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Owning and maintaining a horse is hard - never mind when you’re a teenager! Here, we took a trip to Cloughfields stables in Sheffield to interview 17 year old Frankie Tilbrook; Who gives an interesting insight into what its like to be a young rider with so many roles and responsibilities…

Background.

Q - "Tell me a little bit about yourself...

A - "My name is Francessca Tilbrook, I’m 17 years old and my horse is called rocky. – currently I’m studying English Language, Sociology and French at Sheffield High School. I love being sociable, going out with my friends and spending time with family - oh and of course spending time at the stables."

Q - "How did you first get involved in horse riding / care?"

A - "When I was young, probably around 7 or 8, my mum introduced me to it by getting me lessons at some farm – I can’t recall the name but I know that I loved it, from that moment on I knew it was something I wanted to do for the rest of my life."

Q - "Tell me about Rocky, when did you get him?" 

A- "I got Rocky in October 2018, since my other horse Timmy was struggling with a problem in his leg, we had to send him away to get treated but he’s back and better than ever now! Rocky is a 17.1hh horse, which is definitely a big jump from 15hh Timmy. Rocky is 6 years old and an Irish sports horse, he has white and grey spots, but he will eventually turn into all white horse in the future, which I’m not looking forwards to in the winter months.."

 Q - "What was your thought process when giving him this name, or did he come with it?"

A- "He came with the name, I thought about changing it but I thought it suited him as his little grey patches sort of look like rocks!"

Q - "What has your best / funniest experience been with Rocky so far?"

A- "My best experience with rocky was when we won a team quest dressage. He was so amazing that day, to say I’ve only had him a few months, I’m really impressed and proud of him. I can’t wait to see what the future brings for us."

Q - "Well, that brings me onto the next question...what are your goals / what do you wish to achieve with Rocky?"

A- "There’s many things I want to do with Rocky but right now I’m focusing on the Under 18 Championships, it would be a dream come true if I got to compete."

Q - "Do you find any struggles in maintaining a horse whilst being in full time education?"

A- "Yes I do, riding has caused me to stuggle. At this age its hard to balance a social life with education never mind looking after a horse! It’s hard for me to find the time to do things, especially last minute, which is how most plans are arranged at this age. But I wouldn’t change it for the world. The worst thing is finding the time to revise for exams, which speaking of, I have loads coming up…eek."

Q - "How has riding had an impact on your life"

A- "Riding and being at the stable has not only allowed me to feel free and happy when I don’t want to face reality, but I have also met so many amazing people though it, it’s crazy to think how different my life would be if I didn’t ride."

Q - "Who / what motivates you in the horse world?"

A- "Simply just the fact that I love riding is enough to motivate me for anything, including competition, training or even just going to the stables to look after to him."

Q - "Do you have any other hobbies?"

A- "No, I don’t really have the time right now haha!"

Horse care.

Q - "What's your daily grooming routine with Rocky?"

A - "He doesn’t necessarily have a Daily routine, it just depends on how mucky he is or If we’ve been riding as he’s sweaty."

Q- "What type of bedding do you use and why."

A - "I like to use small flake shavings because it’s not only comfy for Rocks but it also soaks up more meaning I don’t have to throw as much bedding out when mucking out."

Q - "How do you prepare rocky for a show"

A- "To prepare for a show, I usually bath him using Main ‘n’ Tail shampoo and conditioner, then a purple shampoo to make his white coat look clean and shiny the night before. I then pack the lorry with his tack and other things I’ll need depending on where I’m going. On the day of the competition Ill go down early to plat his hair because he just gets them all messy overnight."

Q - "Does he have any special requirements"

A- "Yes he has a hoof supplement because sometimes his feet get sore."

Q - "is there any product / trick that you use or recommend? To make him look sleek, get mud out or help relax him?"

A- "There’s nothing so far that I think is outstanding, at the end of the day you just have to bath / groom thoroughly and properly, that always works for me. "

Riding

Q - "What goes through your mind during a competition?"

A- "I guess I just focus on what I need to do step after step, for example if I’m doing a jumping course I’ll focus on getting over that jump and then after that I’ll think about the next one, but I do usually try and memorise the course."

Q - "What's your favourite category of riding to do with rocky? (Dressage, flatwork, jumping?)"

A- "Definitely jumping, it’s just the most fun really. I like to play the game ‘how high can you jump?’ where me and a friend will put the jumping pole up higher and higher until someone gives in."

Q - "How big can you jump with rocky?"

A- "So far we’ve done 1 metre 10, but I know we can do higher, it just takes time."

Q - "Where is your favourite place to go eventing? Tell me about your best memory there and the details of it. (what was so good about it, what did you do, when was it etc)"

A- "I love going to Speetly, simply just because its really near to Sheffield and all my friends go there, so it’s just really nice to go and socialise, never mind the amount of fun their gallop tracks and jumping courses are."

Q - "Where is your favourite place to go riding just for fun?"

A- "My favourite place to go to just have fun has got to me Somet Ford. There’s so many different course options so you don’t have t force your self to do anything you don’t want to. My best memory there has got to be the pony club camp with all my friends, I’d definitely recommend it if you haven’t been before."