Aivly, Tack Shop and Country Store

A new addition to the BEDMAX range, LITTLEMAX shavings are designed specifically for horse owners who prefer a small flake shaving.
LITTLEMAX is dust free, very durable and absorbent and easy to use.
This is a very high quality, fine horse bedding with a light appearance.
LITTLEMAX is cut specifically for shavings and not as a bi-product.
LITTLEMAX shavings offer, minimal dust and maximum absorbency, comfort and protection.

Olympic event rider, Mary King, gave a wonderful insight into how her glittering career began and answered your questions during our open day on Saturday 19th November. If you missed it, her autobiography is available (priced £9.99). Her illuminating answers are given below.

1. What is your favourite food and what do you eat during a competition?

I love steak, dauphinoise potatoes with cream and garlic and I love puddings – especially sticky toffee pudding.  But at a competition I do go off my food and find it hard to eat so I have to make myself eat to keep going – and I always eat very well when I’ve finished.

2. How do you keep your energy levels up?

Luckily I don’t need a lot of sleep.  And I love what I’m doing – even just riding and hacking.  Eventing can be so disappointing – for instance when a horse goes lame at just the wrong time – but you have to keep your chin up.  And I believe in following your dreams and allowing yourself to enjoy yourself when it is going well.

3. How often do you have a day off and what would your dream day off involve?

I don’t take a day off at all during the competition season (March – October) but during this time of year I can use days off the yard to catch up on commitments for my sponsors (like attending events such as this open day at Aivly Tack Shop & Country Store).  This morning I watched my son, Freddie, play rugby and I love being able to spend time with him as he spends a lot of time farming with my husband David, while my daughter, Emily, and I, do a lot together.  I also love sunbathing and playing tennis.

4. Do you think there’s an advantage to breeding your own horses rather than buying?

There is an advantage to breeding your own horses as you only have yourself to blame rather than taking on a horse and having to sort out its troubles from previous riders.  But I’ve also been very lucky.   There are a lot of good riders who breed horses but don’t have success with them – and you don’t know what you’ll get.  King’s Temptress, who won Kentucky CCI**** this year and was placed at Burghley CCI**** had a full brother who was very big, with not very good conformation and he wasn’t very brave either, whereas she is amazing.

5. What do you think are the most beneficial fitness or exercise that a rider can do aside from riding to improve their fitness and riding?

How much extra exercise you need to do depends on how many horses you ride.  You don’t want to let your horse down by being loose or floppy and sitting heavy on his back towards the end of the course.  Going to the gym or running or any exercise is good and I really like playing tennis.

6. Which is your favourite one-day-event venue and why?

That’s a difficult question because there are so many amazing places like country estates that are not normally open to the public.  But I do love Gatcombe Park where the British Open Championships is held as it is really undulating, but also Barbury Castle near Marlborough – it is fantastic – but there are so many it is difficult to say. 

7. Which is your favourite three-day-event venue and why?

That has to be Badminton.  Burghley, Blenheim and others are all amazing but there’s something about Badminton – the tradition of it and the fact that there are so many people there it makes it so special.  There are something like 250.000 people and when thousands are watching you waiting for you as you come to the lake and hoping you fall off, you feel a real sense of relief if you jump through without getting wet!  Though really you don’t notice the crowd as you come to the fences as you have tunnel vision but when you land and gallop away and hear people shouting, “Come on Mary, Come on Archie – that’s Imperial Cavalier – it is just great.”

8. Do you like competing abroad and if so, why?

Oh it’s so exciting.  To go to European events we drive in the lorry to the docks and go on the ferry.  Before you go, you’ll get sent a list of other British riders going and we tend to join in together.  I’ll often share with William Fox-Pitt as he’s in Dorset so near me, and we usually go in his lorry.  It’s really smart so he’d rather go in his lorry and, I’d rather go in his lorry too! 

When you go further afield, we fly the horses.  I’ve taken horses to Kentucky in America and to the Olympics in Sydney and Hong Kong.  It’s amazing how well the horses fly.  You arrive at the airport – Stansted, Luton or Heathrow and the horses are loaded into crates – like going into a 2-horse trailer without a roof.  These crates are rolled up a slope into the belly of the airplane and the horses are stacked in rows of about eight across.  Each horse has his own hand luggage – a rug if it gets hold, small feeds for breakfast, lunch and supper, and an extra haynet.  The horses are kept a bit hungry and fed their hay as the engines start so they are keener on eating than worrying about the noise but event horses are so used to travelling they really are quite relaxed although they often share with young thoroughbreds destined for racing who are barely handled.  One experienced event groom goes with our horses and there is a team vet on the flight so the horses can be sedated if need be although that is rare.  The only scary bit is watching the plane take off from the ground as it takes off at a much gentler incline than a passenger flight and you can feel like the plane is going to fall out of the sky!

9.How often do your horses get schooled, jumped, galloped and hacked out in a week?

All the horses get one day off a week when they will spend a good half-day in the field.  If they’ve competed, their day off is the day after that.  The following day will be another quiet day as they will go on the horse-walker.  For the rest of the week, the horses will do fast work – that’s cantering or galloping every third or fourth day.  From my farm on the top of a hill, I have a 20minute hack down to a farmer’s field which has 300ft grassy incline.  The young horses may canter up it just once but depending on how fit I want the more experienced horses to be, they may canter up five times.  Then it’s a 600ft walk home!

The more experienced horses are actually only schooled once, and jumped once a week on average and it’s a real shame that we only compete them a handful of times each year.

But the novice horses that need to learn the job are jumped two or three times a week and schooled two or three times a week.

10. Are you more nervous watching Emily compete or riding for the British team?

I will sound like a callous mother but I’m far more nervous when I compete than for Emily.  Emily has got a young horse that she has produced herself and they made their British team debut at the European Championships this year.  That is at CCI* level and I know the horse is very capable and not going to fall over in a hurry so I’m not worried about her hurting herself.  I am more worried about her making a silly mistake as I know how upset she’ll be.

For my own nerves, the bigger the competition the more nervous you get but you do learn to cope.  I try to think positively and say to myself, you are here, you want to do it really, and I look at others riding and think, if they are doing it, so can I.  I also think, aren’t we lucky even to ride when on the other side of the world people are starving, so I may as well make the most of it. 

We are hosting our annual open day on Saturday 19th November and are very excited to announce that top British Event Rider Mary King will be visiting on the day between 2pm and 4pm.
Specialists will be on hand to offer expert advice on choosing the right products for you and your horse including:
Sam from Ariat will be able to advise and fit footwear and legwear to your requirements. (Buy any pair of Ariat boots between now and the Open Day and you will automatically be entered into a prize draw for a pair of Ariat Grasmere boots) winner to be announced on the day.
Roger from Rodney Powell will be available to check you have the right body protector and assist with fitting and advising of the most suitable one for you.
Meet Mike from Horseware and decide which rug your horse needs to keep the winter weather at bay. (Buy any Horseware rug before the Open Day and be entered into the prize draw for a Horseware Rhino Rug) winner to be announced on the day.
Also on display with special offers on the day will be rugs from Chelsea Equestrian, Mark Todd and Weatherbeeta.
Questions on feeding, supplements or worming?
Ask one of the specialists from Badminton Horse Feeds, NAF or Pfizer to decide which of the extensive range of products available at Aivly are best for your horse.
Everyone will be welcome on the day to meet Mary King, talk to the professionals and enjoy the Hog Roast.