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I have been in the saddle pretty much all of my life and was once a confident, capable rider. However, a five year break in my early twenties left me tense, full of fear and twitching in my nervous knickers at the mere thought of getting on a horse. After admitting that a life without horses was not the life for me, and with some 'gentle' encouragement from my Chief Cheerleader, I found myself out horse shopping and that is how Dee and I found each other. She was my absolute dream horse an...

This is a very quick tutorial on the walk, improving the quality of the walk, the walk to trot transition, and a couple of tips on how to develop responsiveness. So this is Reggie, a show jumper I have re-trained. He belongs to one of my owners. He's not your conventional dressage horse; quite short and round, not built particularly uphill. I liken his shape to one of those balance gym balls that you work on to develop your core strength; they make it very difficult to find the centre of bala...

My name is Alison Lincoln. I am a writer, coach and freelance groom. I have been involved with horses since I was a child coming up through Pony Club and competing at Affiliated Dressage, Show Jumping and Eventing. Having spent many years training and competing I realised I needed to learn more about the science behind equine sports so enrolled in a degree in Equine Sports Coaching, completing it in 2004. As a mature, part time student working full time in sales to fund my study, I decided it wa...

Ponies make great carriage drivers, especially if they no longer have a rider due to them being outgrown. This is the perfect solution if your pony is part of the family, as it means you can still enjoy them without selling. When driving, a pony is more than capable of pulling an adult, which means anyone in the family can get involved, and if you have pairs they share the load and become stronger than just driving a single pony. There are many things to consider when driving. An important consi...

In this video tutorial our contributor, Jess Colvin, shows us how to easily and effectively trim and tidy your horse's mane. She explains how to get the more natural look of a pulled mane using just a pair of scissors and a mane comb, making this the perfect trimming technique for sensitive horses.

Hello! I’m Holly, I’m 25 and you can often find me hacking around the so-called ‘Garden of England’, Kent. Currently, although I don't have my own horse, I am making my return to riding after a seven-year break. I set up my own blog and Instagram account earlier this year, where I am known as Return of the Hack; I am thrilled to now be a Content Creator for Horsemart too. I hope my future blogs will offer solutions to problems many horse riders face, as well as providi...

Here's a quick tutorial on perfecting your sitting trot. Firstly I must apologise for my dulcet tones... I sound rather like a Sergeant Major! I was a little concerned that you wouldn’t be able to hear me as it was slightly windy so I was trying to speak up, so please forgive the shouty voice! I have used Chloe for this tutorial. She is very round in the ribcage so this shows you the problems with keeping the leg down. I wanted you to see that even a professional struggles! I constan...

Lunging a horse is a great form of training for the horse, and not only in the work they are doing at the end of the lunge line. It’s also ideal for getting them to listen and learn the handler’s commands by voice and body. Lunging helps the horse’s rhythm and balance, and regulates the gaits. There is much more to it than just going round in circles; you can make use of the whole arena or field. Lunging a horse, young or old, before you ride can help loosen and warm up the ...

Today we are taking a look at a new product that the HorseHealth and LeMieux team have released; the Carbon Mesh Wrap Boots. Described in their marketing as the “perfect combination of the support of polo bandages with the protection of brushing boots”, these boots are made from 100% perforated 3D mesh, which is both lightweight and breathable; a design that has been specifically used to help keep the tendons cool during work. Now, I wanted to put this to the test. Memo will sw...

Hello everyone! I’m super excited to be joining the Horsemart team as a contributor and would like to take the time to introduce myself to you all. So hey! I'm Natalie Alexander or Nat to most people! I am 26 years old and I was born and lived in North Yorkshire up until the age of 17 when I left home and moved down to Newmarket to start my career with horses… and it’s true what they say - “You can take the lass out of Yorkshire but you can't take the Yorkshire out...

This is a follow-up to my last two tutorials on walk and trot - now the canter! Again, I am focusing on how the rider should be following the movement of the horse within the connection, so in this tutorial I am trying to demonstrate the movement of the rider's body with the hands forward to the contact, following the natural movement of the horse. I am trying to illustrate how to move in harmony, with no interference, allowing your horse to move naturally underneath you. Obviously, as so...

Taking inspiration from the recently completed infamous Bury Farm Bareback Challenge, I thought I’d share a few tips and tricks on learning how to ride bareback and how to do it successfully. If you follow my Instagram page @lily.equestrian you’ll know that I have quite the reputation for my bareback riding, especially after snagging 2nd place at the Bury Farm Bareback Challenge 2019. I am constantly being asked to spill my secrets on what super glue I use, alongside many questio...

Hi everyone, Firstly I thought that I would let you know a little bit about myself in general. In case you haven’t guessed from the title of this, I like musicals, A LOT, but please don’t let that get in the way of your first perceptions of me. I won’t be breaking into song in my vlogs… too much. I am a 26 year old bubbly individual who lives in East Devon on my partner’s family run livery yard. I haven’t always lived here; having been born in Exeter I ...

It’s been quite a while since I have written a blog here, let’s just say, since COVID-19 I’ve had a nice break away from my laptop! As lockdown starts to ease, let’s talk about how it has affected us here at Eventful Eventing. So just before lockdown I started to work from home, which was lovely as it cuts out the big commute which takes up around 3+ hours a day, so this allowed me to have more time with the horses. So before work, me and Cino would go for a long rein ...

With the changing seasons, yard owners are increasingly looking to improve their facilities and to ensure the equines in their care can remain comfortable, whilst being able to protect themselves from hot or inclement weather. Many yard owners are turning to field shelters, either in the form of smaller shelters for individual or small herd turnout, or larger barn style shelters for bigger herds. You would think that picking a field shelter would be an easy task, but with so many options on t...

Hello! My name is Lily Chandler and I’m an 18 year old equestrian from the South East of England. Unlike a lot of people I know, I didn’t grow up around horses, nor have a horsey family. My mother put me and my sister in riding lessons when I was 5 and she was 16; she hated it, I loved it. I started in a local riding school, cried when I had my first fall, got back on, fell off again, got back on again. That pattern hasn’t yet changed, now 13 years down the line. At age 7 I got...

“What road do I take?” asked Alice? The cat asked, “Where do you want to go?” “I don’t know”, Alice answered. “Then”, said the cat, “it really doesn’t matter, does it?” Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. I’ll admit, as a kid, Alice in Wonderland wasn’t my book. It just didn’t resonate with me, I was much more a Winnie the Pooh girl… But, during this insane COVID lockdown, I...

With all the modern amenities that come installed in horseboxes today, we’re used to traveling in the style to which we’ve become accustomed. From kettles and toasters to cookers and fridges, we’re never too far away from our home comforts. But what does that mean for us in terms of powering all this on the road? As it stands, the majority of horsebox batteries available on the market are standard lead acid batteries, which, as we all know, are slow to charge, require chargi...

Livery yard owners taking deposits from their clients is now becoming commonplace, but many yard owners are still cautious as to the implications, and that such requests may put off potential clients. Here we explain the two types of deposit, and how best to implement them on your yard. The main type of deposit is the security deposit taken upon arrival of a new livery. This is taken as a security bond, similar to that with property or vehicle rental. In the event that a livery client gets in...

Buying a new horse can be one of the most exciting and nerve-wracking experiences for any horse-lover. It’s a huge commitment and it’s incredibly important to get it right, so you’ll want to make sure you’ve covered all bases. Whether it's your first horse or your fifteenth, there’s nothing worse than parting with a large sum of money, only to discover that the horse you’ve bought isn’t what you thought it was. So we’ve put together this extensive ...