Monthly diary — December

Hopefully it will improve further before I fly to South Africa – firstly teaching before going on safari across the Salt Pans of the Kalahari Desert, Botswana. I’ve requested a horse which I can stop one-handed…

As for my horses, CF is still awaiting team-chasing to get underway again while Bill is hunting with The Mendip Farmers and not putting a foot wrong. Now the right people just need to come along so the horses can go in their new directions.

Sadly, not only am I heading towards horseless–ness (at least for a little while), but unexpectedly I lost my part–Norfolk terrier, Bisto, too. He was hairing around with some new friends in the yard I was visiting when suddenly he belted down the drive in full voice – and that was it. We think he ran into the side of a moving vehicle as there was not a mark on him. Anyone who loves dogs will understand how tough it is to suddenly lose that unconditional love.

So the year ends rather strangely, but with the promise of exciting things ahead. I’m delighted to continue supporting the Austrians' quest for individual entry to the Olympics; then there's the adrenaline–filled two weeks of the Olympics themselves.