William,

I am enjoying reading your blogs. You write so well and the topics are excellent and relevant.

Hi William I read the article in the sjai bulletin I thought it was great. I love the idea of Barnmice I love to read peoples different veiws and ideas on different topics. Thank you very much again for your fantastic talk at bel-air, myself and my friends really enjoyed it, it made us all think about are lower leg posision and the importance of where it is when you are going down drops. We also loved the pictures and all those fantastic riders and what they achieved I hope some day I will be like them! Thanks Sarah

Hi William, did you get my email? :)

Sorry to hear about your flu. Never much fun! Are you able to do a quick reply to my email today, as I'm doing my write up tomorrow and want to include the info. Thanks!

Hello Sir,
Just wanted to say HOW MUCH I'm enjoying what You write.
Thanks For Sharing!!
~ Barby

....eeeeeeeeks ..... maybe my comment to your recent blog addition was too long???
I wonder if you might want me to delete it and write something shorter??
~ Barby

Hi William, I got an e-mail saying I was won of the contest winners. I would love the competition bridle if it is still avaliable! Thank you so much!

Hi William,

thanks again for choosing my story as one of the winners! I could put the Micklem multi use bridle to great use here with the rescue horses!

Hi William, thank you for choosing my poem as one of the winners. Would have loved to try out the competition bridle but looks as though it has gone one of the books would be lovely.

Hi
New member just found your site by way of investigating bitless bridles!
I would be very grateful for any comments or advice you may have for me, I was considering the Dr Cookes bridle but now that I have seen your bridle I think it looks a better design. Thanks - Janet

Thanks for your reply. I have never ridden bitless before, but the more I investigate it the more I have become convinced that it is a kinder way to ride. I will measure him carefully before I decide, but, one more question,\Is it possible to have the bridle without the ring on the front of the noseband for attaching the lunge line? My boy's only limitation with his one eye is that he does not like to be lunged - quite understandably.

My pleasure, :)

thank you William. We have high hopes for the future.

Hi William, loving the latest blogs. :)
Was wondering when we are likely to hear back from you re. the prizes for the partnership and courage comp? I did send an email and posted on here but have heard nothing back?

thank you! :)

William. Currently live in Connor Downs near Hayle.

Hi William,

Any of the prizes would be wonderful, but if either of the books are available that would be great. Many members of the Maple Pony club ride out of my barn so it would be great for them to share also. We are an eventing barn but I don't event but am very interested in Dressage.

Again thank you
Ann

hay[=]
i ride a 13hh arab pony and i am going to start entering in shows soon, she is quite well educated and i was wondering if you could give us some exercises to do in the saddle? i am mostly intrested in dressage jumping games ect[=]
thankyou so much[=]

Hi, Mr. Micklem

Sky Boy was a truly great TB sport horse sire in Ireland. His progeny excelled at show jumping and eventing.

But I haven't been able to find much in the way of active stallions from him.

Are there any who are anywhere as good as he was?

The Warmblood breeders may be doing something very important by not gelding early and evaluating stallion prospects from young foals to their early competition years. The Irish, with their great TBs, keep coming up with superior TB sport horse sires, but the lines don't stay alive for the next generation. This would seem to me to be a definite handicap in consistent generational breeding. Sometimes it may take several foal crops and a full decade before performance quality proves itself.

BTW, I've been aware of the Dante/Darius/Derring Do line for quite a while. It really is one of the greats in NH racing and in sport horse breeding.

Just so you'll know, Michael Jung's horse Sam is by Stan The Man, not Able Albert. Didn't want to embarass you with a public correction on the blog since so many people will be reading it.

The Hyperion sire line is just about, if not completely, dead in the United States. It's a dreadful loss. But one sire line that is beginning to shine over here through some very good racing sons is Mr. Prospector. It's odd, because most North American sport horse breeders have a general distaste for Mr. P, but when he's a few generations back and has influences for soundness through the dam lines, his sons can produce very nice sport horses. I expect that he will become more important in the coming years.

Just to amuse you - did a dressage test today and judge actually got out of his car to inspect my bridle - what is that he said - I explained - at lunch he called all the other judges over to inspect it as it was the first one they had seen! they all liked it!

The title of the competition is BHS Young Instructor of the Year - although yes maybe given the current coaching climate it might change! Having said that the BHSI is not the BHSC yet is it!?!
Your blog on TBs attracted me as I am preparing for BHS SM and big topic for presentation is role of TB on sport horses....:-)

Hi William, It was Collen Kelly, she's an Australian bio-mechanics scientist. Spent a lot of time in America. Seems to wotk a treat, and it's simple!!

It was in the discussion on "Trainers and Mentors" sept 6

sure thing, I have already put you on my 'sources' slide. Just wondering...would you be interested in looking at my presentation as it is now - 95% there (i think) but pre printing and pre practise sessions...it is c. 15 slides and will be presented from a flipbook of slides, not powerpoint so have written the commentary on notes pages....would happily send to you for comment if you have the time?
Anna

Hi william, I was wondering if you still teach?
Would love a lesson with you sometime :)

Carla

Just noticed, as further proof of Wild Risk's importance in event horse breeding that Ringwood Cockatoo is sire line Wild Risk through Worden/Devon/Peacock.

I hope you don't mind, but I regularly save your blog posts, as they clearly express some very important concepts.

William,
I am based in Devon with my Partner Jane, mobile 00447766503161, we are just off M5 near Wellington, Cullompton. We would love to see you if your travels bring you anywhere nearby.
Charles

hi william debbie now lives in zennor has one daughter and three step children farming and working in local school she lives with frank berrimans son jeff who is not at all into horses debbie did go to the gorsebridge sales as they were in ireland looking at cows how old are your children mine all at uni at the moment but one of them is going only to have a well paid job so she thinks to fund her riding she showjumps we will have to buy a talented difficult horse that no one wants just likewhen we were kids mum lives in gulval still full on is now 75 great to hear from you bridgette

frank is still ridingi think he goes for the more chilled out type i will get debbie to send you one hows charlie say hi bridgette

He was a wild rider in his day...saw Charlie a week ago ...in goof form... lives in Chitterne near Warminster with loads of bantams! Looking forward to the pic..W

Mr. Micklem,
I really enjoy your blogs, in fact I joined Barnmice because I agreed with them so much. I have been observing over time that the top performers in showjumping and eventing have specific strains of TB blood. These strains are even more common on the continent as there are less TBs available compared to Ireland and here where I am in Ocala Florida. More genetic research is ongoing where gene loci are correlated with specific performance traits. SNPs are now being tallied and guess what the TBs have very specific rare muscle genes(fast muscle reflex genes and traits). A horse MUST posess these traits to win today and this statement is 100% evidence based. Your brilliant blogs outlined this truth about the absolute neccessity of certain TB lines for optimum performance.. How I bred my homebred boy proves that I believe this in reality not just theory. Thank you for passing along critical breeding knowledge. Only performance matters.

I don't think so, but around the same area at the same time! I remember her giving me a lunge lesson on a new pony who had just arrived on the yard that day. I had never gone so fast in my life as she just kept bellowing - you girl - sit up!! She was such a character!

I think we bounced more - we fell off, got back on and tried hard not to do it again. I think everyone gets a hankering to return to cornwall eventually!

You are welcome! I've never really taken much interest in all of that stuff before, but you have sparked my interest! And thanks for the good luck - I need as much as I can get. Bringing my horse in from the field for the winter this afternoon, so the mucking out begins in earnest. :-S

Hello William, i have heard alot about you- muy mum is always telling me stories of when she was youger. ive been taught by your brother David quite frequently aswell. i love reading your articles and hopefully one day i could have some riding lessons.

Abi.

hi william where is the dick micklem day do you know i was thinking about your mum and always rember her wearing fushia pink jumpers and charlie drinking hot chocolate i think that might of changed.

Hello William,
Thank you so very much for your prompt and thoughtful response to my letter. I said it in another way in my original letter, but the way you define a breed according to the genes rather than the pedigree brand label is accurate and supported by a rapidly growing body of provable scientific evidence. Thank you for looking out for the absolute welfare of the horses by encouraging the production of animals with gene traits to do their jobs safely. Performance is truly all that matters. The SNP chip that many equine genetics researchers are now using and their future research is likely to prove you right. Do hope to meet up one day as well - lots to converse about! Many thanks for the encouraging compliment about our boy. It will encourage us in our prep for winter and spring shows.

Thanks William, I appreciate your positivity.... Anna

Thank you for your note. I have enjoyed reading your blog, and particularly your thoughts on thoroughbred breeding.

Thanks William, we are presently in Seville and leave early January for the Caribbean then through the Panama canal in April and on to the Galapagos islands. After a lifetime with horses I have discovered a whole new life out there, it should be quite an adventure. Celtic Spirit is a fabulous 26 meter ketch owned by Dublin businessman Michael Holland.

William, good to hear from you and thanks Once again for yr compliments. I'm not sure if they are always earned. It's going to be fun on this blog although I'm a newbie at this thing so I hope everyone pardons any stupid mistakes I make!

How Zen like! It's a great philosophy! Doodle 's in Florida and enjoying his oranges!!!!

Hi William, thanks for your prompt and thoughtful reply. I have been participating in a debate about this issue and asked you because I have used your bridle (in both bitless and bitted configurations), along with several other bitless bridles. Until last year I had a Trakehner who had a low palate and a thick tongue. He found many bits uncomfortable but was a pleasure to ride in a bitless bridle, although he preferred a side pull. My TB, on the other hand, seems happiest in a simple, single-joint loose ring snaffle.

I have two concerns about adapting bitless bridles in competitive dressage. First, I think that in most cases you can have a more subtle conversation with your horse using a bit. Isn't one of the points of moving to a double bridle that you have the ability to "talk" to your horse differently using the curb vs. the snaffle? The bitless bridles are great for riders with less than ideal hands because they have a more muted effect (other than hackamores) but are less subtle.

It also bothers me that it seems like this push is an extension of The Dr. Cook's bitless bridle marketing campaign. Why is the recommendation to the USEF just for cross under designs? I know that some horses (like mine) react poorly to poll pressure. He objected strenuously to the Dr. Cook's bridle. I didn't have the same problem with your bridle, probably because the strap goes over the crownpiece so that the pressure is more dispersed. However, a simple side pull can be very effective. I read somewhere that the Dutch Federation evaluated all kinds of bitless bridles when they decided to change the rules to include a bitless option and that they did not limit it to cross under bridles. I wasn't able to find any detailed information about that decision, do you know where I can access it? Sorry to rant! Liz

Dear William,
I thank you sincerely... sorry to be a pest, I am just so excited to read your riding manual book...!!!
thanks so very much -
Christianna Capra
211 West 56th Street, #36B
NY NY 10019 (USA)

I hope to visit IRE one day and would love to clinic with / meet you.
Your work is very forward and it makes a lot of sense to me, I am sure I will get much out of reading your book.
Thank you William and Happy New Year!

best,
CC
www.springreinsofhope.com
:)

PS; i just love the photo of you as a tall youngster jumping the ditch - the pony mare is so dedicated to you! :)

Hi William,
thankyou for the great articles i especially liked the photograph of when you were at the Fourburrow pony club!

This coming summer i have 2months holiday before i go back to university and i was thinking about coming over to work in Ireland. I would love to go somewhere where i could really improve my riding (show jumping mainly) and was wandering if you new of anywhere i could go?

with kind regards

Abi
(Bridgette Ash's daughter).

that's fab, thanks, I especially like 'love it or leave it'. So true! Fortunately I love it! As you clearly do.

hi william hows the planning going on the evening event if i can help let me know i will need to get tickets also bridgette

yes no prob i will get mum also hopefullyx

hi william we can be at redruth for 6.30 how many tickets have you sold i still need to contact david see you soon bridgette