They say that selling your house is one of the most stressful things you can do. I disagree. Take the word ‘house’, swap the ‘u’ with an ‘r’ then that statement is spot on. It’s selling your horse that truly raises the blood pressure.
There’s nothing quite like waiting for prospective purchasers to rock up at your yard to quicken the pulse and make your hands go clammy. Suddenly you remember your horse’s annoying idiosyncrasies (those that you know so well and, frankly, go to make up his personality.) Will he make those nasty faces when I do his girth up, strike off on the wrong leg at canter, stick his nose in the air on downward transitions? You bet he will. Why? Because you are uncomfortable and tense in this unusual scenario and he knows it.
Most of us are not born salespeople. Confronted with several strangers asking searching questions while you are tacking up and mounting, you begin to know the true meaning of multi-tasking. “Does he shy?” they ask. (Show me a horse that never has!) “When was he last wormed?” (Oh yes. At 8.55 am on Monday, 16th February!) “Does he jump fillers?” (Normally, yes. Today, probably not!)
But help is at hand, dear fellow rider and it’s called ‘Petros’.
It has never occurred to me to ask for an instructor’s help with the sale of a horse (buying yes; selling no) but as the stress began building up in me even at the thought of wording the advert, a light switched on somewhere in my brain: ask Petros to help.
Those of you that know Petros will not be surprised to learn that he was keen to lend me his support. At the outset, we discussed Rosco’s weaker points and agreed to work on them during our weekly lessons. Often I asked Petros to ride too. I used these occasions to take videos of Rosco being jumped over coloured fences then later, over cross country jumps. Once I had some good footage, I asked Petros what sort of price I should be asking. His knowledge of the market place coupled with his familiarity with Rosco’s capabilities made me feel confident that I was pitching the pounds in the right ballpark.
So far, so good. Rosco was now going well and, armed with some impressive videos (showing Petros riding Rosco beautifully), I felt ready to place the advert.
Call me silly but I never thought at that point to ask Petros to attend the visits by prospective buyers. A couple of viewings came and went during which I rode my horse abysmally and stumbled over simple, reasonable questions that were asked. Basically, I was in hyper mode, finding the whole thing far too personal. A rethink was needed. Result? Summon Petros once more.
As soon as I latched on to the idea of having Petros available for the next viewing, I relaxed. When the people arrived, he gently asked them about the type of horse they were looking for and spoke about Rosco’s good points and how he might be the right horse for their son . After Petros had shown Rosco off and popped him over a few jumps, the lad got on board. Again, Petros took control (but not in an obvious way). He advised the boy how best to ride him and by the end of this mini ‘lesson’, Rosco was taking the lad over 3 ft spreads! When the family drove off in their 4×4, questions about ‘Would I include Rosco’s saddle?’ were ringing in my ears. It was then a no-brainer for me to ask Petros to do the same thing for an older couple who wanted to view Rosco two days later.
They duly arrived and process was repeated, the only difference this time was in their departing comment: they wanted the bridle as well as the saddle!
Both sets of the ‘Petros’ people ended up fighting over Rosco. The older couple won out, simply because they lived in my county and arranged for a vetting to be carried out within a couple of days.
And so Rosco was delivered to his new home. The last I saw of him, he was being marched to a field full of the greenest grass… he didn’t even look back!
The moral of this story – for me anyway – is that using Petros to help in the horse selling process is worth every penny of the investment. Sure, it costs a few bob to have him on hand but the payback in terms of a successful outcome and importantly, the removal of the stress factor for the owner is worth every penny.

Eleanor and Duke at the corner

We had a fantastic morning of XC fun at Milton Keynes eventing centre. Building up confidence and honing the vital skills for safe and successful cross country riding. Particularly great to see Eleanor and Duke coming on so well and Tom on his new ride getting ready for  well deserved eventing success.

Our next showjumping clinic day in Hertfordshire  is coming up on Sunday 19th May.

Come and have some practice towards improving your competition results or to simply enhance your horse’s/pony’s athleticism and have fun!

Get in touch to book your place, it will be great to see you there!

Petros

The next Showjumping clinic with Petros Spiliopoulos will be on Sunday 14th April. All welcome, get in touch to book and let’s get ready for a great summer of riding!

Happy Easter and see you soon!

Easter fun!

Krissie and Sol in great style! (Photos courtesy of franceskayphoto.co.uk)

It has been a great pleasure over the past year or so to work with Krissie Davis and her smart mare Sol.  Their confidence has grown immensely and their hard work is now paying off with many competitive successes.  The emphasis on forwards thinking riding, gradually developing the suppleness has enabled the combination to begin to produce a more gathered way of going without resentment. This in turn has made for a much smoother ride and clearer communication between horse and rider, establishing a foundation of trust.

The very best wishes to them for the forthcoming season, keep up the great work and have lots of fun!

The beginnings of great XC career. (franceskayphoto.co.uk)

Practice, practice, practice

Sunday 17 March- Showjumping

Spring is nearly here and the pre summer season preparations ought to be well on the way. Come along for some essential practice and to have fun over poles and fences as you and your horse require.

Get in touch to book your place as soon as you can, with either Fiona or Petros ideally before Monday 11th March.

It will be great to see you!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7HUXIHEbpE&feature=youtu.be

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TphPOPok5a8&feature=youtu.be

GENUINE ALL-ROUNDER

Mackie is everything you would expect from a traditionally bred Irish Sports horse.  He is well mannered, kind, quiet to handle and has a willing “can do” attitude to work.  He is rising 11 years, 17.1hh Chestnut gelding.  He was only broken as a 5 year old and has been carefully brought on, given time to grow and, as a result, is a low-mileage horse.

Mackie is beautifully schooled with a soft snaffle mouth in all phases, never strong, is forward going and has never needed to be ridden in spurs.  Current owners are a 6’ man and slim 5’5 woman.

Flat work has 3 established and correct paces.  Currently competing at Novice Dressage (consistent unaffiliated scores of high 60’s % and mid 60’s affiliated) working towards elementary moves at home.  He is a careful and well balanced jumper, taking on 1.00m tracks easily and schooling at home comfortably over 1.10m. He is forward going XC without getting hot headed or silly and takes 1.00m courses in his stride.

Irish bred by Robertstown Boy VII out of Cranvella.

Contact Tom on 07850 270103 or Tom@harmonichealth.net

Open to sensible price offer

Postponed due to ice/snow. New date: Sunday 3rd February

Show jumping clinic- Sunday 27th January

Hertfordshire’s show jumping clinic is on every month and the first  for 2013 is coming up.  Let’s hope the weather settles down and a thaw comes along! Get in touch for more info or to book.

Best wishes for 2013,

Petros

It is a great pleasure to continue to support the Pony Club and are delighted to be included in the selected panel of Visiting Coaches

http://www.pcuk.org/index.php

We are celebrating as Petros Spiliopoulos has completed his undergraduate studies with The Open University and has achieved an Upper second (2.1) classification in his BSc(Hons) Psychology.

A number of years of part time study alongside full time equestrian coaching have been rewarded by this great result.  The quest now continues for avenues that will enable postgraduate work, examining  areas of enquiry concerning links between developmental and sport psychology.

Any advice or input in this respect would be gratefully received.