MY parents were not at all horsey, and I was introduced to horses by my mum's best friend, who let me ride her ponies. I then had lessons at the local riding school. All my early riding was hacking; aged 11 or 12 I would hack all day solo, from the north end of Stafford, through the town and on to Cannock Chase. I had strict instructions that if I got lost, “drop the reins and the pony will bring you home!”
I eventually got my own horse when in my teens in 1970, and did some competing with Stafford Riding Club. Standards were pretty grim; dressage didn't exist at riding club level. We thought nothing of hacking for two hours to a competition, spending
