Comments on: Eventing’s Wind Of Change http://www.robinsons-uk.com/blog/index.php/eventings-wind-of-change/ Thu, 24 Jun 2010 15:04:38 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Fiona Powell http://www.robinsons-uk.com/blog/index.php/eventings-wind-of-change/comment-page-1/#comment-664 Fiona Powell Sat, 27 Dec 2008 14:04:59 +0000 http://www.robinsons-uk.com/blog/?p=337#comment-664 The tragic accident that befell Mary King's horse Cavvy and the reports of a poorly prepared surface and lack of organisation haven't given this new interpretation of accessible eventing a good start, but it seems to have attracted some appreciative comments. It's a brave idea and I hope it works humanely - for horses and competitors - if it gets going. The crowds seem to be there for it. In the world of horse driving we are trying something new, too. You are unlikely to have heard of "indoor driving", in which we compress the three phases of dressage, cones and obstacle driving into one day in an indoor arena. This is the fastest-growing sport in driving throughout the UK. We compete with 38-inch Shetlands to 18-hand Shires, singles, pairs, tandems and four-in-hands. This has been going for ten years. The new idea is to hold a "World Cup" style competition, combining cones driving and two obstacles against the clock. It's massively popular on the continent with four-in-hand horse teams and audiences in the tens of thousands for an international series (with prize money!). We're trialling it with singles and pairs... the final to be held at the National Indoor Horse Driving Trials Finals, 3-5 April, Keysoe. You can see a video of Boyd Exell, one of our top horse fours drivers (from Australia) on our site, http://www.mikewatts.com/ihdt/indoor05_b.wmv Turn up the volume! Well, will it catch on here? The tragic accident that befell Mary King’s horse Cavvy and the reports of a poorly prepared surface and lack of organisation haven’t given this new interpretation of accessible eventing a good start, but it seems to have attracted some appreciative comments. It’s a brave idea and I hope it works humanely – for horses and competitors – if it gets going. The crowds seem to be there for it.

In the world of horse driving we are trying something new, too. You are unlikely to have heard of “indoor driving”, in which we compress the three phases of dressage, cones and obstacle driving into one day in an indoor arena. This is the fastest-growing sport in driving throughout the UK. We compete with 38-inch Shetlands to 18-hand Shires, singles, pairs, tandems and four-in-hands. This has been going for ten years. The new idea is to hold a “World Cup” style competition, combining cones driving and two obstacles against the clock. It’s massively popular on the continent with four-in-hand horse teams and audiences in the tens of thousands for an international series (with prize money!). We’re trialling it with singles and pairs… the final to be held at the National Indoor Horse Driving Trials Finals, 3-5 April, Keysoe. You can see a video of Boyd Exell, one of our top horse fours drivers (from Australia) on our site,

http://www.mikewatts.com/ihdt/indoor05_b.wmv

Turn up the volume!

Well, will it catch on here?

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