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A trainer from Yorkshire challenged herself to take a horse fresh from the racetrack and retrain him ready for Western riding. Emma Chapman, whose project is fundraising for the Injured Jockeys Fund and the Great North Air Ambulance, recently took on four-year-old Midnight Robbery, a horse who failed to make the grade in flat racing. The increasing popularity of Racehorse to Riding Horse classes was the inspiration for Emma’s challenge. She noticed that no one seemed to be training ex-racehorses in Western and found a gap in the market. Emma picked up Midnight Robbery earlier this month and the pair have already started their training – the aim is to compete in a Western show by the end of 2017. “I grew up a stone’s throw from Middleham and have always been surrounded by racehorses, often wondering what became of the ones that didn’t make the grade,” says Emma. “The American Quarterhorse is known as the fastest horse over a quarter of a mile (hence the name) so I thought it was only right to give the English Thoroughbred a chance!”