My first love!  Nearly every weekend I was competing.  I feel very lucky to have had some wonderful teachers in my life and Show Jumping as a junior was no exception.  Few people had heard of Len Carter and yet for those that did know him, he was exceptional.  Irish born and already in his sixties when I met him, he had a yard right opposite my parent's home!  He brought on young Irish horses that had barely been backed, he sold them on when they had reached ‘B’ or ‘C’ grade.  I never saw him spend much time on the ground or around the stable yard, but when buyers came he always had the horses doing something amazing like laying down, or rearing up, or Spanish walk with just a halter on.  I always wondered when he had done this training with them!  There is a picture of Len taken in the 50’s, he is jumping bareback and bridle-less over a large cross-country fence!  Why?  Probably just ‘cause he could!

Len taught me a lot about understanding horses and how to get a horse fit for jumping on the flat first.  He taught feel and timing, how to see a stride, but leave the horse alone, how to train over pole work and use grids and most importantly, how to keep the confidence of horse and rider by not over-facing.  To keep the confidence of a horse was paramount and it is this skill I like to bring forward in my jumping sessions with clients.

I also lived down the road from an Olympic Show Jumper and member of the British Show Jumping Team. George Hobbs.  George, back in the 60’s and 70’s, was one of the first to introduce the heavier Irish Horse to Show Jumping and since then we see the very popular Irish Sport Horse in many equine events, not least the show jumping arena.  I groomed for George in my teenage years and during this time I observed many horses being trained over poles, grids and small combination fences in preparation for the high level of competition that would hopefully be their future.  I gained much experience through observation and being allowed to ride some of his more advanced horses.

In my thirties, and whilst living in Australia, I had some lessons with the owner of the yard where I kept my horse, I did not realise at the time that he competed for the New Zealand Show Jumping Team!  So I have been blessed with some high level teachers and even though I never aspired to such dizzy heights myself, the foundation training was invaluable for whatever level anyone would wish to aspire to.

It is with this experience and much more since then that I offer jumping lessons.  Whether you want to jump for the fun of it at home and out hacking, or venture out into the competitive world, I can help you in your preparation.  I specialise in giving confidence, as well as re-gaining confidence in horse and rider.