A special relationship

If you treat a horse with love, respect and consistency, it will do great things for you. Former eventer Lucinda Green, who enjoyed the heights of success on horses of all shapes, sizes and varying personalities, examines the nature of this centuries-old

Lucinda Green explores the deep age-old affinity between Man and horse

The bond that has bound Man to horse for time immemorial is founded on a beautiful observation by the poet and Arab breeder Ronald Duncan in The Horse. This was commissioned in 1964 and is read every year at the opening night of the horse of the Year Show:

Where in this wide world can man find

nobility without pride, Friendship without envy, or beauty without vanity? Here where grace is laced with muscle and

strength by gentleness confined It must be hard for those without an understanding of horses to comprehend how the one being that is capable of reason and another that is only capable of associating ideas can form such a deep connection. having shared every angle of my sport with the horse, I feel that anyone who only has football boots or a tennis racquet to hug is missing out on an entire dimension of life— even if their bank balance is infinitely healthier.

The relationship is built on the horse being able to sense what his rider wants and, provided a basic understanding has been trained in, willingly doing what is asked. Its strength is what enables man and horse to face up to the enemy in battle and to myriad challenges in competitive sport.

how does it work? I believe there is a seventh sense in the horse—if, indeed, we humans have six. Perhaps humans had this seventh sense until they learnt to talk. Perhaps talking took it away.

A horse knows instinctively if a rider is frightened or confident, angry or pleased, short of time or tuned in. he may behave in different ways with different people because, somehow, he senses the attitude of each person he’s with.

Bucephalus, one half of an all-conquering partnership with Alexander the Great, was another mystery. No one was able to mount this little horse except Alexander, so what did he have that others did not? The historian Robin Lane Fox, who was responsible for the authenticity of the feature film, asked me if it was possible for a horse to be frightened by his own shadow—he suspected that Alexander had worked this out because he rode Bucephalus before dawn.

‘A horse knows if a rider is frightened or confident, angry or pleased, short of time or tuned in

This is an age of an explosion of mental illness caused by many different elements, not least of which is the dramatic speed with which life and communication have evolved within a single generation. In this context, horses haven’t changed and their heartbeat and ancient affiliation with man become, in the madness of the everyday moment, a steadying, rooting influence to all of us involved with them. Such a connection forms a firebreak from modern life.

I’ve heard of a pony used by the charity Riding for the Disabled hearing a newcomer to the group, an autistic child, screaming at the far end of the indoor school. The pony took itself down to the child and nuzzled him, the child stopped screaming, the bond was given root and the reason why this and other similar charities can be so effective was exemplified for the umpteenth time.

Irishman Aidan O’brien, one of the all-time great racehorse trainers, is a joy to watch Leap of faith: Lucinda notches up a sixth Badminton win, on Beagle Bay in 1984