A refusal is a small, dramatic word for a complicated moment. My horse stops, I lose the rhythm I thought we had, and suddenly the fence in front of us feels…
Posts
What a refusal teaches my horse and me
Managing Rider Nerves Before a Dressage Test
The lorry can be packed, the horse can be polished, and every movement can be familiar at home, yet nerves often arrive before the rider has even mounted.…
The Upside of a Rainy Competition Weekend
Rain has a way of changing the mood before a horse has even come off the trailer. Jackets are pulled tighter, boots collect mud, and every familiar task takes…
Why I Walk the Cross-Country Course with a Mentor
Cross-country is the phase of eventing that makes me feel most alive and most exposed at the same time. The course asks for commitment, accuracy, fitness, and…
Prepping for a Three-Day Event on a Budget
A three-day event can look expensive before the horse even leaves home. Entry fees, stabling, transport, coaching, feed, protective equipment, and overnight…
Three Books That Changed How I Ride And Compete
I have always been drawn to books that make riding feel both more practical and more mysterious. Eventing asks for a strange combination of precision, courage,…
Lessons From A Horse Who Hates Puddles
There are few things more humbling in eventing than discovering that a small patch of water has become the most important feature on the entire cross-country…
How I Stay Steady With a Spooky Show-Jumping Horse
A spooky horse can make show jumping feel like two separate sports. There is the course I walked, with its distances, turns, and related lines, and then there…
The Reality of Training While Holding Down a Full-Time Job
There is a particular kind of arithmetic involved in being an amateur event rider with a full-time job. The day begins before the sun is properly up, the horse…
The Quiet Joy of Starting the Day at the Barn
Before the phone begins to buzz, before traffic fills the roads, and before the day has decided what it wants from me, I am usually at the barn. The light is…