The last edition of the 2019 Dodson & Horrell Masterclass series saw D&H make the trip to Scotland with international showjumper Geoff Billington and New Zealand event rider Caroline Powell who hosted an exclusive training evening, compèred by Spencer Sturmey, at The Scottish National Equestrian Centre.
During the two 50 minute demonstrations Brand Ambassadors, Geoff and Caroline rode horses at varying levels in their careers. The first session covered producing young and inexperienced horses and how to settle them into a new environment whilst creating a positive training experience. Geoff highlighted the need to reinforce to a young horse that they must always listening to their riders, so they are prepared for what is asked of them during a jumping round.
In the second session Caroline introduced her ‘Chip and Putt’ method for horses who are further along in their careers. This involved jumping small fences around the arena in no particular order, encouraging the horse to think for itself and adapting their stride pattern to fit what fences they approach.
The demos also welcomed work riders from Geoff and Caroline’s yards who added an extra dimension for the audience as they could witness Geoff and Caroline alter their training methods for each individual horse.
The attendees were given the chance to watch the expert riders work up close, observing their own preferred exercises which highlighted the difference in techniques between the two disciplines. The audience had the opportunity to ask questions, meet and greet the riders as well as talking to Dodson & Horrell’s expert nutritionists. Each attendee also got to take home a goody bag, feed sample and voucher at the end of what was a very enjoyable evening.
For those who were unable to attend the evening, the two demonstrations and Q&A session can be watched on the Dodson & Horrell YouTube channel using the following links:
