I
have just watched the video of a member of our staff, Sam Goldsmith, riding her
horse ‘Biscuit’ to win the charity race for The Wiltshire Air Ambulance at the
South & West Wilts point-to-point at Larkhill racecourse.
Sam has worked for us for a few
years now as well as studying Biomedicine at Reading University where she is in
her 2nd year. Her riding has
improved a great deal since she has been with us and in the race she certainly
looked like she had done it before but in fact, it was her first ride in a
race. I remember my first ride and I
was a complete passenger and was no use to the horse at all!
As is so often the case at
Larkhill, they go off too quick and then stop in front and it is the ones who
have taken their time that come through and win – and that is exactly what Sam
did! One wonders if you are born with a
good judge of pace or if you learn and I suspect it is more of the former.
Well I will lay claim to
training the jockey a bit but what Sam and Gillian, her mother, have done with
the horse since I saw him soon after they bought him as a 2 yr old is to be
commended. When you look at a young
underdeveloped horse it is so much guesswork to know how it will look when
fully grown and I can see they have done it all right. Biscuit was completely jaded, hated
everything and everybody – probably because he was being asked to do things in
his life that he was not ready for at 2 years old and possibly in a big yard
where nobody cared or particularly liked him.
He has grown into a really nice looking horse with a much better
attitude and now wants to please.
Again, I have said it before, but if you are patient and do what is
right for your horse then they will return the compliment in buckets and spades
and make you happy! Well done Sam and a
great little write up in the House & Hound to boot!
No comments:
Post a Comment