I spent most of last Sunday at a horse jumping competition, as is often the case since my niece took up horse-riding. For “niece” read “the whole family” as everyone tends to get roped in. The first event started at something like 8.30 and luckily she wasn’t in the first couple of them, so we arrived at around 10am and even had time for bacon butties in the horsebox whilst she warmed up her pony.

The show was aimed at youngsters and far from being the children of the wealthy, which many people expect, they’re offspring of hard working parents, keen to see their children do well in their chosen hobby. They’re well turned out (ponies and riders, that is) and arrive in an assortment of horse boxes and trailers – some of them quite smart, some looking decidedly on their last legs but they must have an MOT and the associated costs – or whatever the equivalent is in horse boxes.

Talking amongst the parents, many of them are finding it a real struggle at present to keep up with stabling and feeding costs and the sheer expense of everything horse-related but they’re a friendly bunch and it’s good to see children who are keen to do well and who behave like kids should. Friendly competition (usually), a few tears, lots of encouragement. They learn to mix with and support other riders and care for their animals.

Lots of the Mums are doing two or more jobs to support the hobby and there’s quite a lot of make-do-and-mend with all the gear. With the effect of the credit crunch, it’s very likely there won’t be so many of them at the next event – there are a record number of ponies and gear up for sale. We’d not been to this particular venue for a few months and the tack shop has closed already. The café has been scaled down – but many families take food with them and eat in the horse boxes anyway.

My thoughts turned to the insurance issue, as it tends to. The horses and riders are insured – they have to be, to enter the events. All the boxes are insured and obviously the venue is – that’s a lot of money laid out for just one Sunday event out of hundreds going on throughout the UK. No wonder lots of these shows have been sponsored in the past by insurance companies.

The credit crunch is producing losses for everyone. For these lucky kids, for family life and for the insurance industry.

But how did she do? Two events, two refusals and one jump down. Still, you can’t win ‘em all. Jess had a good day.