Jon Sims and Mayfair [click here]

I hadn’t even seen a horse up-close until I was 27. I had just started a new job and met a woman in the office who turned out to be my future wife. Becky had been mad about horses from a young age and introduced me to her horse, Cassie, and Minnie the Donkey. I was really keen to try out riding for myself, but that was going to be difficult without a horse; Cassie was too small and too sharp, and the donkey would have eaten me for breakfast! Becky and I got married shortly after my 29th birthday and about a year after that some friends gave us their horse on loan. Mayfair is an ex-riding school horse and is just perfect for me. So at the age of 30, I started learning how to ride. My friends and family will tell you that I’m very determined (stubborn) and a bit of a perfectionist (my wife says I’m always right!). I’m almost convinced that I would drive anyone else mad with my fastidiousness and overwhelming desire to understand every intricacy of everything I do. Despite my “endearing qualities” in this regard, Di has been a brilliant instructor. She has really helped me to understand my riding and helped me to ride a bit more by “feel” and less with my head. She is always able to put a point into a context that I can understand. Mayfair and I really enjoy our training sessions with Di. We did our first Walk and Trot test after three months and got placed second; we missed out on first place by one mark because I got the test wrong (so much for the perfectionist in me!). We have since tried showing (it didn’t hold much interest for either of us) and jumping (now you’re talking!). We did our first show jumping course a month ago as part of a Combined Training test at a local riding club; we came away with a second in the Combined Training and a second in the dressage - you can see the rosettes in the photo. Apparently, when William Fox-Pitt’s father got married, he said to his wife: 'Either you're giving up riding or I'm taking it up because otherwise I'll never see you.' (I know the feeling!) So he took it up aged thirty-something and proceeded to ride round Badminton three times. … That’s something to aim for, isn’t it?