Driving Demonstration

Last Friday night it was time for the driving team to show off their skills once more.  Nicky, Duchess and Hendrix put on a demonstration for the North Devon Riding Club.  Some of the riding club members came along to see what was involved in carriage driving.

All the riding club members have their own horses but not many of them do carriage driving with their horses, they are mostly riding horses. Nicky, Kerri and Alice got Duchess ready first.  She was harnessed up and did a demonstration in the outdoor arena with Nicky driving her in the four wheeled carriage. They showed how to navigate around a course of cones.

Some of the people who had come to watch had a go at standing on the back step of the carriage while Duchess was trotting – this is great fun as the person on the back has to lean around the corners to help to keep the carriage balanced. I would like to try it but sadly I don’t think my four feet would fit on the step!

Duchess at full speed (photo kindly provided by North Devon Riding Club)

Nicky explained to everyone the difference between holding the reins for carriage driving and holding the reins for riding.  Some of the riding club members had a practice at holding carriage driving reins with “Bob”, the training horse in the yard.  

Bob the training horse

This was actually quite tricky for them, because they are all used to holding riding reins. Then it was time for Hendrix to show his stuff.  He was harnessed up and put to the 2 wheeler carriage. Hendrix had two sets of reins on so that a few people could have a little go at driving with Nicky. 

Hendrix said that all the people thought he was marvellous; but then he would say that wouldn’t he?  I did roll my eyes at him! 
The riding club very kindly gave a donation to Calvert Trust Exmoor at the end of the evening. Maybe some of them will now want to try carriage driving. We horses are so versatile and fantastic at doing different things; got to go now, I feel an agility workout is on the cards for me!