ChampsAdvisor: my review of the 2025 RDA National Championships

The most wonderful time of the year - why I'm already looking forward to 2026...

Christmas is great and all, but for those truly in the know, the RDA National Championships tops the charts for wonderful, magical, exhausting and overstimulating. It's been a couple of weeks since the dust settled on this year's championships, but it was a special one. 

For Aim RDA, it was our first full trip to the competition: last year we attended as a very freshly-minted group (something like ten days after our charity commission registration), but were still operating under the banner of one of our host venues, and were unable to take anyone but own-horse participants. This year, with seven riders, two disciplines, and volunteers so numerous I've not actually been able to count them all, was one for the history books. 

I'd recommend having a look on socials (mine here, my group's here) for a narrative reporting experience - but because I like to give the blog readers (that's you, hello) something a bit extra, here is my in-depth review of my favourite championships yet.

Sharing a word and a smile with Orli at the end of her first ever Hartpury dressage test. She is riding the National Training Centre's adorable Aimee.

Excitement: 5/5

My personality between May and July most years is "Nationals hype". It's a special weekend and I really love being able to introduce it to others: the feeling of doing it well is difficult to explain and harder to forget. In the recent past, I had a lot of difficult things going on in my relationship with RDA, this did sadly have an effect on the excitement I felt about my favourite events and activities. Thinking back to previous championships - 2019 was a really special year, and the reason I started writing a blog - I have wondered a few times if I'd already seen the best of those experiences. The buzz around this year reached new levels and made me realise the best is very much still to come. Five stars.

Weather: 3/5

There's a lot to be said for a dry Nationals weekend, but four days between 30 and 34 degrees was taking it a bit far. We looked like fan salesmen trundling our heatwave gear from cars to rooms (a portable air conditioning unit even made an appearance) and the savviest among us immediately closed all blinds and windows in the accommodation, only opening up in the dead of night. The blinds in Hartpury's accommodation blocks are red, which means when you put them down on a sunny day your entire room glows with the same crimson hue - very relaxing. A truly perfect Nationals weekend for me sits at around 22 degrees with periods of cloud, but in these times of global warming I fear this request is going to sound more high maintenance as the years go on. 

Even so, we were very happy with how the RDAUK team looked out for everyone in the heat (that 8:30am Sunday dressage test slot was actually gorgeous), and how well we as a team looked out for each other. Everyone, horse or human, came home healthy and hydrated. I particularly recommend electrolyte sachets - I'm a committed water drinker and have never considered them necessary before, but the ones we brought with us made me feel (to the dismay of my friends with smaller social batteries) unstoppable. Other members of the team took to the accommodation's freezers for ice cold hats and in one case, an entire towel. 

2022 was record-breakingly hot and 2023 was incredibly wet, so now I'm nervous about patterns forming. I'd love to say we'd now be well prepared for some sort of desert expedition, but with no freezers and nowhere to plug in our fans, I think that would be a lie.

People: 5/5

I'm never happier than when I'm surrounded by like-minded, fun, passionate people, but even the more introverted of our number were pretty happy with the company Aim RDA kept during this year's championships. We had first timers, seasoned Nationals-goers, volunteers, riders, families, and supporters from far and wide - and that's just "our" people.  Adding friends from other groups, National Office colleagues, and new friendly faces to the list meant that our village felt huge. There was no shortage of laughter or reassurance, always someone around to match your energy, and always the biggest cheers. We were able to spread out jobs between such a large team, whether they involved looking after people or horses, and every single person wanted every other person to enjoy their experience (even if the concept of enjoyment absolutely did not involve coordinated dance routines, I'm very sorry Becci). The good vibes of Regionals expanded to fit our weekend, and it was exciting to see how quickly our red and black colours were recognised around Hartpury. 

We reached a number of incredibly special milestones as a group over the weekend, but notable was our first national award, with Alice picking up the prize for Coach Mentor of the Year (deservedly and eloquently nominated by Janine). This was the first of a number of emotional prize givings across the weekend. What I knew heading there, and knew even more heading home, was that with the people we have in our group, we'd all already won. There really is no "I" in team: we worked so well together because we shared so many goals, but it was also wonderful to see that platform used to let individuals shine, in so many ways.

Alice and Mia sharing a hug after a very exciting prize giving surprise

Food & drink: 4/5

Toby Carvery was a choice when it was 33 degrees outside, but it was a choice pitched with great conviction and gave us all a solid opportunity to eat some vegetables. Cheesy chips from the van excellent, half a point removed because the enticing crepe van disappeared before I could claim any of  its wares for myself. Hash browns at breakfast very crispy (lovely) but supply for eggs (scrambled and fried) seemed to outstrip demand. It was also a new experience eating with one metal fork and one wooden knife when demand for the metal kind was also clearly at peak levels. Cheese night was truly inspired, but bring a cool bag and lots of freezer blocks if you wish to take this inspiration for yourself. We were too hot to drink all our prosecco, so some of it came home with me - I think a first. A good, if not gourmet, time in all.

Generosity of spirit: 5/5

Maybe I haven't had cause to realise it before, or maybe 2025 was a particularly special year for it - this year's championships were notable for their kindness and generosity. We were, and still are, in a position where we have ambition and spirit to burn, but still need to rely heavily on the resource of others to make things actually happen. All weekend, the generosity I saw and experienced seemed to have levelled up from even previous championships. Horses were offered for riders to borrow in huge numbers - I wonder how many in total - by groups and individuals who understood how special and important it was to be able to have that ride. The people who offer horsepower so willingly represent the spirit of the championships more than anyone else.

We benefited from the generosity of three separate groups (Lambourn, Park Lane, and the National Training Centre) and one family so all of our riders had the chance to do their thing. Wyfold RDA came as a whole crew to support our riders Mia and Florence in their show jumping rounds. I can't count the number of "good luck"s we heard or gave out, to and from total strangers in many cases. A highlight for me was when one of the volunteer vets dealing with the indoor arena approached me and Alice to say "I don't think you'll remember me, but I use to help you both with holiday pony days when I was still a student. You're the reason I volunteered for this."

Even the show jacket August is wearing in the photo below was generously offered to our group by a friend who isn't currently competing, in the hope that it would bring our riders as much luck and enjoyment as it did for her. Thank you again, Zoe.

August and her lovely borrowed pony, Frankie

Horses: 5/5

Negotiating a championships visit with precisely zero horses of our own was an ask - how lucky could we get? As it turns out, pretty lucky. We had managed to secure rides on familiar horses in four cases: Billy, a fan favourite from our Shrivenham location, was hired for a weekend away from his riding school work, and Harley, seasoned professional RDA ride from our Lambourn location, was also offered for one of my riders. Huge bonuses in both cases. For all our other rides, it was going to be a new borrowed horse sort of deal - something which (see above) was actually incredibly common between groups at the championships, even for those who have been around a bit longer than we have.

I think we ended up on a bit of a plan B or C for some of our catch rides, but if you know it's going to be a new horse from the get go, it only matters so much if it was the new horse you planned. We were incredibly fortunate to be given use of Frankie, from Park Lane Stables; Aimee, from the National Training Centre; and our own-horse participant (also called Frankie, confusingly) offered her loan horse Tiger to fill one of the catch ride slots. 

Across the board, we couldn't have been luckier with the way "our" horses behaved, and how they worked with our riders. Billy seemed to be having the best weekend ever and was phenomenally cheerful and unbothered in every situation, making like a hair model in front of the giant fan by the mounting blocks and strolling along with his tongue flip-flopping out of the side of his mouth, as per his happy normal. He hadn't read any of our spreadsheets, but he understood the brief intrinsically. Frankie and Tiger were similarly unbothered by the size and atmosphere of the indoor and outdoor arenas (and knew exactly what the rosettes were all about). Aimee, who would've been packed into my boot if I hadn't already filled it to dubious levels, did a particularly sweet job for Orli, who didn't even get a test ride prior to her warm up. This is the second time she's pulled off a beautiful test on a horse she's ridden for no more than twenty minutes, and I grew a foot and a half with pride. 

Finally, we were incredibly fortunate to be offered Harley for his last weekend of RDA before retiring, after a noble career across fifteen years and two different groups. He is the sort of horse who lights up and looks thoroughly delighted with himself in front of an audience, but never loses sight of the consistent conscientiousness which makes him so good at RDA. He strolled into the international arena and swept Holly up in his gentlemanly swagger, and they left having secured his last ever national title. How can I as a coach ever express enough gratitude for that?

It would be easy to knock a point or two off for the fact that we do have to negotiate constantly to secure horses for all or needs and wants as an RDA group: every time a participant rides, the horse has to be borrowed from somewhere. While the experience of riding new horses in a competition environment is an incredible way to develop riders' skills - I saw August and Orli grow so much from rising to that challenge - it isn't anyone's first choice, and you'll always be competing against people who have ridden their horses many times in preparation. We're thinking very hard about our next steps towards our own horse power for Aim RDA (after our trustees meeting last week which I can now admit that I totally forgot, as the group's secretary, that I had set before going to nationals). None of this takes away from the amazing experiences we had with the five horses we were able to use. They worked hard and well and kept our riders safe; they coped well with the weather; and were genuinely a joy to handle and care for. I don't think our dreams and ideals for the future should take any shine from them, or from the people who so generously trusted us with them.

Holly and Harley - it was so special to be able to share his last ever national title

Accommodation: 3/5

I have always been a huge advocate for staying on site in the "bubble", and it was great having our very own block this year (as we had enough people staying to fill one!). The walk to the stables was pleasantly short, and having block number 1 was fitting, a week after celebrating our first anniversary as a group. Did we dream collectively of the more recently refurbished accommodation blocks, of which we heard tell from one of our riders who has just finished her degree at Hartpury? Yes, yes we did. Was it still fun having our group all together, a stone's throw from the stables, to enjoy our weekend? Absolutely. One very happy, seemingly low-key memory I will always have from this year was having a whole crowd of people in the kitchen in our block, getting riders ready to compete, freezing baseball caps (see weather review, very much recommend) and feeling the good vibes bounce off each other. No comment re. the amount of glitter spray which may or may not have been inhaled.

We also added a new story to the Nationals Life Experience Library: the sorry tale of Mia and the shower which would not stop showering. Hopefully they can get the carpet smelling a bit better for whichever students have to live there for the next academic year.

Rider bonds: 5/5

I think there are few better ways of levelling up a coach-rider relationship than heading to a competition as big as the championships. This year, I actually discovered that you could push that even further because I ended up giving Holly a haircut - she can upload her review separately. I don't think I did a bad job, but doing it in front of an audience did make me question my "how hard can it be?" mentality more than I consider ideal.

Haircuts aside, this has always been a really special weekend for strengthening individual and team bonds, and 2025 was no different. It was special for different reasons for Holly, August and Orli, the three riders I coach (you can read more on Instagram), but also incredibly special to support our other riders, all of whom I know really well. The patience most of our team have logged in the lead up to this year's championships spans multiple years. It was an incredible feeling to be in a position, even as a still very new group, to be able to provide these opportunities to people. 

Everyone has a story when it comes to getting to a competition like this one, and it's not in everyone's gift to be someone who's willing to take charge of the optional but exciting chapters. I liked laughing (and sometimes crying) with our riders, getting to know them better (families too), introducing them to new people and places and generally celebrating them and their achievements. I love the championships for their massive social output: I love seeing as many different people as possible, in and out of my group, and I love making new friends. In contrast, I still value very highly the hour or so I get to spend with each of my competing riders before, during and after they compete, when they are my only focus. It's fun watching them enjoying themselves and dragging them into my nonsense on the dance floor, but it's hard to beat the lump in your throat when you see someone you've coached for the occasion turning down that centre line. I am so proud of all of them.

I thought the haircut turned out pretty well, by the way. 

Dance moves: 3/5

I was holding my own until a seven year old threw a backflip in a dance circle I invited her into. I have the back and shoulder flexibility of a 31-year-old Lego person and have never liked being upside down, so sadly there was no coming back from this. Otherwise, plenty of fun. I particularly enjoyed the audience participation element of Park Lane's Liverpudlian costume freestyle: like a scouse-themed Zumba class. Would attend again.

Recent Aim RDA disco converts (and Mia, who was converted a couple of years ago)

Recovery time: 2/5

Every year I am horrified to remember that I am in fact no longer nineteen years old. 1.5 points added for booking Monday off work, 0.5 points removed by my partner for spending three hours sat on the sofa on Sunday evening, wordlessly scrolling through my camera roll and firing off messages to the same people I'd spent the last four days with. Real food? Bewildering (my cheesy chips are where?), Muscles? Like lead, but I did at least enjoy getting out of the heat. I don't know how long my afternoon nap was on Monday, but I definitely wasn't present for the full day. Wouldn't recommend the recovery experience on its own, but fine with it as part of the full experience. 

How long til next year?

Becci, Alice and me with our coordinating Aim RDA backpacks