Let’s face it, we live in a constantly changing world and technology, as much as we sometimes despise it, is here to stay.
While some of us prefer the good old days before every waking minute of our acquaintances’ lives, from their 6am coffee to their post-workout sunset walk, was posted online, we can embrace certain aspects of innovation and gadgets, especially when it comes to our horses.
However, there are also certain times when technology will let us down and there’s not much we can do about it. How many of these can you relate to as an equestrian?
1. Your phone battery dying while recording your ride
If you didn’t get a photo or a video of it, did it really happen? Haters will say not. Typically, your phone will switch off right on cue, just as you’ve produced your best-ever individual show, scaled the highest jump of your life, or produced a personal best dressage score. Obviously, the attempt was a one hit wonder and there is absolutely no chance of getting a repeat performance on film…
2. The power going off half way through a clip
That moment of sheer panic when the clippers splutter and suddenly die a death cannot be replicated. You flick the plug switch and of course, the power has cut out. You got about two thirds of the way through your full-body clip and your horse looks like someone has been at his coat in the dark with a pair of blunt scissors. Prepare for him to be the laughing stock of the herd.
3. The chaos of entering competitions online
Online systems are designed to make the process of event entries more efficient, but, if you’re new to the game of internet entering, you may find things easily go awry. If you made it to the final payment button, congratulations. But you might be left scratching your head when you look in the catalogue and your 17.2hh lightweight hunter is some how entered in the Shetland pony in-hand class. We’re no experts, but the judge might notice something is afoot…
4. The satnav taking you on a wrong turn, or two
Even if you left the yard with plenty of time to compensate for any “incorrect manoeuvres”, one or two deviations from the main route to an event, especially when you’re working against the clock, can have grave consequences. Why does this always happen when you’re running late, had to stop for fuel and you’re first in the ring, too?
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5. Accidentally uploading the wrong photos to Instagram
Your horse’s social media presence is more precious than your own, especially prior to the competition season when you’re dabbling in a bit of pre-season marketing to scare off the competition. So accidentally posting a shot where your horse looks like a three-legged donkey with a head like a coffin is akin to a PR nightmare. Damage control pending!
6. Your loved ones learning of your results via social media first
Sometimes you just want to be the first one to share your own news, good or bad, with your nearest and dearest. However, the overwhelming presence of social media in our lives means that family and friends, including your technologically illiterate grandmother, are aware of your results before you’ve had a chance to even leave the showground. By the time you actually manage to pick up the phone to share the news of your big win, or even bigger fall, the topic is tomorrow’s chip paper.
7. Ordering multiple products online instead of just the one you needed
You only needed one bottle of shampoo and a fly rug but somehow you’ve ended up with enough soap to wash the whole yard 10 times over, and rug your horse for the rest of his life. Plus, the delivery driver’s opinion of a ‘safe space’ to leave a package is very questionable…
8. Posting something on Facebook and waking up to 1,000 comments, 800 shares and 250 direct messages…
You only asked your fellow online horsey friends for a recommendation, but you seem to have sparked a community-wide debate spanning the globe…
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Former H&H showing editor and deputy features editor
Born and raised in the Lake District, Alex has grown up on the showing scene. She has qualified and competed ponies at the Royal International, Horse of the Year Show and Olympia and has first-hand knowledge of the current issues in the showing world as well as the horses, ponies and riders who compete in the sport. Alex joined H&H in January 2018 as showing editor, cementing its place as the leading equestrian publication for both showing reports and current showing news in the UK. She moved on in October 2024 to pursue other opportunities, but continues to write for us on a freelance basis.
