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Before I ride Archie, I often spend a few minutes lunging him with a side rein. It is a small part of our routine, but it has made a noticeable difference to…

Eventing asks a lot of a horse and rider in a single day. Archie might begin with a quiet dressage test, wait around in the float or stable area, then switch…

The first time I saw a bank combination on a cross-country course with Archie, it looked much more intimidating than it had from the back of the course walk.…

A triple combination asks for a particular kind of discipline. The fences arrive quickly, the distances are fixed, and there is very little time to repair a…

I used to think a bit was fitted correctly if Archie accepted it quietly, chewed occasionally and did not try to evade the contact. That definition seemed…

A bridle path is a small clipped section behind a horse’s poll, yet it can change the whole impression of a turnout. When I prepare Archie for an event, I do…

When I first started riding Archie, I assumed that a good position would eventually become automatic. I could feel when something was uncomfortable, but I…

A water complex with a sunken log can look small on a course walk and still demand some of the sharpest riding of the day. The water itself may be shallow, but…

Keeping Archie attentive in a busy arena has become one of the most important parts of our eventing preparation. A horse can produce a lovely trot at home,…

A low mark for free walk can be surprisingly hard to accept. The movement looks simple compared with a lengthened trot or a line of show jumps, yet it asks for…