Stellar schoolmasters
NOTHING beats a “been there, done that” schoolmaster for giving you the real feel – a horse who knows his stuff and, as Olympic eventer Andrew Nicholson explains, can step in if necessary to say: “You’ve pushed the wrong buttons! I’ll take over.”
Among the former equine stars who have since joined forces with younger or less experienced jockeys are two of Andrew’s international rides – Mr Cruise Control and Calico Joe.
“Horses go on for so much longer nowadays and there are more competitions for them to step down to,” says Andrew, explaining that the idea of a schoolmaster is relatively new in the eventing world. “These two obviously loved their jobs, competing for so long at top level, but it was nice for them to come down a bit. I’ve enjoyed seeing them go on with new riders; I’m proud of them.”
For Thomas Hawke, taking the
