As the holidays wind down and the new year begins thoughts of the upcoming show season starts to become more real. For those that will get started showing with the spring thaw in March now is the time to chart out your year. Those of you that are lucky enough to go south for the winter have already planned out at least the winter season.

Managing an equine competition athlete takes a lot of prep and planning. Your horse should be just getting back into steady work after his winter or post season break. It is time to sit down and plan the show schedule for the year. Take out your calendar, have your browser ready to search show dates and get ready to lay it all out. Do you have any special goals for the year? Are you trying to qualify for something? Move up a level? Maybe there is a destination show you really want to go to. If you are an amatuer or junior, request a meeting with your trainer to discuss your goals. If you are a trainer, make sure you know what goals and plans all your clients have so you can create a cohesive schedule for your entire clientele. Know exactly what you need to have in order to qualify for what you want. No matter the discipline there are specific rules for qualifying for anything. Make sure you attend shows that meet these specs. If you want to move up then plan what a good competition would be for a move up and plan the season prior to that accordingly so you feel confident and ready. You should not move up a division at the biggest show on your calendar or after a longer break. Plan for warm up shows or smaller shows to prep you and your horse for the bigger competitions. Horses and riders need to practice at competing before they can be competitive. It is easy to be rusty. It is easy to have nerves, for the horse and the rider! For eventers it is great to plan some jumper or dressage shows. Find some mini trials or CT’s to get yourself back in the groove.

Now you roughly know your plan. The first step to being ready for this plan is to have your vet out for soundness exams. Make sure everything is good before you start much conditioning and gearing up for the upcoming season. Get a base line on how your horse is feeling after its break so you know if there are any special things that need addressing or to keep an eye on as you start with winter homework. If dentals were not done during their break they should be done now. You may have cut back on chiropractic and body work during their break. Start getting those appointments on the books again as well.

Once you have a baseline on your horses’ health and you have your year mapped out then it’s time to get ready with winter training! It’s the best time to start over with the basics and work on the small details without a competition looming.