Susan Priestley does not stop.

She retired several years ago after a stress induced heart attack and a hip replacement, and went back to work part time as a special needs teacher. She works with children on a daily basis with all kinds of social, emotional and behavioural disabilities and needs. If you need a helping hand she will be always there, no questions asked.

My mother has been riding for a very long time, from working at riding schools in her holidays when she was in school and at University to now keeping my horsed in my fledging (hopefully) eventing career. In recent years she’s done a lot less with horses herself, mostly due to time constraints, and helping me. So when the Willberry Wonder Pony Wobbleberries Challenge was mentioned I thought of her. Not only will it give her a chance to properly get back into riding, she’s doing it in aid of a very good cause.

The Willberry Wonder Pony charity was set up by the late Hanna Francis, a teenager who tragically lost her own battle with cancer, but in doing so managed to tick off some of her own equestrian dreams. The charity has been set up to raise funds for bone cancer research, to help seriously ill people, long may Hannah’s legacy continue!

The Wobbleberries challenge is aimed at any one over 25 who has never evented before, eventing being Hannah’s chosen discipline, training towards and competing in a BE80 event by Autumn 2017, and fundraising along the way. So that gives mum a year to get back into the thick of it.

I’ve already chucked her in at the deep-end, enetering her in the local dressage on a horse she’s sat on once before, and she did it, it may not have been overly pretty, but my mother is never one to turn down a challenge. She’ll be continuing with the winter league dressage, and we’ll have her showjumping soon too.

The biggest challenge for mum will be dealing with her own self-belief, a fault that seems to run in our family, so I am looking to all our wonderful friends and family to show ther support, to the lady who is always there for everyone else, and sponsor her in this challenge, even if it’s only a couple of quid, or maybe a lesson on the horse, and hopefully, when we get to the final event, as many people as possible can come to cheer her on!

Thanks for reading, sponsor my mum! ;-) and remember to tick the gift aid box!

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