Envy
Equi-Ads England & Wales, October 2002

Envy is what my friends tell me they feel when they see me exercising my father's four year old Lusitano stallion, Mucho Dinero who my father says is the last horse he is going to train. He claims, at 74 he is getting too old for all that, but I take no notice. He has been saying it since he was 64. He will probably be like my grandfather and still telling me what to do when he is 90! Mucho Dinero and I have been riding out since July this year and already he has learned how to show himself to best advantage. He can now do a schooled walk, back up, take a bow and carry out a standing pirouette.

If I were to describe him I would have to say he is fresh, keen, cheeky and strong but at the same time he can be handled. He is stunning and will be ready for May 2003. (We hope so anyway!) When he is finally ready for public displays I think he will put the other horse in the shade. At the moment he is flavour of the month in Oakhanger where I live.

I am regularly stopped when I am out on him. I am constantly changing routes but he seems to know who will pay attention to him and he starts to bounce and show off as soon as he sees them coming. Sometimes I am not so keen on this, he is no Bengal tiger, but, as with so many young horses, he tends to give me some of those "what the hell was that'?" moments.

I am usually well ahead of him though and can deal with them. I am writing this on a lovely September day at Northallerton Equestrian Centre where I am giving a training demonstration. I have had a real northern welcome and look forward to performing. I will write again in December and until then it will be hop, skip and jumping along the lanes that I have ridden for the last thirty years. I still find them stunningly beautiful and I hope I will be riding them u when I am 74 just has my father has done.