‘Hunting is my gym’
catherine.austen@futurenet.com
@cfausten123
THE benefits of starting a young horse on the hunting field, and how it can more or less set him up for a life in any discipline, are well documented. But why isn’t our sport given more credit for the riders it churns out, the experience it gives and benefits to our own riding and wellbeing?
It’s no coincidence that time and again, top-level riders will mention their hunting career - whether it is a childhood spent gate-opening, bringing on youngsters for competition or down-time visiting days on a hireling.
While hunting may have changed and evolved over the years, there can still be few better places to cut your teeth riding than across country, to learn about horsemanship, to get (and stay) fit and sharpen your eye and reaction times.
Newly crowned European eventing champion Nicola Wilson knows this only too
