Tomorrow (26 March at 1am) the clocks go forward one hour and British Summer Time begins. Cue loud cheers. Spring forward is the ‘bad one’ in some people’s eyes as we lose an hour’s sleep in the morning, but on the upside we gain one in the evening. Here are nine reasons to celebrate the longer days.
1. The overall feeling that winter is over and those warm summer evenings are around the corner. No more frozen hosepipes, muddy fields or general arctic conditions…
2. We will be able to find the muck heap and not have to fumble our way in the dark (with often disastrous — and smelly — consequences).
3. Hacking after work to the warm sunset is heavenly (we don’t need to start thinking about the flies quite yet…).
4. Catching our horses late in the day doesn’t have to be a ‘stab in the dark’; we can now walk confidently to their exact location.
5. Evening competitions are pleasurable from start to finish. We can load our horse without the use of a torch and arrive home not feeling like it is the middle of the night.
6. We are not confined to a floodlit arena after about 4pm, we can go cross-country schooling or have a jump on the grass or go for a hack late into the evening. No more spooking at shadows under floodlights…
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7. There is always a moment on the yard when it’s dark, it’s late, you have just turned your horse out or left the yard, you have watched an episode of Midsomer Murders the night before and you’re freaking yourself out — but the light evenings reassures your wayward mind that you will not be attacked.
8. Due to the prolonged daylight, there is no rush to get everything done – we can casually ride and do evening stables knowing that the sun will not go down in a hurry (and as a result, our blood pressure miraculously lowers…).
9. The yard lights don’t have to be on most of the time, which saves on electricity bills — and increases our vitamin D levels.
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