MEET THE STARS


AT HOME WITH CARL HESTER


Olympic gold medallistCarl HesterMBE is the holder of morethan 65 national dressage titles.


I


nthis issue we talk to the dressage maestro to find out what it is liketospend aday on his yard,courtesyofhis


sponsor Suregrow,well known fortheir expertise in paddock maintenanceand management. Set in the Gloucestershire


countryside,Carl’spicturesque yard is home to his treasured and multi- medal winning dressage horses. Surrounding the yard is postand


railed turnout paddocks whereall the horsesget to relax and spend some down time after training and competing. Beyond the paddocks arethe fields whereboth the youngsters liveand Carl’s retired horsesthathavehelpedhim to his major successes overthe years. Carl is very fortunatethathis yard


is supported by agreat team whogive all the horsesthe very best care and attention. The team features dressage superstar CharlotteDujardin and international travelling groom Alan Davies. Thereisnosuch thing as alie-in at


Carl’sand the team arewell known for saying he is ‘irritatingly cheerful’ and bouncing with energy first thing in the morning with his mobile ringing and a shout to the dogs he is off to the yard. The schedule is tight, but not hurried


wherethe horsesare concerned. Carl neverrushesaschooling session and each horse is worked foraslong as is required to achieve the goal Carl has set. He missesnothing and calls


instructions to the othersonthe team as theyschool alongside him. The radio plays and quiet concentration fills the air.The afternoons arewhen Carl teaches his manyclients.


DAILYROUTINE


Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: All the horses areworked as below: 7.00am -8.30am. The first thing


we do is take round morning feeds, as we go intoeach stable we makesure the previous nightsfeed has been eaten, checklegs and see thereare healthy droppings. Aftertheyhaveeaten we start to muck out, change rugs depending on the temperatureand getthe first horsesready to go out in the paddocks or on the walker.Carl and Charlotte arrivetostart riding at 8.30am so we makesurethe first horses areready. 8.30am -1.30pm. The yard is


swept and we continue to get horses ready forCarl and Charlottetoride,the team warm up the horsesbeforethey areschooled and walk them off,usually down the drive, when theyfinish, often Carl and Charlottewill hack them round the field together.After work all the horsesare bathed and groomed. This is areally busytime with everyone focused to get the horsesfinished by 1.30pm.


Suregrow products include Suregrow Fertiliser,CSM, Paddock Grass Seed Mix, Fast Grass, Meadow and Laminitics GrassMix. T


ofindout


moreaboutthe Suregrowrange pleasecontact Suregrowon


01423223045 orvisitwww.


suregrowuk.com. We makesureour horsesare turned


out whereappropriateorgoonthe walker. Our paddocks have benefited greatly from the addition of Suregrow fertiliser.


2.30pm -4pm. Afterlunch we


clean the tack and do all the general yard dutiesand paddock maintenance. 4pm -5.30pm. All the horseshave


aquick groom beforenight rugs areput on, we start the final tidy of the wash bays and tack room, skip out, sweep the yard,takethe haytrolleyround and finally evening feeds. The arenas arelevelled and oncethe tack room is locked we leave to the sound of contented munching. 9.00pm. We take it in turns to do the


latenight check, aquick look overeachstable door to see theyare all comfortable and well. Wednesdays and Saturday: Horses


arehacked foranhour. Sunday: Horsesday off.This gives us


aday to catchuponother jobs likepulling manesand tails, cleaning the horsebox and all the other jobs that crop up.


PleasementionCentralHorseNewswhenresponding toAdvertisementsSEPTEMBER/OCTOBER2018


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