did we learn

By Richard Gledhill 20

?

?

-

.

I am semi retired I bought Duna two years ago on my sixtieth birthday as a novice rider

.

It

is

common

knowledge

,

opportunistic and anxious horse

During this time been

,

emotional

.

that

……

a

novice

should

so I went ahead anyway

,

we have had many adventures at

times

,

NOT

feeling

‘

frustrated

’

!!

buy

,

about

‘

slow

progress

.

’?

,

it has

and

even

,

nearly always

!’

.

,

My male side is

unsurprisingly goal oriented and technique driven Linda frequently tells me not a kayak Richard

,

opinionated

some close shaves and yes

regression When would I become a proper rider earn the badge

,

an

,

,‘

’

Duna s

,

I can manoeuvre a kayak The right stroke done correctly will

.

!

bring about predictable results A canoe does what it is told to do A

kayak does not

‘

yak

’

back at you

!

I realized the challenge was not so much about

achieving results but developing a mutual understanding in how to journey towards the desired outcome

.

Now perhaps in the

‘

Springtime to forget

’

the Covid silver

lining would be to use the hours of spare time building that understanding and

,

,

,

,

addressing the extreme separation anxiety napping bolting refusal to tolt trotting

.

off when she felt like it Issues that we had the previous two years

,

identified and done a lot of work on in

but now here was an opportunity to really focus on an

almost daily basis without all the other distractions of work and a myriad of other commitments

.

CONTINUED OVER

SET THE PACE

21

...

’

:

At the last pre lockdown training weekend at Peter Heathcote s in early March

:‘

Baddi

?’ :‘ ’

May I ride her

around the school need

to

be

’

clear

:

,

Me

Yes

with

, ,

her

so

Gudlaugsson s excellent clinic particularly

,

She s difficult

regarding

when

!’

,

of course

Baddi

after expertly tolting Duna

….

if you give her a millisecond though

she

knows

what

you

.

want

I

left

wanted

.

collecting her in preparation for tolt

her

to

,

trot

slowing

her

Baldvin

….

optimistic and with some clear aims I

you will Ari

,

be consistent

walk

down

and

.

Just a few weeks later Linda is furloughed I

have lost six months of freelance work and the world has changed beyond all

. ,

.

recognition

We were now allowed on the yard for one and a half hours a day

Throughout

we have been so fortunate with the flexible approach taken by our

,

,

.

family run livery Aberequine near Brecon

4-5 -40. !

Our daily routine became a

‘

out and back

’

along the lane

km

minute ride around our local forest circuit or

A little predictable

always the option of anti clockwise

,

,

yes

,

sometimes

but there was

We were so happy to get out

,

though

,

and

realized that so many others were not so lucky with having such quality riding on

.

our doorstep The riding continued almost daily and something remarkable gradually

.

.

.

started to happen Something was changing Duna was becoming relaxed She knew the routine

.

Bringing everything back to basics in a familiar setting

.

.

I think she

CONTINUED OVER

started listening There were setbacks

SET THE PACE

.

22

...

,

At one point all my tack was stolen from the van

!

.

I was gutted My Karlslund saddle

,

which

she really seemed to go well in was difficult

.

to replace I soon replaced it with an identical

.

model from Denmark The bit that I had a bit fitter

recommend

spare

saddle

,

gone

vanished

significant financial hit opportunity

‘

to

’

!

.

Bridle

and

all

.

stirrups

uninsured

That said

reappraise

,

,

my

,

,

a

it was an tack

and

tweak certain things Linda certainly enjoyed

shopping on my behalf thing

to

have

had

positives eventually frustration

.

One

.

!

So

,

whilst not a nice

happen

,

Depression

would

have

there

,

were

anxiety

had

to

,

and

have

been a stone not to have experienced these

‘

’

.

emotional downers during lockdown Passing just three vehicles on my way to the yard one day world and

.

,

,

felt like being in a post apocalyptic

Sometimes I was anxious

of

course

Duna

picks

up

emotional state influences her days

and

setbacks

.

I

will

lonely

,

on

, ,

it

sad

,

my

we had bad

remember

one

incident that happened sometime during the period

:

'Richard, you need a body protector!’ Linda saw my ashen face and put two and two together. ,

Duna had bolted

,

!

again

.

I recounted the last fifty minutes for her

The plan had

been Linda works in the school with Fabby whilst Richard rides out on Duna to get

.

her used to leaving Fabby

,

It was all going so well

,

past the farm with the huge

tractor operating in the yard around the blind bend and ten minutes further uphill

.

.

in walk to the lay by the turnaround Which is when it started to go wrong She was

!

,

,

going back to the yard and Fabby Trying to collect her walk turned into trot and then

a

full

? ,

nightmare back seat

downhill

.

canter

The

blind

!

bend

The

,

You are speeding along in a fast car

? ………

and you cannot reach the brakes

,

!

tractor

Have

,

you are driving

you

had

but from the

,

We stopped before the corner

.

got back into walk and returned quietly and thoughtfully back to Linda

...

CONTINUED OVER

SET THE PACE

23

that

-

,

A bad fall now in mid lockdown requiring an A and E

visit

was

unthinkable

. .

Body

minimise the risk of injury resort

,

however

.

Risk

armour

could

It could only be a last

assessment

and

how

,

and

where we rode was important from the start but now I realized I had to be far more consistent with

‘

Duna when she decided to dozen

rides

what

It worked

?

stopped

.

I

was

!

sticking

:‘

to

it

.

’.

On the next

And

you

know

Every time she trotted off

Maybe

half

a

hundred metre stretch through

trot off

dozen

.

times

in

a

,

we one

Slowly the message got

If you trot without me asking

,

we walk

.

’

She eventually relaxed into the walk and so did I

And

so

,

we

. .

entered

improvement

The

last

radical

We

mount

shift

without walking off

,

‘

a few

virtuous

weeks

and

circle

have

’

of

seen

dismount

a

calmly

this has always been difficult

The napping is still there

,

she really does not like

being separated from Fabby

,

.

,

but I have learned

not to get frustrated be patient and firm

.

.

Eventually we break through those invisible walls Although the tolt has lots of room for improvement we now find it much easier to

‘

walk again promptly and as she is food focused

she always gets a treat for doing

so

!

,

find

’

and I can bring her down to

We have been working in the school to try and bring her into a better outline

,

.

.

And recently we traveled out to meet a friend for our first post lockdown ride She brought her Connemara and we went for an extended ride onto the mountain

.

Fabby and Duna were delighted to be on new ground and for a few kilometres they both had a

‘

’

school s out

’

energy

.

In true Icey fashion

,

,

they negotiated bogs

,

rocks

fallen trees with a steadiness that encouraged the more inexperienced Connie to be a little braver

So

,

during

Chiefly

,

this

.

strange

,

unprecedented

I have become more relaxed

,

period

,

and

,

’,

SET THE PACE

.

,

lot

has

‘

happened

We have not arrived at

.

but I have realized the journey is the thing

looking back

a

’.

that has passed on to Duna and as a result

our riding relationship has improved dramatically destination

quite

nearly always positive

.

24

‘

the

Change is incremental

C

VID-19 S N A P S H O T S

5 MINUTES WITH: AIDAN CARSON

A very different competition season this year, we didn’t really get a start to the season. All competitions from the start of March were cancelled.

It was then I decided that I would give Óðinn a whole season to rest after a couple of intensive seasons over the last few years. He was given 2 months complete rest over part of May, June and part of July but we are now back training again. The competitions started up again over here at the start of July. I’ve been at a few to watch and help train. It’s always as enjoyable and motivating to be at a competition venue but somewhat strange not competing myself. You always get hungry to compete when you’re at a competition.

CONTINUED OVER

25

...

C

VID-19 S N A P S H O T S

5 MINUTES WITH: AIDAN CARSON

That

is

what

I

train

my

horse

.

compete at the highest level possible very

this

difficult

.

year

It

makes

because

I

,

for

’

to

Yet it s not the

can

training

start

.

wonder what I am even training for

to But

at the moment I am enjoying having the freedom

of

competitions enjoying

it

being

able

to

without

the

same

more

.

makes me happy

/

Jackie Alex

06-06-20

Today Idunn fra Normark is

23

,

years old

’

so she s the

photo girl for Day

4

of the

latest horsey pictures challenge set by Helen

.

Gilbert

riding

at

,

stress

because

This photo is of Idunn

in our last sponsored ride in

."

Staffordshire together

26

it

Hopefully taking a year

.

out will make us both wiser and faster

Aidan Carson Facebook

"

and

be

C

VID-19 S N A P S H O T S

27

C

VID-19 S N A P S H O T S

SET THE PACE

28

C

VID-19 S N A P S H O T S

29

C

VID-19 S N A P S H O T S

Helen Morris on Fjolnir at Broughton Endurance

Martine Bye

30

- 27

June

2020

C

VID-19 S N A P S H O T S

31

C

VID-19 S N A P S H O T S

SET THE PACE

32

C

VID-19 S N A P S H O T S

33

Alfadans Equestrian Arts

'

Icelandics just keep winning in this year s online liberty competition

!

series

Our

trainers

Alex

and

Caeli

each

won their respective divisions of Bridleless Novice and

!

Open Freestyle Taktur

In addition our friend Carrie Brandt at

Icelandics

won

her

divisions

.

Distinguished and Novice Liberty

!

of

Bridleless

Our horses really do

'

everything Here is Caeli s winning freestyle program set

.

to the song In Harmony

watch the video in full here

SET THE PACE

34

It's time to #RIDEOUTRACISM Finally the light is being shone on the lack

of

diversity

equestrian McCook

,

community

founder

Ride Out Racism story

to

raise

support

felt

,

for

an

of

support

.

Activist

online

in

the

Reece

campaign

has been sharing has

awareness BAME

equestrian sport

From

and

and

garner

inclusion

in

.

-

inner city

embarassed

community

and

feared

Reece ridicule

from those at school and collage with him

.

Now he is sharing his empowering

story to help others

.

He even shares a

story of being refused a tack room key

'

by a thief

woman who though he must be a

'.

Not to mention the racial abuse

and set backs Reece has had Scottish

,

Barbadian

,

.

He has

Irish and Jamaican

heritiage and has always been the only person

of

colour

at

every

equestrian

.

establishment It truly is time to ride out racism and it is long overdue

.

read more here SET THE PACE

35

Across the Shropshire Hills