This is a book for females of any age who possess a love of horses and the freedom of riding. It is a tailor-written for the woman; its purpose to inspire, educate and foster the efforts of the developing equestrian who must otherwise maintain a lifestyle outside of the ring. This book carefully educates the beginning rider, while encouraging spirit and compassion to ride both correctly and safely. Between the covers of this book, the reader will find each chapter full of information essential to the overall development of the complete equestrian.
*THE TOP 10 BESTSELLER FROM THE MOST DECORATED BRITISH FEMALE OLYMPIAN IN HISTORY* 'Refreshingly honest [...] a highly enjoyable, fascinating read.' Horse and Hound _______________________________________________ "To ride into that arena, next to a sea of British flags and hear the roar of clapping and cheering, was so exciting. It's a sound I will never, ever forget." Charlotte Dujardin and her charismatic horse Valegro burst onto the international sports scene with their record-breaking performance at the London, 2012 Olympics. The world was captivated by the young woman with the dazzling smile and her dancing horse. But no one quite knew what it took to get there, nor how hard the path to success would be - until now. Dujardin began riding horses at the age of two, but dressage was firmly the domain of the wealthy, not the life of a girl from a middle-class family. Her parents sacrificed all and with a undeterred focus, Charlotte left school at 16 to follow her dream. When she was invited to be a groom for the British Olympian Carl Hester, she began to ride Valegro, a dark bay gelding and an unbreakable bond was formed. This is their incredible story.
In praise of Fitness, Performance and the Female Equestrian "This book is an important guide for women who want to feel well, ride well and extend their active years." Chrystine Jones Tauber former member United States Equestrian Team Grand Prix Jumping Squad "Mary Midkiff is a new voice in our evolving cultural freedom, where insights unique to women in this case, in relation to horses and riding are welcome and needed." Richard M. Timms, M.D. chairman and CEO, Troxel Companies "This is an exciting approach to an ancient relationship. Mary Midkiff has done horsewomen an important and useful service in bringing it all together." Mary Vernon practicing physician and professor of medicine Lawrence, Kansas The Howell Equestrian Library is a distinguished collection of books on all aspects of horsemanship and horsemastership. The nearly fifty books in print offer readers in all disciplines and at all levels of competition sound instruction and guidance by some of the most celebrated riders, trainers, judges, and veterinarians in the horse world today. Whether your interest is dressage, show jumping, or western riding, or whether it is breeding, groomi ng, or health care, Howell has a book to answer your needs. Get to know the books in the Howell Equestrian Library; many are modern-day classics and have achieved the status of authoritative references in the estimation of those who ride, train, and care for horses. The Howell Equestrian Library
Mean Girls meets Black Beauty in Horse Girl by celebrated author Carrie Seim--a funny and tender middle-grade novel about finding your forever herd. "This book is funny and exciting. Beautifully portrays both the pleasures and risks of riding horses and also of being a teen. Very original, and a great pleasure to read."--Jane Smiley, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Wills is a seventh grader who's head-over-hoof for horses, and beyond excited when she gets the chance to start training at the prestigious Oakwood Riding Academy. But Amara--the Queen of the #HorseGirls--and her posse aren't going to let the certifiably dork-tagious Wills trot her way into their club so easily. Between learning the reins of horse riding, dealing with her Air Force pilot mom being stationed thousands of miles from home, and keeping it together in front of (gasp!) Horse Boys, Wills learns that becoming a part of the #HorseGirl world isn't easy. But with her rescue horse, Clyde, at her side, it sure will be fun. Complete with comedic, original hoof notes to acquaint the less equestrian among us, Horse Girl delivers everything a young readers wants: mean girls, boy problems, and embarrassingly goofy dad jokes. And it does so on the back of a pony.
When women decided that they wanted to compete in horse sports as equals with men, it took courage and perseverance. The women on both sides of the Atlantic who fought to compete in the male-dominated sports of show jumping, dressage, eventing, and racing are the subject of "Equal to the Challenge." Jackie Burke interviewed many of these extraordinary women, and the book is richer for their simple, moving accounts of how they achieved their goals. Many had to endure rejection, humiliation, physical danger, and privation in order to take part in the horse sports they loved. Some women struggled doubly, since they had to overcome physical and financial handicaps. Young women and not just riders will find in this book worthy role models for our time. Jackie C. Burke is a journalist who has been involved in horse sports all her life and knows just about.
There are over seven million horses in America -- even more than when they were the only means of transportation. Nir began riding horses when she was just two years old and hasn't stopped since. This is her funny, moving love letter to these graceful animals and the people who are obsessed with them. She takes us into the lesser-known corners of the riding world and profiles some of its most captivating figures, and speaks candidly of how horses have helped her overcome heartbreak and loss.
This volume brings together studies from various disciplines of the social sciences and humanities ( anthropology, sociology, cultural studies, history and literary theory) that shed light on the equestrian world as a historically gendered and highly dynamic field of contemporary sport and culture. From high level international dressage and jumping, polo and the turf, to the rodeo world of the Americas and popular forms of equestrian sport and culture, we are introduced to a range of issues that are played out at local and global, national and international levels. Students and scholars of gender, culture and sport will find much of interest in this original look at contemporary issues such as “engendered” (women’s and men’s) identities/subjectivities as equestrians, representations of girls, horses and the world of adventure in juvenile fiction; the current “feminization” of particular equestrian activities (and where boys and men stand in relation to this); how broad forms of social inequality and stratification play themselves out within gendered equestrian contexts; men and women and their relation to horses within the framework of current discussions on the relation of animals to humans (which may include not only love and care, but also exploitation and violence), among others. Singular contributions show how equestrian activities contribute to historical and current constructions of embodied “femininities” and “masculinities”, reflecting a world that has been moving “beyond the binaries” while continuing to be enmeshed in their persistent and contradictory legacy.
*Shortlisted for the 2022 Lord Aberdare Literary Prize* This book is the first, full-length scholarly examination of British women’s involvement in equestrianism from the eighteenth through the twentieth centuries, as well as the corresponding transformations of gender, class, sport, and national identity in Britain and its Empire. It argues that women’s participation in horse sports transcended limitations of class and gender in Britain and highlights the democratic ethos that allowed anyone skilled enough to ride and hunt – from chimney-sweep to courtesan. Furthermore, women’s involvement in equestrianism reshaped ideals of race and reinforced imperial ideology at the zenith of the British Empire. Here, British women abandoned the sidesaddle – which they had been riding in for almost half a millennium – to ride astride like men, thus gaining complete equality on horseback. Yet female equestrians did not seek further emancipation in the form of political rights. This paradox – of achieving equality through sport but not through politics – shows how liberating sport was for women into the twentieth century. It brings into question what “emancipation” meant in practice to women in Britain from the eighteenth through twentieth centuries. This is fascinating reading for scholars of sports history, women's history, British history, and imperial history, as well as those interested in the broader social, gendered, and political histories of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and for all equestrian enthusiasts.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The triumphant true story of a woman who rode her horse across America in the 1950s, fulfilling her dying wish to see the Pacific Ocean, from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Perfect Horse and The Eighty-Dollar Champion “The gift Elizabeth Letts has is that she makes you feel you are the one taking this trip. This is a book we can enjoy always but especially need now.”—Elizabeth Berg, author of The Story of Arthur Truluv In 1954, sixty-three-year-old Maine farmer Annie Wilkins embarked on an impossible journey. She had no money and no family, she had just lost her farm, and her doctor had given her only two years to live. But Annie wanted to see the Pacific Ocean before she died. She ignored her doctor’s advice to move into the county charity home. Instead, she bought a cast-off brown gelding named Tarzan, donned men’s dungarees, and headed south in mid-November, hoping to beat the snow. Annie had little idea what to expect beyond her rural crossroads; she didn’t even have a map. But she did have her ex-racehorse, her faithful mutt, and her own unfailing belief that Americans would treat a stranger with kindness. Annie, Tarzan, and her dog, Depeche Toi, rode straight into a world transformed by the rapid construction of modern highways. Between 1954 and 1956, the three travelers pushed through blizzards, forded rivers, climbed mountains, and clung to the narrow shoulder as cars whipped by them at terrifying speeds. Annie rode more than four thousand miles, through America’s big cities and small towns. Along the way, she met ordinary people and celebrities—from Andrew Wyeth (who sketched Tarzan) to Art Linkletter and Groucho Marx. She received many offers—a permanent home at a riding stable in New Jersey, a job at a gas station in rural Kentucky, even a marriage proposal from a Wyoming rancher. In a decade when car ownership nearly tripled, when television’s influence was expanding fast, when homeowners began locking their doors, Annie and her four-footed companions inspired an outpouring of neighborliness in a rapidly changing world.
