Doodle's Irish passport- so exciting! He's going to kick butt at the WEGs- I just know it!

It is so good to see you back in your proper place of having TWO blogs on the most popular blog list, one being some months old! Good work, William.

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

yes no prob i will get mum also hopefullyx

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

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

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).

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, 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

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

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!

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.

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

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

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.

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, 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.

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