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Yesterday I took D-Bobs off for a lesson, due to work commitments he hadn’t been ridden all week, gales were blowing, and it was generally shaping up to be quite an exciting experience! When we arrived to add to the situation the horses in the paddocks surrounding the arena were leaping about, and one of the owners was driving about with a mini tractor and trailer collecting droppings, I had a feeling the neck-strap might be required 😉 Because it was so windy we used the ear mic again, I’m getting quite used to this, and think it really is a nifty…

Today I took ‘Rene’ the Renault for its first official road trip to Lambourne for a lesson with my instructor Amanda Brewer. Since I learnt to ride my mother has always towed me and my horses so today was a bit of a milestone as I got behind the wheel to drive for the first time! As it turns out it was surprisingly easy, after the initial getting used to the size and length of driving a lorry it was plain sailing, and Dustry was a total pro loading and travelled perfectly. It’s so nice to go to my instructors for a lesson and…

Today in our quest to find a lorry we went to see ANOTHER possible vehicle. It is a really swish Renault 3.5 T, 2 horse lorry, backwards facing in navy blue (sadly not green 🙁 ) I wasn’t holding out much hope as it appeared to be very new and so probably over budget of what my Dad has agreed to loan my mum and I. We took it out for a drive and the ride was really quiet and comfortable, I drove it back and it was really easy to handle (better to drive than my car!) and I…

Since January Soap has been off on his holidays giving me more time to concentrate on Dustry. It seems that Soap’s main holiday ambition was to get as scruffy, shabby, and hippy-esque as possible! Holiday over he had his back shoes back on last week and yesterday I brought him in for a make over. Whilst the weather was foul, even though he was rugged to the hilt I thought it only fair to let him grow all his furry bits which seemed like a good idea at the time until yesterday when I was faced with the task of…

Last Thursday I booked the day off work to take Dustry for a lesson. All week the weather had been lovely until Thursday when it started raining and blowing a gale, typical! When we arrived the wind was whipping up nicely and I could hardly hear my instructor Amanda Brewer so I used her ear piece system, and it worked really well. I’ve never used one before but it was great. Dustry is coming along really well but I still have to iron out some old habits namely my weird left hand! I don’t know why but my left hand seems to have a mind of…

I’m very honoured this week to have GHE as ‘blog of the week’ on Eventing Day. Eventing Day is a fab site, with loads of great photos taken by its founder Nan Rawlins and contributors, and it’s the best place for the inside scoop on anything and everything eventing, so I recommend you take a few clicks to check it out! (oh and they also has impeccable taste in blogs 😉 )

A huge thank you to all that voted for me in the Equestrian Social Media Awards. GHE managed a very respectable 2nd place!!!!!. It’s lovely to have such great support even though I’m just an amateur it’s really heart warming to know so many people enjoy the blog. Wishing you all good luck for the forthcoming season, and if you fancy watching the awards ceremony check out the video below (about 2mins 30 sec in)

…and in reverse! Tonight as I was filling haynets and making feeds Dustry took it upon him self to find something entertaining to do. I couldn’t quite believe my eyes as I watched him reverse back up, and onto the mounting block. He was very careful about measuring the step with his toes and making sure he got his feet ‘just so’ on the step then he proceeded to stand there resting a leg, and looking pleased with himself until I went over and spoiled his fun by telling him to get down, and behave like a normal horse! I hoping it’s just ‘a phase he’s going…

My long time sponsors Protexin Equine Premium have introduced an ambassador scheme, and have asked a select group of riders, owners, amateurs, and pros who use their products to be ambassadors. In short this means that I can help spread the word about Protexin and their products, which is a great way for me to be able to do something for my sponsor in return. One of the other benefits of being an ambassador is being able to use the following discount code to get 10% off all Protexin equine products ordered online! Enter Code : ZAMM0001 at the checkout for 10% Off…

One of the things I love about ex-racers is being able to trace their breeding, race history, and past life due to the many records kept throughout a racehorse’s career. I’ve also found that every trainer I’ve ever contacted when it comes to requesting info about a horse has been really helpful. With Dustry I have been very lucky to have made contact with people who knew him when he was at stud before going to the yearling sales, and because he came from a local race yard I also know all his racing history first hand from his dedicated…