Asti & I - our big, bold, beautiful journey

Asti’s relationship with Planks needs work but happy with the rest of the course.
Started pouring down during our round - actually felt like home lol

The Aston engine hums beneath me,
all power, heart and flame.
He carries light within his stride,
and joy within his frame.

Even a photograph can’t quite hold
the energy he brings,
because Asti doesn’t simply move…
my beautiful boy has wings. 🤎✨

Trotting verticals is such a brilliant exercise for building confidence, strength and technique without relying on speed. Set a placing pole approximately 2.5 metres before a small vertical, establish a balanced, energetic trot and allow the pole to guide your horse to the perfect take-off point. Keep your leg quietly supporting, your hands soft and let the horse work out the jump without chasing or over-riding. It encourages them to stay straight, use their shoulders, sharpen their front-leg technique and push more evenly from behind. Keep the fence small to begin with, focus on rhythm rather than height, and gradually build it up only when the horse stays relaxed and confident.
Asti showing the power that can come from beautifully balanced trot

What else would you do on a day off,
if not spend it on the back of an animal like this?

Powerful, athletic and breathtakingly beautiful.

My magnificent Aston engine.
Such strength beneath me.
The feeling of him lifting into the air.
The quiet trust between us when we meet a fence and, for a few incredible seconds, fly.

He is strength and softness.
Power and grace.
A little bit spicy, endlessly talented,
and absolutely unforgettable.

My equine best friend, my greatest teacher and the most beautiful way to spend a day off. 🤎

There is a different kind of courage,
not the kind found in galloping to a fence,
or hearing the bell ring as you enter an arena.

It's the courage to hand your horse to someone else during work peak month.

To unclasp the reins of the horse you've loved beyond reason.
The one you've whispered to under lesson lights - ' #&^% that's big - and trusted him with every fiber of you'
the one you've spent hours beside - just because you could,
and the one you believed in long before the world saw his potential.

Two years.

Two years of early mornings. After work rush. Every weekend dedicated to his / our dreams / future.
Of tight boots. and tired eyes,
Of triumphs that no ribbon could measure.
Of setbacks that only deepened my resolve.

Two years of building muscle,
confidence,
understanding,
and trust.

Every stride,
every transition,
every pole,
every fence,
every lesson...

A quiet promise that tomorrow would be a little better than today.

He has carried my hopes, my dreams, and every aspiration I dared to place upon his back.

So for me, seeing another rider climb into the saddle,
I realised the greatest compliment I could ever give him
was also the hardest thing I have ever done.

To trust someone else
with the horse that holds so much of my soul.

And then...
to stand on the sidelines
and watch him fly. Effortlessly. Easy. Uncomplicated.

Not because he was lucky.
Not because talent simply appeared.

But because of every unseen moment
that came before today.

Every patient lesson.
Every conversation without words.
Every time we chose partnership over pressure.

I don't feel replaced. I feel proud.

Proud of the horse he has become.
Proud that someone else can now feel
the brilliance I have always known was there.

Look at you, my beautiful Aston engine.
You are becoming everything we dreamed you could be. JAMES EQUESTRIAN

A Heart That Glows

Some horses carry fire.
Some carry power.
But this one? This one carries joy.

The kind of joy you can't train,
can't buy,
can't fake.

It lives deep inside,
then spills out with every stride,
every prick of an ear,
every playful flick of a tail.

His heart is so full that it echoes through the ground,
radiating with every footfall,
turning ordinary moments into something quietly magical.

He doesn't jump because he has to.
He jumps because he loves it.

Because the wind feels good,
the grass is soft,
and life is simply too beautiful not to embrace.

His happiness isn't loud.
It isn't dramatic.

It is found in the sparkle of an eye,
the rhythm of his breathing,
the effortless dance of hooves across the earth.

And if you're lucky enough to ride a horse like that,
you don't just feel their movement...

You feel their heart.

And somehow, with every stride they take, they remind you how to find your own. ❤️🐴