Posts

The weather had been unsettled all week, but the forecast for Archie’s show jumping class looked manageable. There was a little rain on the radar, nothing that…

A qualifier event carries a particular sort of pressure. It is still one competition day, with the same dressage arena, show jumps and cross-country fences as…

There are items in my show trunk that earn their place through careful planning: spare gloves, plaiting bands, hoof oil, a first-aid kit and enough snacks to…

A muddy competition weekend usually leaves more evidence than a few brown splashes on the horse float. By the time Archie and I get home, my tall leather…

A summer event day with Archie starts long before we drive through the gate. I check the weather, the venue map and the timetable, then work out how much…

The final halt is a small movement with a surprisingly large effect on a dressage score. After the centre line, the transitions, the circles and the last…

Adjusting stirrups while mounted sounds like a tiny piece of tack management, yet it can quickly become a balance problem. A single hole too long or too short…

Before a dressage test, I want Archie attentive, supple and quietly listening rather than physically tired. My warm-up has changed through seasons of eventing,…

A tack trunk can look perfectly organised in the wash bay and still sound like a toolbox falling down the stairs once the trailer reaches the first cattle…

There is something about a permanent cross-country lake complex that changes the way I pack the float. The water elements are not pulled in for the weekend,…