For years all I wanted was a gelding, they were dependable, almost never moody, safe, they were the whole nine yards. Then I met Anke. Opinionated, strong willed and probably the safest horse I ever had the pleasure of riding. She feared absolutely nothing! She also changed my mind about mares. Mares are fantastic, give me a mare any day of the week.
And now that we are moving towards Women's Day, do other riders feel the same way?
Do they opt for a gelding or stallion? Powerful. Athletic. Charismatic.
Or like me were mares viewed differently? Valuable, certainly, but more often spoken about as future broodmares than future champions.
Yet something has been steadily changing.
Spend an afternoon watching top-level show jumping today and you'll notice something remarkable.
The girls are everywhere.
One after another, mares are clearing the open class tracks with breathtaking athleticism, precision and heart. They're winning Grand Prix classes, representing their countries and proving, beyond any doubt, that brilliance doesn't belong to one sex.
Perhaps we've become better breeders.
Perhaps we've become better trainers.
Perhaps we've simply become better at recognising talent when we see it.
Whatever the reason, today's top mares are extraordinary athletes.
What I love most is that they don't try to jump like stallions.
They jump like mares.
With intelligence.
With courage.
With incredible athleticism.
Every stride is a reminder that greatness comes in many forms.
As someone who has spent years around horses, watching these mares soar over fences fills me with admiration.
They don't know they're rewriting old assumptions.
They're simply doing what they were bred, trained and trusted to do.
And perhaps that's the lesson.
Sometimes the world doesn't change because someone argues loudly.
Sometimes it changes because excellence becomes impossible to ignore.
This Women's Day, here's to the girls—on two legs and four—who continue to prove that determination, ability and heart can never be measured by expectation.
Sometimes...
The girls don't just keep up.
They lead.