From the nicholls twitter page, denman enjoying his new life hunting please log in to view this image
Can't believe the amount of hardware some people use. No substitute for good hands. Nice to see the Tank enjoying life. I bet that rider feels important.
The full articles with additional photos can be seen here: http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/blogs/7616/314990.html I noticed from previous editions of the Denman blog, that the rider has had him in variously: a cheltenham gag, pelham and american gag with controller noseband. She's obviously having braking issues and is trying a few different bits out to see what he likes. Personally I think controller nosebands are exceedingly uncomfortable for the horse and there are plenty of viable alternatives. Actually Ron, a person with good hands can ride a horse in a strong bit more comfortably than an incompetent rider in a snaffle. Nevertheless there is a tendency nowadays with amateur riders to chuck all sorts of metallurgy in the horses mouth regardless of the rider's ability. A bit like a 17 year old girl trying to drive a ferrari - invariably it ends in tears. I also think going hunting without a proper crash hat on is irresponsible, but you can only lead a horse to water...
He looks really fit...not much condition being carried there....Camilla looks a little out of her depth though....
Note the two coloured ribbons in his tail too: Red - this horse kicks Green - this horse is inexperienced
I've told this story before on the old 606, but what the heck I'll tell it again. I know someone who, many many years ago, went to work as an assistant to Peter Walwyn. On his first day he was told to take the old hack and go out with first lot. He tacked the horse up and brought him out into the yard. Once he was on board he asked the horse's name. "Mill House" came the reply! The old warrior was about 15 at this stage. First lot set out and his instructions were simply to follow the string, watch them work then come back and report to the boss. Mill House, however, had other ideas. As the horses began their routine canters, Mill House decided he wanted to join in! He took off and gave chase to the youngsters. On reaching the top of the hill, he tried to pull the horse up but it became evident that he was experiencing a braking error! Mill House kept going! My acquaintance spotted a hedge in the near distance and presumed the old boy would start to pull up. Wrong again! He kept going and leapt the hedge like the pro he was. He continued like this for a good fifteen minutes, crossing fields, leaping hedges/walls/ whatever was in his way. Eventually, the horse pulled himself up and came to a halt at a gate leading on to a roadway. His rider jumped off and opened the gate before remounting. He had no idea where he was or which direction to go. Mill House, however, knew exactly where he was and set off at a brisk walk in the direction of home. 2 hours after leaving the yard, they returned to jeers from the stable lads. It turned out that this was one of Mill House's party tricks, and it was a common initiation for any new assistant to be legged up on him. Several times he had returned home rider-less! One of my favourite racing anecdotes!
Good old Denman! So glad he's enjoying life. A great racehorse who had to deal with a really nasty heart ailment, and still won top races!
If he has braking issues then why is the rider wearing spurs - seems a bit of an oxymoron. Denman does look like he's enjoying himself though
A logical assumption to make, but it is not an oxymoron at all. A horse who is carting the rider is not necessarily reactive to leg aids. Speed does not equate to the energy and agility needed to jump. I ride my horse round cross country in a rubber pelham bit because he leans on my hand, but I also wear spurs because when you approach a jump, a horse who is strong can sometimes back off and decide he is a bit nervous to jump. This is when you need the spurs to tell the horse "this jumps all right, lets go". If you read the article that the rider wrote, I think she mentions that he was backing off a few fences, hence the spurs. Riding cross country is in some ways quite different to national hunt racing. Racehorses rely on speed to clear the fences, whereas horses going cross country need to get quite a bit more height, and use agility to clear the fences. Dexter, who is Camilla?
