Amateur Dilemma

By, Meredith Rogers

I’ve talked a lot about goals in this column. There are short-term and long-term goals. They should be “SMART”: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timebound. I want to score above 60% at second level this year is an example of a SMART goal. It’s specific. It’s measurable. It’s time-bound. But if you don’t even have a horse, it’s not very attainable nor relevant. There are also aspirations (dreams), which is where all of our goals start from. My dream is to float across the ring at Grand Prix. The problem is that I don’t have a timeframe on it, so it’s not yet a real goal. It’s specific, measurable, and relevant. I’m doing everything I can to make it attainable (a great horse, lots of lessons, studying), but it’s too early in the process to know if it is attainable because there are so many obstacles that could arise (eg, horse goes lame). Achieving goals takes a lot of effort. Luck plays a small part, but planning can often overcome luck.

I wrote in my birthday post that one of my goals was to publish a book. I had already written a few that no one wanted to read, but to have one out in the world had been a dream of mind since childhood. Two years ago I decided to make it a goal. I switched gears a little and came up with a children’s story about Leo. My nieces are both excellent artists (for real, not just the opinion of a biased aunt), so I thought it would be fun to have them do the illustrations. The SMART goal became publish a children’s book by the time my oldest niece entered college. The writing, rewriting, and illustrating took a lot of work but was finally completed. The problem was getting it published. I sent it off to a few publishers and a bunch of literary agents and either got outright rejections or crickets. Since my niece is entering college this fall, I had limited time, so I went with Plan B and decided to self-publish. I researched the best way to do this and then the mechanics of laying it out and getting it into circulation. Well, last month, I met that goal. The book was launched on Amazon.

Some things to note about this journey. It only really started when I changed the dream into a goal. The goal I chose was different than the original dream, which was to write the next great American novel. I spent many, many hours on this project. I needed help to do it. My nieces jumped on board but this was not their dream, so it took some compromising on my end because their motivation waxed and waned throughout the process. I had to pivot from “real” publishing to self-publishing.

The same elements apply to our riding. We create a plan. We work hard. We get help. We adapt to change. And, if it’s really a goal, meaning it’s important to us, we do what we need to do to get there. I hope everyone reaches their goals this year!

New Children’s Book

If you are looking to get a little one into riding, this is a great introduction to English equestrian sport (all other children’sbooksareWestern). Perfect for the horse-crazy kid in your life!

Little Leo's First Big Show is a “true” story about a young horse’s first dressage show, with the lesson being that trying new things can be fun if you have people you trust to help you. Little Leo is scared with all the new experiences that come with going to a competition, but he tries his best with the help of his girl (the author), his teacher (his trainer), and all the new friends he meets at the show.

Available on Amazon as a Kindle book or soft-cover: https://www.amazon.com/Little-LeosFirst-Big-Show

News from Outside the Ring

Protect your melon

On February 9, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (UPSC) and English Riding Supply issued a fast track recall on Ovation Protégé equestrian helmets because they failed to meet ASTM impact requirements. The recall involves those helmets manufactured between December 2020 and December 2022. The helmets came in multiple colors and finishes. If you have one of these helmets go to the retailer from which you originally purchased it or to any Ovation authorized dealer for a refund or replacement. You could alternatively bring in proof of destruction of the helmet or email a photo of the destroyed helmet and a photo of the interior manufacturing label, clearly showing the manufacturing date and serial number, to helmets@englishridingsupply.com. To destroy the helmet, cut off the harness straps. The manufacturing label is located on the interior foam liner underneath the comfort liner, so you will need to remove the comfort liner to access the manufacturing label. For more information see: https://www.ovationriding.com/ProtegeRecall/.

Congrats. It’s a girl!

Who says you can’t have it all? Not Charlotte Dujardin, who gave birth to a baby girl on March 6. Named, Isabella Rose, she’s sure to be a future dressage star (or not). Charlotte was introduced to her husband, Dean Wyatt Golding, by Carl Hester in 2007. Dean publicly proposed to her twice, the first time at the 2012 Olympics and again at the 2016 Olympics. Then they broke up and got back together, and now they will hopefully live happily ever after.