18th September, 2012 Autumn

Early morning with the horses, cattle and swallows all getting ready for colder weather by growing their coats or clearing off. I've got a long day ahead with a horse visit in Oxfordshire, collecting stuff from the saddlers, pilates and then a talk on Atypical Myopathy at the Wessex Classical Riding Group. A year ago I really wasn't bothered about riding but I'm really enjoying it now. Theoden and I have put a good few miles on the clock over the last few weeks and he has been absolutely great. Yesterday I had out David Lloyd, Western expert and saddle fitter, and Theoden has now got a new saddle to fit his new and more muscular shape. Like everyone I want my horse to be as comfortable as possible but it's hard to find people you trust. The answer is to become a bit of an expert yourself but you can't possibly know everything about everything. It worries me that when people like David retire, where is the new expertise going to come from?