Not-So-Speedy Dressage
From Endurance to Dressage
I knew that last month's bargain basement price of horse ownership was a rare occurrence. I was back to my normal spending this month. And then, because normal is not really my thing, I had to increase my "average costs" by spending an additional $400. Go me? It wasn't that any one category was particularly high. The problem was that I spent a fair amount in every category. Board was where it normally is, but then I took multiple lessons out of town and went to two schooling shows out of town. "Out of town" means more gas for my truck.
The chiropractor visit lead to hock injections so my vet bill was also relatively high. Before I knew all of that was coming, I had started ordering summer riding shirts like I was naked. And since I was already getting one thing, I had to add more to the cart. Count how many pairs of socks and bottles of fly spray I ordered. Ridiculous. And gloves ... sheesh - a little self-control would have been nice. I built up a pretty hefty bill for the month of July. Two thousand bucks and change buys a lot of something else, anything else. Heck, that's a mortgage payment. I would like to say that I am going to show some restraint for the month of August, but I can't. I already had my truck's AC recharged, my trailer repaired, and sent in two schooling show entries. Goodbye money, hello fun?! It's all in a day's work.
jenj
8/1/2016 07:15:34 am
Ignorance is bliss, that's all I keep thinking! 8/2/2016 05:54:40 am
I did this series the first time back in 2012 to see how much I really was spending. I was horrified. Keeping track helped me see that I don't need everything I want. This time around, I wanted to see if the cost of living had gone up. So far, my expenses seem to be just about the same. Comments are closed.
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About the Writer and RiderI am a lifelong rider.
I began endurance riding in 1996 where I ultimately completed five, one-day 100 mile races, the 200-mile Death Valley Encounter, and numerous other 50, 65, and 75 mile races. I began showing dressage in 2010. Welcome to my dressage journey. About Speedy GSpeedy went from endurance horse to dressage horse. After helping me earn a USDF Bronze medal in the summer of 2020, he is now semi-retired. Speedy is a 2004, 15'1 hand, purebred Arabian gelding. His Arabian Horse Registry name is G Ima Starr FA.
About IzzyIzzy was started as a four-year old and then spent the next 18 months in pasture growing up. I bought him as a six-year old, and together, we are showing at the lower levels. He is a 2008, 16'3 hand warmblood gelding. His Rheinland Pfalz-saar International (RPSI) name is Imperioso.
National Rider AwardsState Rider Awards
State Horse Awards
Working Towards:
CDS Sapphire Rider Award Third Level: 63.514% Third Level: 62.105% Fourth Level: Fourth Level: 2023 Show Season
Show Rating (***) CDS/USDF/USEF (*) CDS (s) Schooling (c) Clinic (r) Ride-a-Test Clinic 2023 Show Schedule
TBD 2023 Completed … Pending 2023 Qualifying Scores
Regional Adult Amateur Competition (RAAC) Qualifying Training Level 3 Scores/2 Judges/60%: Score 1: Score 2: Score 3: Archives
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