I've never been to Hickstead before so was quite excited at the thought of heading somewhere horsey that was new and getting to do some shopping. That night Amy phoned and said "You do realise where Hickstead is right...?" Okay, so my Geography isn't great but I didn't realise it was right the other side of the Country. Still, we managed to be on the road at an unearthly time in the morning and off we went for a girly day out! Thank goodness Amy was driving!
We arrived at about 11am, with plenty of time to do some shopping, find the PetPlan stand and then settle down to watch some Show-Jumping. I had a shopping list as long as both my legs put together but had to be responsible and just buy the "most needed", which unfortunately resulted in Ceaser not getting the LeMieux Matchy Matchy set I've had on my radar for a couple of weeks. Boring! Armed with my new Chaps instead off we went in search of food.
I couldn't believe how big RIHS was! Amy and I were shocked at just how many trade stands and competitors were there. I knew it was big, but not that big, and certainly not that popular for spectators! I definitely think it's something i'll add to my calendar that needs a visit from now one.
Finally after a spot of lunch to keep us happy, and doing all the browsing our legs could take we found the PetPlan stand. The condition was that both Amy and I needed to take the Responsible Rider quiz and be willing to post our results. Absolutely no pressure there then - can I call myself responsible? Some reading this might beg to differ!
The quiz focused on your attitude to your horse's health and welfare rates, whilst questioning you knew what to do to ensure your horse is happy and healthy. Having insured horses for over 27 years, PetPlan Equine has gained a vast amount of knowledge about horse health and welfare and aim to share it with both horse owners and riders alike.
I'm sure at times when there's been an emergency with one of the horses I've gone into absolute meltdown and on to auto pilot, but lets see!
Thankfully the questions weren't too harsh and I'm proud to say both Amy and I passed with flying colours and a big fat 14/14 written on our score card. Phew! That could have been very embarrassing. For passing we gained ourselves two goody bags packed full of useful information and some goodies - which we proudly showed off later that afternoon. No one can call us irresponsible now!
If you're interested in taking the quiz you can enter online, on their website by clicking this link. It's worth having a go as it definitely makes you think about what you should and would do in certain critical situations with horses, testing your knowledge on what you'd do if your horse had a slightly loose shoe or was unfit.
Next up was show-jumping time. Amy and I found our seats and settled down for a few hours in the sun whilst making several "now if that top rail was taken off, I'm sure I could do that jump" and "we need to become owners for some amazing riders" comments. Of course, girls can dream and we planned a million ways to become rich, quick.
Following the show-jumping we headed to the showing arenas and were lucky enough to find two spaces by the workers ring just as the m&m 138cm and under class was underway. I'm always in awe of the little gutsy ponies with hearts of lions storming round the workers class like they're out doing a days hunting and will never tire of watching them. Amy and I decided this was probably much more our domain and instead of a large showjumping horse we needed a m&m pony!
By this point we were well and truly exhausted and just about ready for the 4 hour trip home. Thank you to PetPlan for this very generous opportunity. We had a fabulous day and both would certainly recommend RIHS to anyone wanting a family day out!
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