As a member of the Horse of the Year Show Hall of Fame and winner of The Equestrian of the Year, Robert Oliver is someone who has a beautiful style of riding and has had a huge amount of success in the show ring. In 1977, he broke all records when he won the Cobs, […]
Kerry Wainwright: breeding more than pretty
While researching for top names in the Mountain and Moorland world, one name repeatedly came up, that of Kerry Wainwright. She has a superb reputation for not only breeding top quality ponies but also ponies with amazing temperaments. The Skellorn stud was founded in the 50s by her grandfather, Les Wainwright, who bred Welsh Mountain […]
Cindy Sims – the dynasty judge
Another great from a showing dynasty, Granddaughter of the amazing Betty Skelton who championed side saddle for so many years, Cindy is a well respected showing judge, having served on multiple panels as well as grading youngstock, teaching, producing and breeding some lovely ponies and horses. Cindy had an eye for judging from an early […]
Jayne Ross: perfection in the saddle
The second of my Showing Mentor Interviews: if you enjoy what you read, please do comment and make sure you follow @HowVeryHorsey so you don’t miss out on the rest of the series…. When I was younger, Jayne rode at the Ramsay’s yard and I used to hide in a stable, peaking over the door […]
David Tatlow: the diamond finder
The king of the show ring: no set of interview about showing mentors would be complete without this legend. Son of Harry, therefore a descendant of showing royalty, he is a five times British champion point to point rider as well as top show rider, producer and all-round horseman. He has been President of the […]
Under pressure – One week until HOYS
I was sat in an interview once and the interviewer asked “How do you perform under pressure?”. Every part of me wanted to say “Like this!” and burst into a full vocal and dancing performance. I thankfully exercised some self control and didn’t. However, to this day, whenever I hear the Queen classic it makes […]
Furminator – genius little tool
I have a new tool and I love it! I love a gadget but when it comes to grooming, I am usually a bit of a traditionalist; body brush, curry comb, elbow grease is the answer. However, I was sent the Furminator DeShedding tool and I was intrigued. Now, initially I thought it wouldn’t be […]
Doing the best we can – Hickstead week
Yesterday, I had a bit of meltdown. I’ll admit, there were tears. Once I had calmed, had some chocolate (fixes all things!) and regrouped, I had to say to myself – you are doing the best you can. Anyone else have to give themselves little pep talks? A week ago, we moved Jack to a […]
How far we have come
We took Jack to Wellington on Saturday to do some show jumping. I made an error at fence 8 and had it down. I was annoyed with myself but took the lesson and moved forward. Then my mother said 5 magic word “Look how far you’ve come.” A few months ago, if Jack had so […]
The end of my judging journey
It is the end of my judging journey and it is ok. After finishing a law degree, I followed my path to becoming a lawyer. I found myself working on a murder trial at the Old Bailey which is probably a dream of so many aspiring lawyers. I sat there numb. It was not what […]