New Year, New (Horse) Goals

Guest Blog Post by Brook N.

January.

Chapter 1 out of 12 new chapters to be written!

I think we can all breathe a sigh of relief that we are starting a new year. January is known for being the month of resolutions and goals. People see January as a fresh start, and an opportunity for growth. Some of the most common goals I often hear around January 1^st are, “I’m starting my diet”, “I’m going to exercise more”, or even “I’m going to save more money this year”. As we roll over into another year I started to wonder, what are people’s resolutions with their horses?

So – let’s find out together!

I sent out a survey to those who are signed up for our Double D Trailers e-mail list. We send out informative monthly newsletters, and occasionally a fun survey! 445 people responded to the survey where I asked two questions. The first question was:

#1 - Do you have any horse related resolutions for 2021?

Out of the responses, 388 people (87.4%) responded yes, they do have horse-related resolutions for the New Year. Out of curiosity, I didn’t want to stop there. Out of the 445 people who participated, 418 people gave a response to my second question, which was:

#2 - If yes - could you share your resolution with us? (Ex. Ride your horse more, purchase new land, upgrade your tack, learn a new riding discipline, etc.)

Many people shared resolutions that included riding/spending time with their horses. After leaving what was a difficult year for most of us, this is a great goal moving into a New Year. Research (1) has shown that riding horses has a therapeutic effect on mental disorders such as anxiety, depression, and P.T.S.D. Some of the riding related resolutions that were submitted included:

“Ride my horse more.”
“I'm purchasing a new horse so I can ride more.”
“Ride and work with my horse more.”
“Camp and ride with my horse as much as possible. Haul longer distances.”
“Train my new horse, attend clinics with my horses, ride more, and learn more- groundwork skills, riding skills, hoof care.”
“Ride more, get my horses legged up enough to go to a race, get one more seasoned and another finished on the barrels.”
“Ride more, move to the mountains where the summers are cooler.”
“Ride and horse camp more, especially new places.”
“To break my horse to ride.”
“Ride more, show more open shows and just be a happy rider!”
“After knee replacement surgery in January my objective is to dedicate time to lessons and working with my girl both in the saddle and on the ground.”
“Enjoy time with horses!”
“I would like to ride more, four to five times a week.”
“Spend more time on my horses, show more, travel more.”
“Spend more time with my own horses! I volunteer with racing standardbreds off the track, teaching them to become saddle horses.”
“Get more saddle time in different areas, i.e. mountain parks and shows.”

Another common theme that we saw in the results of the survey was participants eager to purchase a new trailer in the New Year. Here are some of those responses:

“Buy horse property and buy a LQ horse trailer.”
“Build a riding ring, purchase a Double D reverse horse trailer so my horses have a safer trailer.”
“Purchase a new stock trailer.”
“Buy a phenomenal trailer custom made for me! Finally!”
“Ride my horse more and buy her a new trailer at Double D trailers.”
“To earn the money to buy my trailer to go horseback camping.”
“Get a trailer to transport my future horses that I like and can afford!”
“Planning on replacing our old horse trailer with a living quarters trailer.”
“To buy my dream Farm & purchase a Double D horse trailer!”
“Get my Amish Horse to Canter and Ride away in One if your new horse trailers!!”
“Buy a good used gooseneck 2-3 horse trailer.”
“Upgrade my 45-year-old single horse trailer to a light weight 2 horse trailer.”

Is your goal to in the New Year to purchase a new horse trailer? Learn more about Double D Trailers Bumper Pull, Gooseneck, and Living Quarter Models.

Some other “just plain horsey” goals for the New Year were:

“Get back into showing and hauling mote.”
“I want to sell one of my horses and buy one that is shorter calmer and less spooky.”
“Train my 3-year-old gelding for western pleasure and maybe go to a few shows.”
“Condition & complete a 25-mile Competitive Trail Ride with my old horse.”
“Get my new property set up where I can have a horse again. This year I had to make major life changes, which included selling my horses.”
“Recently moved across the country (yep, hauled my Double D the entire way!) Meet horse people, find a place to board, get horse here, and ride!”
“Become more mobile and independent in traveling with my horse.”
“I am planning on starting to condition my horses earlier in preparation for a cross state ride in May.”
“Expand the area we want to go to for trail riding.”
“Get to ride lots more by showing some and helping the grandkids with their horse activities. Just enjoy them more and more.”
“Entering horses in inspections, learning Dressage, finding a land to purchase for breeding farm.”
“Ride more and sharpen my riding skills to my discipline.”
“Move up a level in 3-Day Eventing.”
“Progress with groundwork and saddle training.”
“Get to know and bond with my new Icelandic horse.”

If you’re still of unsure of what goals you want to set for yourself (and your horse) this year, we hope some of these responses inspired you. If you have any questions about our trailers, feel free to contact Brad.

Sources

(1) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5774121/