Mary King and Imperial Cavalier at Badminton. Photo by Jenni Autry.
Mary King’s newest book, Mary King, My Way: How I Train for Success is chock full of valuable information from one of the most experienced event riders in the sport’s history. With countless accolades adorning her CV, picking up a copy of her autobiography or her latest book is sure to yield many tips for success.
In her newest book, which you can find here, Mary compiles a list of 10 ways to become successful in the sport of eventing — and realistically these tips can all be applied to every walk of life. It’s a solid reminder of the skill set and determination it takes to make it in this sport, and Mary speaks from experience when she talks through each bullet point.
Our friends over at Horse & Hound have printed the list of success tips in its entirety, which you can read here. Here are a few examples to get you started:
Understanding and coping with tension
Tension can be caused by a variety of reasons — excitement on the part of the horse, anticipation of the work ahead, nervousness, not trusting the rider. Therefore, find ways of easing the pressure for your horse and helping him to relax — perhaps through lots of steady work, hacks and plenty of turnout. A tense horse will be much happoer to be out 24/7 and ideally with a calm companion.
Coping with the lows
Difficult though it may be at the time, try to take a positive out of a negative situation. In eventing, you have to be able to cope with the lows if you want to continue eventing and compete for a long time. And don’t let yourself get too low in the lows. Simply work out what went wrong, why it went wrong, how you can make it right and how it could have been prevented. Then enjoy the good times!
Choosing the right horse
Don’t be too proud and persist with a horse who’s not living up to your dreams. If a horse you’ve bought — who you thought would be top class — is not enjoying the work and not performing consistently well for the level of training he’s at, be prepared to bite the bullet and sell him on to someone who’s less competitive and happy to compete at the lower levels. Keep looking for that right horse — there will be one out there for you.
You can read the remaining seven pieces of advice by visiting Horse & Hound here. And don’t forget to order a copy of Mary King, My Way for yourself here. We’re sure it will be a worthwhile addition to your library!
