AS she looks back on 2014, North Yorkshire’s Emma Carvey is able to reflect on the most successful year of her equestrian career. The hope, as she simultaneously looks ahead to the future, is that better is still to come.

Seventeen-year-old Carvey claimed her first national title this summer when she was crowned junior champion at the British Riding Clubs Horse Trials Championships at Swalcliffe Park in Oxfordshire.

The championships have been a stepping stone to bigger and better things for some of the leading three-day event riders in the country, and as she prepares to step into the senior ranks over the course of the next couple of years, Carvey’s long-term ambition is to compete at the likes of Badminton and Burleigh.

Her achievements over the last 12 months suggest that is a realistic aim, and with North Yorkshire Olympian Nicola Wilson to inspire her, the teenager is hoping to add to her list of achievements in 2015.

“It’s been a really good year and I’m happy with everything that’s happened,” said Carvey. “Winning the national championships was obviously a massive highlight, and I’ve had quite a few other good results as well.

“I’ve always loved riding, and it’s amazing to think that something that started out as a hobby could be something I do throughout my life now.

“At first, I just rode for the fun of it, but then when I got my second pony at the age of about 12, it started getting a bit more serious.

“I’d joined Northallerton Riding Club by then, and was competing in jumping, dressage and eventing. I still do all of those disciplines, and it was probably that versatility that helped me become national champion.”

While elite level eventing is spread over three disciplines (dressage, cross-country, showjumping), Carvey’s national under-18 title saw her also compete in steeplechase and road and tracks.

The long format is the more traditional eventing programme, and is seen to be an even broader test of a rider and horse’s capabilities over the full range of disciplines.

Carvey partnered Rockstar VII at Swalcliffe Park, a home-bred nine-year-old who is owned by her great-uncle, Albert.

The pair have been competing together for a year-and-a-half, so there should be plenty of progress to come as they move into the novice eventing ranks next year.

“This has really been our first full season together, so that makes our results even better,” said Carvey. “We’ve had some good performances at regional competitions in the north, so the challenge now is to show we can do it at national level a bit more.

“It’ll be a big step up once we start competing in full senior competitions, but hopefully he’ll (Rockstar) take to it as well as he’s done so far.”

Carvey combines her riding with studying for A-levels at Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College in Darlington, and is determined to continue her sporting pursuits whatever she decides to do in the future.

“I’ll definitely carry on riding,” she said. “It’s something I love doing and I don’t know how far it will take me, but I know I’ll always enjoy doing it.

“Winning at the National Championships has made me even more determined to give it my best shot and hopefully I’ll have some fun along the way.”

Carvey will continue to compete during the winter, although the focus will switch to dressage and indoor jumping rather than eventing or cross-country.

“We’ve given the horse a bit of a break because he’s had a very busy year and he just needed that bit of rest,” she said. “It’s been a slightly quieter period, but we’re ready to start up again and we’ll be doing stuff together over the winter.

“There are quite a few competitions in the dressage and show-jumping so that’s what we’ll be focusing on. It’s all part of both of us learning and improving in the ring.”