Rachael's Corner: Show Season Essentials!

With the summer show season fast approaching, are you fully prepared and stocked up for you and your horse to perform and look your best? Here in the Tictac Equestrian office, we are continuously looking for quality, new and exciting products that our customers will love - all at competitive prices of course! J because we believe that being well prepared, feeling and looking your best, allows you to perform well.

At www.tictacequestrian.com, we stock a large range of quality products from lots of new and exciting brands such as Mark Todd, Le Mieux, John Whitaker, Pikeur, Fal Pro, Botanica, Dainese, Equino and many more; keeping our customers in the equine community stocked up with all of the latest trends and supplied with quality horse care products to keep your pet happy and healthy!

So whether you and your horse enjoy dressage, show jumping, cross country or just hacking and a trip to the beach, we will continue adding quality new products to our impressive range J

If you have any questions or issues you would like to share with us, please don’t hesitate to contact us on our Facebook or Twitter – we are more than happy to help!

Showjumping

Photo: Tomer Arazy

It's a joy in itself to own and look after horses, but for many people, there is a lot more fun to be had! 

The feeling of working hard and training your horses to the best of their ability to become athletes in their own right and enjoy the thrill of competition is a feeling unlike any other, and one of the most challenging, yet rewarding aspects of this is competitive Show Jumping.

We know most of you are likely familiar with Show Jumping - if not experienced jumpers yourselves! - but as we'll be posting about upcoming shows, trials and competitions, we thought we'd give you a little introduction, just in case!

Show jumping, also known as "stadium jumping", "open jumping", or "jumpers", is a member of a family of English riding equestrian events that also includes dressage, eventing, hunters, and equitation. 

Jumping classes are commonly seen at horse shows throughout the world, including the Olympics. Sometimes shows are limited exclusively to jumpers, sometimes jumper classes are offered in conjunction with other English-style events, and sometimes show jumping is but one division of very large, all-breed competitions that include a very wide variety of disciplines. 

Jumper classes are held over a course of show jumping obstacles, including verticals, spreads, double and triple combinations; usually with many turns and changes of direction and the intention is to jump cleanly over a set course within an allotted time, avoiding any faults or disqualification. 

In most competitions, riders are allowed to walk the initial course beforehand to plan their ride. This gives the rider a chance to walk the lines he or she will have to ride, in order to decide how many strides the horse will need to take between each jump and from which angle. Going off course will cost time if minor errors are made and major departures may result in disqualification, so any opportunity to stay sharp and on top of your game is a must for all competitive jumpers!

Now, these are just the basics - there is a whole lot more to Show Jumping! But why not see for yourself at an event near you?

And of course, for all your horse riding and eventing accessories, be sure to check out the official TicTac Equestrian store

Badminton Horse Trials 2013

Competition Season is soon to be upon us, and what a season of horse riding it promises to be! 

Among many fantastic, and vital, dates on the horse show calendar is the annual Badminton Horse Trials. Nothing to do with rackets or shuttlecocks, the Badminton Horse Trials get their name from their location in the beautiful English country surrounds of Badminton, Gloucester.

This year's Horse Trials take place from Thursday 2nd-Monday 6th May and are sure to be full beyond measure of thrills and equine athleticism; among the highest quality of which in the UK, if not, the World. 

From Dressage and Show Jumping to Cross Country, some of the finest riders today will take their place in the arena to strut their stuff atop some of the most impressive and beautiful horses on the competitive circuit. 

SO, be sure not to miss out and get over to the official Badminton Horse Trials 2013 website for tickets and information. 

Olympia International Horse Show - London 2012

This year's Olympia Christmas show promises to be a big one!

The London International Horse Show Olympia, or as it's known simply, 'Olympia', is the UK’s biggest Equestrian Christmas Party! It takes place this year at Olympia Grand Hall, London, from 17-23 December.

The show is one of the most renowned worldwide, attracting over 80,000 visitors every year. Olympia is the only event in the UK where you can enjoy the FEI World Cup ™ Legs for Show Jumping, Dressage and Carriage Driving all under one roof.

Each performance is packed with top class sporting action, outstanding equestrian displays, and the classic crowdpleasers – The Shetland Pony Grand National, The Kennel Club Dog Agility and The Christmas Finale which has a Circus theme this year.  There is also a great Shopping Village with over 200 shops where you can fulfil all of your equestrian Christmas wishes.


Here is the schedule for this year's show. 

• Monday 17th – Reem Acra FEI World Cup ™ Dressage Qualifier (evening)
• Tuesday 18th - Reem Acra FEI World Cup ™ Dressage Kur (evening)
• Wednesday 19th– Pony Club Mini Major and Christmas Pudding Stakes (afternoon)
• Wednesday 19th - FEI World Cup ™ Driving Qualifier and Speed Stakes (evening)
• Thursday 20th - FEI World Cup ™ Driving Qualifier and Christmas Cracker (afternoon)
• Thursday 20th - Alltech Christmas Puissance (evening)
• Friday 21st – Team Murka World Class Performance Under 23 British Championships and The Renault Christmas Masters (afternoon)
• Friday 21st – The Christmas Tree Stakes and Santa Stakes (evening)
• H&M Saturday 22nd – The Rolex FEI World Cup ™ Qualifier (afternoon) and Veteran Horse Showing Championships (morning)
• H&M Saturday 22nd– The H&M Mini Stakes and The H&M Ivy Stakes (evening)
• Sunday 23rd– JJ Jumping Junior Stakes, Six Bar and BSPS Ridden Mountain & Moorland Championships (afternoon)
• Sunday 23rd – The Olympia Grand Prix (evening)

For More Info go to the Olympia Site