Sarah Jenkins: Give up or give everything
I read one of those “inspirational” Facebook posts last week that stated: “Give up, give in, or give it everything you’ve got.”
I forget who posted it, but I bet they have horses. Of course, the mantra can be applied to anything in life, from studying for that PhD you’ve run out of funding for or even the day job, but horses do particularly try our resolve at times.
There’s greater inspiration still in finding out precisely what it is, this “everything” that you have to give.
In our “When the going gets tough” feature (p20 Horse & Hound, 12 February), admirable riders explain how and why they have stuck with a horse others would have had shot, and the methods they have applied to transform said equine from wild child to superstar. Their stories are incredible and give hope to anyone with a talented horse who tests their riding — and patience — every day.
Then you have AP McCoy’s kind of giving up, the kind that comes after achieving absolutely everything you can. Too often, riding is dismissed as a non-physical sport. This is noted as a reason why our athletes continue long after a footballer would have hung up his boots.
But seeing the euphoria mixed with total exhaustion etched on a Grand National winner’s face, not to mention the physical battering taken by all the times he’ll have hit the deck, leaves you in no doubt that for McCoy to have stayed at the top of the game for 20 years is quite extraordinary. Here’s to giving it everything, until you’ve given it everything.
Ref: Horse & Hound; 12 February 2015
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Sarah has worked at an equestrian journalist and editor since 2004 and has held the position of Horse & Hound Editor-in-Chief since 2014. She has reported for Horse & Hound from major championships including Europeans and World Equestrian Games. She has co-written books on horses and horse sport including The Complete Illustrated Encyclopedia of Horses & Ponies. She has owned and ridden horses since 1993, and worked for and trained with Olympic gold medallist event rider Leslie Law prior to going to university. While studying for a BSc at London School of Economics Sarah also worked for top British dressage rider Louise Spate.