Long Trot Read online

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  First published by CreateSpace 2015 001

  Copyright © Grant Nicolle, 2015

  Printed on demand in USA by Amazon

  ISBN: 978-1503338692 Foreword by Amy Williams MBE "I was privileged to have met Grant in 2010, after competing in the Vancouver Olympics. He had heard about my love of horses, and had invited me to visit and ride some of the wonderful horses of The King’s Troop in Woolwich, London. Whilst out riding 'William' the huge black horse I'd been given for the day, Grant had told me about his long ride across Britain.

  It's been wonderful now to read "Long Trot 2007" about his adventurous ride on Marv, his horse, and how together they completed the huge task of riding through our country. Listening to the challenges and tasks thrown at them was inspiring and refreshing. Next time I think I need to get an invite to join in!"

  With Amy at The King’s Troop’s new barracks in W oolwich Amy Williams is no stranger to challenges. After winning Great Britain's only gold medal at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, she has been busy as a rally GB co-driver, excelled in the Arctic survival show ‘71 Degrees North’, survived Discovery Channels 'Alone in the Wild', featured as a co-presenter on Ski Sunday and is soon to be part of Channel 5's ‘The Gadget Show’. Amy has had a passion for horses all her life and is a very gifted and natural rider.

  Notes on Long Trot 2007

  Contents

  Background

  Preparing for the trip

  Week 1

  . Week 2

  Week 3

  Week 4

  Week 5

  Week 6

  Week 7

  Week 8

  Week 9

  Week 10

  Week 11

  Week 12

  Summary of route / miles

  Glossary

  Acknowledgements

  Background In my last year in the Army, serving as a Captain in the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery (RHA), I had the privilege of being part of the 2003 Edinburgh Military Tattoo. This enabled me to ride at the front of a procession of Army horses towing World War One field guns up the historic Royal Mile (to the delight of the many tourists). On each performance night, our military cavalcade was held just outside the Castle esplanade to wait for our turn to make an entrance into the Tattoo arena. One night, whilst waiting to go in, as I was sitting high on my 18 hand charger in the half darkness, on the ancient cobbles surrounded by period buildings, wearing traditional RHA uniform with sword in hand, I felt like I had been sent back in time to many centuries earlier. To be in uniform and mounted just outside Edinburgh Castle set off my imagination of what it must have been like to travel on horses in centuries past. This was the occasion where the seed of the idea of the ride started.

  Taking the salute at the Tattoo on 18hh Able Three years later, in the autumn of 2006, I decided that I would commit to travel from John o’ Groats to Land’s End with a horse. This expedition would put into practice elements of my previous military training and combine it with my passion for travel and exploring new places. The concept of the challenge was to travel solo with a horse and without the need of a following support vehicle or replacement horse. A hundred years ago this would not have been unusual, when horses were the main form of transport. Now that horses are being kept mostly for sport or recreational purposes, the myriad of bridleways that were once so well used now rarely see the quantity of hoof prints of yesteryear. Before I go into the details of the trip itself, and to help provide some context as to what contributed to my decision to undertake it, I will provide a summary on how I became interested in horses, and my relatively short history of riding both before and during my time in the Army.

  My passion for horses started in Shropshire in the ‘90s, when Rob, a school friend, ran a livery yard near Bridgnorth. After telling him I was keen to learn to ride, he obligingly took me out for a few hacks. During the hacks he gave me tips on how to improve my riding as he was a qualified Assistant Instructor. I loved to ride fast, but realistically I had no real control. The equine theme continued soon after at Oxford Brookes University when I became quite keen on Caroline, a girl on my course, who owned and competed event horses. I was lucky enough to be invited down to stay at her family’s estate in Hampshire. After some persuasion, Caroline agreed to take me out for a hack. During the ride I optimistically suggested we might canter around a stubble field. Very shortly after we started to canter Caroline rode over and grabbed my horse’s reins, and I was unceremoniously brought back to a halt. She announced that I was too unskilled to be cantering on her horse, therefore the hack was effectively over and we returned “in walk” back to the yard. I was inwardly very disgruntled after been told that I was not proficient. This to me amounted to a personal challenge which would later help influence the direction of my career path.

  After university, I joined the Army in 1997 and completed the Officers Commissioning Course at the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. From completing Sandhurst in spring 1998, I joined the Regiment of the Royal Artillery (RA). Now a Second Lieutenant, I attended the six month Young Officer’s course at the Royal School of Artillery at Larkhill in Wiltshire. This was a great course (especially the social life) where around 20 of us were taught the specialist skills required to be an Artillery Officer.

  As part of this military course we were expected to attend at least one traditional early morning riding lesson before breakfast each week. Most of the Young Officers (YOs) did not find this activity much fun, but Dave, Wardy and I absolutely loved the experience, often going twice a week by taking the places of other more reluctant YOs. On many occasions we would ride even when we had not been to bed, having been up socialising at the YO’s bar until dawn. My riding came on a little, but I knew I still had a long way to go to be considered competent as demonstrated by another event.

  One weekend I suggested to the Sergeant in charge of the RA stables that Dave and I were perhaps good enough to take two Army horses out for a hack onto the adjacent Salisbury Plain. The stables were only a few hundred metres from the perimeter fence, and from there it was open countryside, with no fences for miles. On the Plain there was also the RA racecourse, around which I was keen to gallop. Dave was not so confident and gave caution to the idea. However, I managed to persuade the Sergeant to lend us the horses. After receiving permission, we nervously tacked the horses up ourselves (having only just learnt how to do so) and were told the code for the lock on the gate to the Plain. Off we rode round Larkhill camp looking for the said gate. We had forgotten to ask directions as to where the gate was.

  My horse immediately got very excited about going on the hack and started jogging on the spot and frothing at the mouth. This worried me, as I had never experienced this sort of equine behaviour, and so when we came across a rugby field I naively thought that if I gave my horse a good canter round the pitch it might calm down a little. Little did I know! Off we went, galloping round and round the pitch with no brakes and little steering. Dave sat calmly in the middle of the pitch on his mellow horse watching me and suggesting that the hack might not have been such a good idea. He was right. I could not stop the speeding horse, and the situation felt dangerous. I ended up having to steer it at a very steep bank in the hope that it would just stop and not try and climb up it. Fortunately the horse did stop just long enough for me to jump off, and we began the walk of shame back to the stables. We were embarrassed even further as, just as we came to the yard, two young teenage girls were hacking out on similar horses and enquired if we were ok. I really needed to learn how to ride properly!

  After the YO’s course at Larkhill I was posted to
my first regiment which was 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery (7 Para RHA), based in Aldershot. As an officer in 7 Para RHA you were required to pass P Company, which is an arduous 4 weeks physical selection process, then held in Catterick, Yorkshire. The main emphasis of this course is to test the robustness of one’s physical stamina, courage and commitment. This is achieved by undergoing numerous long speed marches with 35lb bergens (military rucksacks) and weapon together with other physically demanding activities. It is designed to ensure that individuals have the self-motivation to endure physical hardship and also complete potentially unsavoury tasks such as jumping out of an aeroplane when required to do so. At the end of the course those that pass are awarded their maroon beret. I wore mine with pride upon my return to 7 Para RHA’s Officers’ Mess. Completing P Company and undertaking other similar arduous physical training exercises in my time in the Army certainly helped give me the confidence that I could complete the trip.

  The last course I had to complete at 7 Para RHA was my jumps course. This was a 4 week parachute training course held at Royal Air Force (RAF) Brize Norton in Oxfordshire. My late father (then a Squadron Leader in the RAF) had just left Brize Norton as the Officer Commanding Military Training Flight (OCMTF) and he had, in his last month as OCMTF, given out parachute wings to the previous course (which included my Sandhurst platoon colleague Colin from 1 Para) just before my arrival. So I missed getting my wings from him by one course. My father (and our family) had been posted to RAF Brize Norton three times in total, and so I was very familiar with the air base and the surrounding area. It transpired that I would be returning there years later with a horse.

  Having now earned my maroon beret and parachute wings, I was a fullyfledged officer in 7 Para RHA. Once established there, I soon found the local military stables in Aldershot town and started having lessons there. This was certainly an attempt to continue to improve my riding, and nothing to do with the appeal of the pretty female civilian riding instructor. However, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) were in the process of selling off the stables, so my time there was cut short.

  During my time in Aldershot I was asked at short notice to be part of the Regiment’s Modern Pentathlon team for the Army Championships, to be held at Sandhurst. 7 Para RHA ensured everyone’s fitness levels were permanently kept high and I could just about sit on a horse, but had probably only show jumped once before, and I certainly had never fenced. Day one of the competition saw us complete the air pistol shooting which was being held in the squash court. I did not manage a good score as I had gone night clubbing to Guildford the night before, and my hand was still shaking. Then came the swim which we did ok at as a team of 3. Straight after lunch, we went to the gym where Craig (who had competed for Great Britain as a junior at Modern Pentathlon) showed me some basic fencing moves. I then managed to surprise some of the competitors with my unorthodox and unskilled fencing style, winning half my bouts. On Saturday night it was the Regiment’s Summer Ball, and for once I laid off the booze as we were in a good position in the competition. On Sunday it was up early and into No.2 Dress jacket and breeches for the show jumping. I can remember being quietly confident about my chances, but having no clue really as to how to complete a round of show jumps properly. During the warm up I discovered that the horse I was allocated was massive and could clearly jump. When it was my time in the arena I somehow made it round the course with a few minor faults and actually crossed the finish, before my horse turned sharply and tried to jump another fence. The horse and I parted company. I took a bow, dusted my uniform down and walked out of the arena with the horse in hand. Fortunately my time still counted and I managed to gain a good amount of points for the team. After the run, 7 Para RHA went on to win the team event and I came 5th overall somehow, not bad for never having fenced or really show jumped. Despite this relative success it would have been a better result had I not fallen off.

  Midway through my tour (of 3 years) at 7 Para RHA, I was asked to choose which regiment I wanted next as a posting. I had heard good things about The King’s Troop RHA, which was a mounted ceremonial unit, based in St John’s Wood, London. I had met some of their officers when I was recruiting officer for 7 Para RHA and they seemed a good sort. In 2000 I stayed at The King’s Troop for 2 weeks in the summer on a short riding course. This course is held annually to promote riding in the military and also provides extra manpower for The King’s Troop and some respite for Troop soldiers. The hours were long, the mucking out and stable management hard work, but for this effort we were rewarded by riding twice a day. It was this unique experience that helped me to decide that this was the posting I should apply for. When I told the Commanding Officer of my choice, I was warned that at my (relatively late) age in the Army, getting posted to The King’s Troop was tantamount to career suicide, as it was outside mainstream gunnery. Despite his advice, I had made my mind up, and was fortunate to be accepted. I was duly posted there when my tour at 7 Para RHA ended. At least I should now be taught how to ride properly. Thanks Caroline.

  After my posting to The King’s Troop was confirmed, it was suggested that I go to Sandhurst and hack out with a King’s Troop Bombardier (Artillery rank of Corporal) who worked at the stables there. He would also be able to help assess my riding ability and report back to the Troop. The Bombardier will remain nameless, but he very likely purposely mounted me on a horse which had just had a recent scare and was prone to bolting. As soon as we had walked into the Barossa training area at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS) and broke into a trot, my horse accelerated quickly and began galloping away with me. It was all I could do just to stay on. The Bombardier chased after me on his horse calling for me to “hang on in there”. We galloped madly through the trees, where only a few years earlier I had been on exercise myself as an Officer Cadet. As we rounded a bend I saw a rapidly approaching platoon of Officer Cadets marching in formation. With no control, it was all I could do to shout “get out of the way!” whereby the Cadets unceremoniously and rapidly scattered off the forest track. I apologised to the directing staff as I sped through the swiftly emptied track. The horse finally became tired after about a mile and came back to a walk. The Bombardier caught up with me and told me he thought I did ok as I was still in the saddle. I am not sure that saddling me with that particular horse was a wise choice. Some test that was! On the plus side, I learnt that even on a runaway horse all is not lost.

  In September 2001, I left 7 Para RHA to start my 6 month military riding instructor’s course at Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire. The King’s Troop send all their new officers on this course. The course is held at the Defence Animal Centre (DAC), which is the home of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps (RAVC). The DAC also has a vet hospital, the Army School of Farriery, the Military Dog Training School as well as the Army School of Equitation. The AMEC (Advanced Military Equitation Course) is an incredible course and it is a privilege to have completed it. The course runs once a year and has only twelve riders on it. The riders come from the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment (HCMR), which is based in Knightsbridge Barracks (London), The King’s Troop, RAVC and the Royal Mews. We had three from the Troop on the course and I was the only officer. The course was primarily for experienced riders who were sent there to be trained to be military riding instructors. The others on the course had all completed many years in the Army and could all ride to quite a good standard. I started the course as the least experienced by far.

  The first day of the AMEC saw us all getting checked for our riding ability. We were taken by the instructors around the DAC’s own cross country course. I was petrified, as I had only show jumped maybe three times before. Most of the young guys loved it, and somehow I managed to stay on and survive the first of many frightening experiences. There was a huge amount to learn just to close the gap with my peers on the course, but this was the right place to be taught.

  A typical day’s routine started early with mucking out, and then yard had to be swept spotless before headi
ng back to the Mess for a shower and breakfast. Lessons started at 0900. We had three rides a day as well as lessons in the classroom and stable management in the yard. There was a large military forge co-located on the yard and they were always busy keeping the horses well shod. The equine section had a large number of resident fully trained Army horses which were looked after by a group of civilian female grooms. All these particular horses were capable of show jumping and cross country, but many also had some nasty equine habits which would help teach us how to handle difficult horses. Some were prone to rearing or bucking (or both) and we soon learned each particular horse’s bad traits. We were allocated two of these horses to ride every day for one week, and so when the list was read out naming our next two horses we would all hope not to have the really troublesome ones. As the course went on we discovered that some horses were great at cross country but would rear during flat work and military rides. Others were fine for everything except when in the show jumping arena, where some specialised in binning unsuspecting riders. I had my fair share of falls, but one unlucky chap broke his leg after landing badly from a fall whilst show jumping. We were then down to eleven.

  As well as the two full trained horses we rode daily, in the first half of the course our 3rd ride was to be a half trained horse, which we were allocated and introduced to in the second week. Half trained horses are ones which have either only been backed and barely ridden, or have been sent to the DAC for re-schooling. I was given a horse called Beatrix, an older mare (twelve year old), who was safe but quite thick skinned and needing retraining (a fair description of me too). Our job with the half trained horses was to take these on and complete their training to enable them to be a fully trained horse. Thereafter they would be capable of going off to work in one of the many Army riding clubs in the UK and Germany.

  At the half way point in the course there was a change; we rode one fully trained horse, one half trained horse and were given our remount horses. Remounts are the name for unbroken Army horses. Ours had been bought up to a year previously and had been living wild as a herd in the local fields up until this point. All had shaggy coats and two foot long manes. I was lucky again as my designated horse was a laid back gelding (who ended up in my Section at the Troop two years later). Our job with the remounts was to back them and teach them to walk, trot and canter and be able to jump a small number of show jumps. We had three months to complete this training. I thought this was a particularly interesting part of the course but some of the HCMR riders were given very wild horses in comparison to mine, and consequently there was some spectacular falls in the indoor school.