Welcome to my site and thank you for reading my page.  I truly hope we get an opportunity to train together and share the magic of being with horses.  I have always loved teaching and the pleasure I gain seeing your smile of achievement is always a high for me!  I prefer teaching the grass-roots riders, the problem, young or unschooled horses and those wishing to take the time it takes.  

I have worked in the equine industry for the past 40 years, initially qualifying as a British Horse Society AI, and then working as a freelance classical riding instructor for the past 15.  I no longer work full time in the horse industry for health reasons.  This allows me the freedom to never put anxiety to put food on my plate before the needs of my customers and the well-being of their horses.

Early in my career I became concerned by the training methods of some of the high-level competitors and among the grass root "standard" trainers. 'On the bit' and outline has become the instant priority rather than slow methodical muscular training of the whole body. Force has become the norm rather than "yoga" for horses. Nowadays we see horses old before their time (life expectancy of European dressage horse is 9 years!)  and their needing regular bodywork for aches and pains.

Training under a student of the Classical Master Nuno Oliveira, I began my route along the 'slow path'.  Becoming biomechanically aware of the horse’s movement I realised the accepted “nose on the vertical” outline for anything other than a highly trained horse is incorrect and I was forced to think again about the weight of the rein and action of my legs.

 Any horse trainer, in my opinion, should be an equine bodyworker to justify asking a horse to perform. Hence I trained as a Masterson Method® Practitioner.  Sadly I see horses – often young – damaged by incorrect schooling, use of gadgets and badly fitting saddles. 

With knowledge there at our fingertips, it seems incredible to me that we as a nation continue to churn out riding school clients and instructors with the barest knowledge regarding a horse’s well-being.  How many out there understand even the basics of saddle fit, dentistry, foot balance etc?

Furthering my knowledge, I have completed Caroline Linday’s Horse-Saddle-Rider course studying equine biomechanics/movement and horse & rider asymmetry.  I am now a qualified Remedial Saddle Fitter – taking a holistic view when helping customers with their horses. How can an instructor train without knowledge of all the parts that make the whole picture?

My career now takes me along four routes.