SpiritRides - Riding, Vaulting, Yoga, Personal Training

Here's what's on offer over the Spring School Holidays and our Care Hour is back for Term 4 🐎

Click one each event for more details

HOLIDAY PROGRAMME - Spring 2026
Horsemanship MAX - Spring 2026
SpiritRides Care Hour

I'll be heading to beautiful Fiji next month and have gotten in touch with a horse sanctuary only a few minutes from our resort. You may know that Fiji is in dire need of help and the newly introduced tourism tax will not be helpful.

Besides donating my time, they are also in need of
🌅 Filta back cream and give out
🩷 snaffle bits or something similar gentle to the community.

If you are in a position to donate funds so I can purchase the cream, or have a bit (good second hand condition is fine) or the cream to donate, please get in touch!
Can be dropped off in Hillcrest or SpiritRides or I can try and pick up.

Thanks Team 🥰

Why do we change ponies and horses during lessons? 🐴

One of the things that makes lessons at SpiritRides a little different is that we often change ponies — and there is a really good reason for it.

We recently asked our SpiritRides students what they thought, and the results were pretty clear:
63.2% would choose to change ponies
31.6% would prefer to stay with the same pony
5.3% were unsure

Riding different ponies and horses teaches adaptability, communication and true horsemanship.
Each pony is different and has a lot to offer! One might be forward, another more relaxed. One may respond to a tiny aid, while another needs clearer communication. Learning to adjust helps riders become more balanced, independent and confident — rather than simply learning how to ride one pony.
It also teaches an incredibly important lesson:
The rider's job is to communicate with the horse they are sitting on and that starts with greeting them, tightening their girth, checking stirrups.

Changing ponies can challenge riders, sometimes push them outside their comfort zone, and give them the opportunity to discover new strengths and fosters growth.
And of course, we also understand why riders become attached to their favourite pony! 🥰
At SpiritRides, we're not just teaching to ride. We're teaching to understand, communicate and adapt to different horses — skills that will stay with us far beyond the time in the saddle.

That's part of the SpiritRides journey. 💚🐴

WINTER → TERM 3

Winter always seems to make me a little less motivated to post! The days are filled with more, and often harder work, fewer working students, shorter days, and plenty of cold and wet weather on top of it all.

But finally… let’s introduce Term 3! 🎊
Our theme this term is DRESSAGE, finishing with a practice test at the end of the term.
As you know, at SpiritRides we don’t compete — but we LOVE a challenge.
Dressage is such a beautiful combination of discipline, teamwork, accuracy and those gorgeous, symmetrical movements. It sounds easier than it actually is! 😅

Our students are working hard, learning to ride with precision and accuracy, while embracing my personal love of a discipline that is so incredibly important for both horse and rider.
It’s not just about the movements — it’s about communication, balance, connection and understanding.

So, enjoy following their journey through our stories. ☺️🐴

Horsemanship MAX Day 2 💥
We started the day with affirmations for one another which set the tone for the rest of our fabulous day!
Riding lessons were in groups of three today with a focus on trotting to follow on from yesterday's lunge lesson.
Besides our usual horse activities, the group mucked out an impressive four wheel barrow loads!
We spent the afternoon learning about first aid like bandaging, administering oral medicine (peppermint tea) followed by hoof care and everyone had an opportunity to try barefoot trimming.

Gratitude, journaling and reflecting on our goals finished off a very special two-day Programme.
We'll do it all again in the next holidays as the feedback from participants and families is brilliant ☺️

Horsemanship MAX Day 1 💥
We had a full on day of learning, making new friends and taking care of our herd together.
Thanks Giorgia for sharing your passion for liberty - a new experience for everyone and it's so very valuable and in my opinion crucial to have that beautiful connection with our horses!
Everyone's goal was improving their rising trot, so a private lunge lesson was the best way to achieve that.
Bridling, saddling and rugging was also on our list today as well as goal setting and some breath work exercises.
Time flew and we had a super first day 🐴

The start of our two-day Horsemanship Max Programme. It is designed with future horse ownership in mind and is packed with learning!
It filled up really quickly, so get in touch if you're interested in it for the next School Holidays

Riding lesson spot available! 🐴

Due to a last minute cancellation, we have a shared Term 3 spot for weekly riding lessons to fill.
Contact Stephanie for more info.
We start next week and this is on SpiritRides horses.
We can be a little flexible with time!!

Winter HOLIDAY PROGRAMME - Winter 2026 Day 2
Tuesday ❄️🐴

Today it truly was winter and definitely felt like 5 degrees with showers. Our timing was pretty good and we only got a tiny bit wet once, and managed to go for a ride. Some Yoga Games and crafting and 3pm came around really fast!

Winter HOLIDAY PROGRAMME - Winter 2026 Day 1
Monday. ❄️🐴

A very busy fully booked day with lots of new faces! The weather was kind to us and we didn't get wet - yay 😊