November 2009November 2009 £4.50 £4.50

The only monthly magazine dedicated to sport and recreation with the harness horse.

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PEDIGREE OF A DOG CARTPEDIGREE OF A DOG CART

ARE MODERN DESIGNS RIGHT ARE MODERN DESIGNS RIGHT FOR AN EXERCISE VEHICLEFOR AN EXERCISE VEHICLE

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A delighted James Rooney, Minta’s groom on the day, with Thorneyside the Foreman, Xerox Special Event Services Harness Champion of the Year.

Last year’s champion and this year’s reserve champion, Lucy Smith with Royal Sunshine

November 2009 Carriage Driving 17

Fourteen of the 16 qualifiers came forward for judging here, undertaken by Deborah Holt-Atkinson and Beth Foster. For the first time since the Harness Champion began at HOYS it was

judged as a private driving class – that is in the same way as the qualifiers for this occasion had been judged through the summer. “This, I think, is how most people felt it should be judged,” said Deborah. “We judged on all the criteria stated in the 2009 BDS Yearbook.”

As these criteria also stated, the class was divided into two sections, the top four from each one going forward to the final judging. “It was divided by odd and even exhibitor numbers,” said Beth Foster. “It might seem a bit random but it was the fairest way to do it. You couldn’t divide into horses and ponies or Hackney and non-Hackneys because it hadn’t been allocated that way and you couldn’t be sure the numbers would work out.”

Both judges acknowledged that this did actually produce one much stronger section, but that was just the luck of the draw. “Ideally,” Beth continued. “The seven that were judged first should come back into the ring and line up, then the judges could pull forward the eight best overall. It would have produced a different result lower down the line here.”

EIGHT FORWARDThe eight that went forward to the final judging were Lucy Smith with her Hackney pony Royal Sunshine, John Bulmer with Morgan Monnington Overture, Melanie Vyse with Hackney pony Glenshane Playboy, Minta Winn with Mike Clark’s Section D Thorneyside the Foreman, Andrew Hamilton-Rhodes with his and John Hollister’s Hackney Brookeborough Duke, John Dobson with cob mare St Helen’s Regency Katie, Nicola Salter with son Oliver’s Section A Thistledown Eric and Jess Dudley-Apicella with Hackney pony Brookfield Showtime.

Starting at fourth place, this was claimed by John Dobson with St Helen’s Regency Katie, the mare that has done so well for him over a number of seasons; in third place was Andrew Hamilton-Rhodes with the ever-striking-to-the-eye Brookeborough Duke. Breaths were held as the judges deliberated over the two remaining top competitors – last

year’s champion Lucy Smith and this year’s BDS Osborne Refrigerators Supreme Champion, Minta Winn.

AND THE CHAMPION WASThorneyside the Foreman, aka George, thereby executing a unique double of Harness Champion of the Year and BDS National Private Driving Champion in the same year, something no one else has so far achieved. “It’s a terrific coup,” said the horse’s delighted owner Mike Clarke. “It was incredibly nerve-wracking but a wonderful result. Joan Thomas always said this was the best horse she ever had – the only one she cried over when he left!”

Mike paid tribute to the work Minta has done in producing the horse this year and also to the generous sponsorship he has had from a friend allowing him to fulfil this dream. And Minta, in turn, paid tribute to the help she has had from James Rooney who has been riding the horse during training. “James was director of Irish Dressage and chef d’equip for the Irish dressage team,” Minta explained. “He rides at the highest level and we discussed how to put what he produced in the ridden training into the driven performance. It undoubtedly made George more supple through his back.”

The judges were unanimous in their decision although acknowledged that Lucy Smith and Royal Sunshine were very close runners-up. “For me the champion gave of its best right from the start,” said Deborah. “It looked good from the moment it came into the ring.”

“It behaved beautifully,” Beth agreed. “It is a proper old-fashioned private driving turnout and it exactly fits the criteria.”

Mike Clarke has taken a decision not to show George at HOYS again. “He’ll come back to me now and I’ll be showing him next year, possibly even at HOYS qualifiers,” he said. “But he won’t show at HOYS again – this win is enough.”

Hopefully we will see the reserve champions, Lucy Smith with Royal Sunshine, out again next year – they add a style and pizzazz to any private driving class. “There’s lots left in him yet,” said Lucy’s mother, Julie. “I’m sure she’ll be driving him next year. Whether she shows something else too – well, that’s a decision for her dad!”

MINTA DOES THE DOUBLE - THE HORSE OF THE YEAR SHOWThe Xerox Special Event Services Harness Champion of the Year at HOYS followed hot on the heels of the Towerlands event so, for many, it meant a quick turnaround to head up the road to Birmingham. Sadly this year the judging was on the Thursday and was all done and dusted in the morning with no glamorous evening performance under the lights for the champions. Words by Sally Taylor, photos Dicky Jim.

John Dobson with St Helen’s

Regency Katie, who stood in a

creditable fourth place.

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Triumph at the Triumph at the Osborne Refrigerators Osborne Refrigerators

BDS National Championships

The fruit and fl owers donated by Johnny Vyse and auctioned by Jim Noad from the costers trolley raised £1,200 for Riding and Driving for the Disabled.

34 Carriage Driving November 2009 November 2009 Carriage Driving 35

The 19 classes that make up the Osborne Refrigerators Championships were generally well supported with a good number of those entered in each class coming forward –

always good to see. A few classes mixed in with the Hackney Horse Society Championships through daylight hours on Saturday in the indoor arena, with the Light Trade, Exercise Vehicle and Young Driver Championships running as part of the evening performance. The remainder of the classes, which all produce a champion, took place on Sunday, the supreme championship of course being the crowning action.

Foreman wows the judgesStarting at the Finale then – all nine champions from the day came forward to be given the customary two minutes to impress judges Sophie Adkins, Phyllis Gouedart and Elizabeth Russell, who had been judging over the two days together with Shirley Higgins, Elizabeth Russell, Johanna Jenkins and Martin Atkinson.

With each judge having the usual maximum of 10 marks to award the winning score this year – as last – the championship was won with 26 points. And it went to Minta Winn driving Mike Clarke’s Thorneyside the Foreman, (this month’s cover star) this duo having

champion. This was Eddie Smith with the Smith Bros’ Baldwins John Boy – winners of another very, very good class, the Hackney type, which had eight forward. Eddie is no stranger to success here – in fact, read on and you will find out he took home more than this reserve championship this weekend – but he was particularly pleased with the high-stepping liver chestnut here. “We’ve had him for four years and shown him for three,” Eddie explained. “Until this season I could never be sure how he would perform each time we went out, but this year he’s been on the button each time.”

Two pony championships from the day were the closest challengers behind champion and reserve. The first of these to strut their stuff in the final judging was the ever-successful Thistledown Eric shown by Nicola Salter and owned by her son Oliver. They were the champions here last year and had once again – for the fifth time in fact – headed the Section A and B class. The immaculate little grey Section A may look a tad whiter as the years go by, but his performance is still as good as it gets. There were tears in Nicola’s eyes as she explained this would be his last time in the show ring as a single, except for HOYS the following week. “We really can’t ask any more of him,”

she remarked. “He’s done it all – and then again. He’s taken the championship here twice and also been reserve.”

At 13-years-old, no one would accuse Eric of not having lots more in the tank

yet, and it is just possible we might see him in the lead of a

tandem in the future. Meantime, look out next season for a Hackney that the Salters plan to bring out, probably with husband Malcolm at the reins.

Eric’s score in the finals was 24 points as was Trehewyd Brenin Arthur’s, the sprightly bay Section C owned by Team Fuller and

driven here to champion spot in the country turnout class by young driver Oakley Fuller. This was another big class with nine forward and a very difficult one for judge Phyllis Gouedart. Faced with the job, she pulled them in in reverse order and when there was just two going round – Oakley and ‘Toby’ and Jeff Osborne with his lovely tri-coloured cob, The Poacher, put to a superb Norfolk cart it would have been a brave spectator who might have predicted the winner.

Oakley was both thrilled and a little surprised. “Jeff’s turnout is so lovely,” she said. “I was just happy at that moment to be in the last two!”

Their success was all the more laudable in that Toby has only been out once before this season when he qualified. “He was to have this year off,” Oakley’s uncle Nigel (grooming here) explained, “but he qualified at a show in the spring where we took him to have a little play. He’s done virtually nothing all summer except for the odd hack round the roads, so we pulled him out of the field two weeks ago, gave him a bath and Oakley has driven him every day since.”

He was put to a delightful cocking cart or tandem dog cart which belonged to that great doyenne of the showring, Cynthia Sheerman and his harness was a wonderful quality old set that belonged to Eunice Binder, currently

AAC of Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Huntingdon BDS. Oakley’s outfit (designed by Nigel from the great designer ‘Charity Shop’) was the perfect complement!

Oakley actually qualified twice for the final championship line-up, also winning the single non-Hackney type 13.2hh and under, this time driving Team Fuller’s little grey pony Twink. As has been the case all season, this was one of the smaller entry classes but the others forward were all winners from somewhere so were ‘all to be beaten’. Oakley has been driving the mare all season in open and junior classes. “I’ve been pleased with the way she has gone all season but we have probably done best in junior classes,” Oakley remarked.

The pony has been with the Fullers for three years, bought as ‘skin-and-bone’. “She was so skinny that she was really ugly,” said Nigel who drove the pony in the championship here. “But you could see she had the movement.”

Champions allThe single non-Hackney type over 13.2hh was an altogether bigger class with nine forward. The winner, who of course went forward to the championship, was Julie Elliott with her Morgan mare GWM Duchess of Monaco and she was more than delighted to find herself in top position. “She is such an honest and kind mare and I feel I often let her down,” said Julie.

Julie bought the liver chestnut from America having seen her on a three-minute-long video. “I just liked the look of her,” she smiled. The mare was with Gary Docking for a year shown by Jan Manning and Julie has been showing her herself for two years.

The third year of the Osborne Refrigerators BDS National Championships and the Hackney Horse Society Championships at Towerlands Arena in Braintree looked a well settled and bedded-in event. Entries, it

seems, were roughly those of 2006 and 2007 – spectator attendance, however, was up this year. Here Sally Taylor looks at the triumphs of the Osborne Refrigerators Championships. Photos by Dicky Jim.

Over from Ireland, Norman Brown’s Rosehall Tara Maiden driven by Alexander

Presho took the Carriage Driving Magazine Coloured Horse Championship.

In the coster’s class Michael Burgess with his cob, Brimstone the Fenman carried off the red rosette.

Trehewyd Brenin Arthur, the Section C owned by Team Fuller and driven by

young whip Oakley Fuller to win the country turnout class.

Jill Oliver, winner of the Donkey and Mule Championship, with her single winner Mix and Match.

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Original Principles Original Principles and Modern Practiceand Modern Practice

Traditionally designed vehicles can move smoothly and level, even at a spanking trot.

50 Carriage Driving November 2009

Great excitement! My younger sister and I, both pony-mad and pony-less, have been invited to go out for a drive with Mr Bury,

who has a small roan cob and a governess car. Mr Bury tells us to sit in a position which allows the shafts to float in the tugs, making the tongues in the tug buckles gently chatter as they open and close. We are delighted to oblige, and shift gently back and forth as the road beneath the wheels rises or falls. That was in the late 1950s.

Fast-forward 20-odd years, and I am sitting on the box seat of my own brand new Jackson exercise vehicle, and learning how to make the necessary adjustments to the seat and harness, so that I can hear again the gentle chatter of the tug buckles as the shafts float at trot. Deep joy! In time we acquired a Mulliner dogcart for showing, and this was the ultimate driving experience. The vehicle gave a wonderfully level and comfortable ride, ironing out lumps and bumps with its big wheels, flexible shafts and elliptical springing.

Add on another 20 years, and no longer a horse owner, I ride with others on their own or RDA vehicles. Now it is often impossible to get the vehicles to balance at trot, and folk think it is normal to get a regular beating in the kidneys from the seat backrest! This led me to question why the shafts wouldn’t float at trot with many of today’s vehicles, which in turn raised other issues related to exercise cart designs.

Sue Millard’s article on balanced draught, published in this magazine in April 2008, spurred me on to get answers. If anyone has not yet read this very informative piece, I strongly recommend it. I got further valuable information from the essay on “Basic Measurements for Gigs”, by Dr Gordon S Cantle, (published by the American Carriage Museum).

Optimum conditionsSo what are the factors which create the optimum conditions for both horse and carriage occupants? What made 2-wheelers of the 1890 - 1910 era (arguably the zenith of British carriage design) so comfortable for horses and passengers? Let’s look at some of them.

Big wheels (Figures 1 & 2)– these are easy to pull, especially over obstacles. Large wheels have less rolling resistance for several reasons. Firstly, they won’t drop as much into a small hole as a smaller wheel would. Secondly, they have greater leverage for lifting the wheel over bumps. Thirdly, there is less deformation of the tyre at the contact patch on the ground (this absorbs energy). Fourthly, smaller wheels generate faster rotation speeds, which will have higher frictional losses at the hub. The easier it is for a wheel to

roll over the dips and bumps on the ground, the less effort is needed to pull, and the less shock is transmitted through the traces and the shafts to the draught animal, and the greater the comfort of the passengers.

Article 1 - Exercise vehicle design

Jacky Sinclair looks at 2-wheelers used for exercise and pleasure driving.

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.dickyjim.co.uk

Figure 1:The bigger wheel rides more smoothly and with less shock over an obstacle. (Brown line traces hub of large wheel; blue line traces hub of small wheel.)

November 2009 Carriage Driving 51

Narrow tyres (Figure 3)– this takes us back to the size of the footprint on the ground. The larger this is, the more friction there will be, especially in turns.

Good springing – absorbs shock for passengers AND the horse’s back. The full energy of any wheel impact is reduced, and less is transmitted to the horse via the shafts.

Flexible shafts - absorb shock for passengers AND the horse’s back. Traditional vehicles are sometimes promoted in adverts as having “lively shafts”, with lancewood being one of the preferred timbers. Its combined strength and flexibility means that vertical movement from either the horse or the carriage is dissipated in transmission between the two.

High box seat – this gives a really good view over horse and harness, and along the road to read the traffic ahead. It’s easier to use the whip accurately when you’re looking down on the horse’s

back. The reins can be a straight line from the hand to horse’s mouth, clear of touching the quarters and possible fouling on back-strap/loin strap points.

High axle (Figure 4)– the seating is not too far above the axle, making it easier to stay balanced on the move.

Dashboard level with horse’s croup – no possibility of being sprayed with ordure, and some protection if the horse kicks back.

New featuresLet’s now consider modern exercise vehicle designs, and see what makes them so attractive. They are certainly economical, and therefore available to many more people. They’re usually tough and durable, so they stand up to everyday and off-road usage. Some can be dismantled, and others are relatively compact, making it easier to transport them to rallies and events.

This is all great news for the majority of us who have to drive on a budget. Driving can only succeed and continue if vehicles are affordable and suited to modern requirements. But more and more vehicles are home-made, or produced to a price rather than a standard, and the old established criteria for draught effectiveness and wheel mechanics have been abandoned. So what are the disadvantages of some modern design features?

Small wheels – more difficult to pull a load, especially over rough (and soft) ground, leading to impact transmitted through the traces and shafts.

Rigid steel shafts - rougher ride for passengers, and shock transmitted to the horse. There’s also potential for metal fatigue where shafts join the cart body, as this is where they will try to flex, especially if the traces’ angle of draught is out of line with the axle.

Hard suspension – rougher ride for passengers, and shock transmitted to the horse. For speed off-road, a firmer suspension might be preferred, but the firmer it is, the more the potential for discomfort at both ends of rigid shafts. We’re aiming at pleasure driving here!

Low axle/higher trace-hooks (Figure 5)– a low axle with higher trace-hooks makes the work more difficult for the horse. Where the trace line of draught is above the axle, the vehicle will be pulled forward and down over the top of the axle, when in draught. The horse has to resist the downward pressure of the shafts as this happens. This rotational pull can cause the vehicle to rock at trot, even though

Figure 2:The bigger wheel sinks less into a rut, resulting in less strain on the horse. (Brown line traces hub of large wheel; blue line traces hub of small wheel.)

Figure 3:a) A narrow tyre easily follows a curve with little friction either side of the centre line.b) A broad tyre creates friction on both sides of the centre line, as the outside edge moves faster and the inside edge moves slower.

Figure 4:The greater the distance from axle to seat, the greater the tendency to rock.

Figure 5The red line represents the line of draught from the collar to the axle, turning through an angle at the trace hooks.The broken blue line represents the true line of draught. Any resistance to the vehicle’s forward motion (heavy load, rough or soft ground, lumps or dips) will put pressure on the shafts, as the actual line of draught tries to conform to the true line of draught. Because shaft movement is restricted by the tugs, there will be stress where the shafts meet the body.

52 Carriage Driving November 2009

the weight is distributed evenly over the axle and it seems to ride level at walk, where the pull is less dynamic. Tightening the belly band to reduce shaft movement won’t stop the cart rocking, as the rigid shafts then rise and fall with the horse’s trotting motion, and so jog the cart.

Lower box seat – not such a good view over horse and harness, and down the road ahead, and less easy to use the whip accurately. The reins might not be a straight line to horse’s mouth, with friction created as the rein bends through a rein terret. The reins might touch the quarters or catch on back-strap/loin strap points.

Dashboard below horse’s dock – I’ve seen it happen. A horse with a stomach upset sprayed slurry straight out the rear end and all over an RDA passenger. Yuk!!!

Conclusions At least one vehicle manufacturer has addressed some of these problems and offers large wheels, sprung metal shafts, and optional traditional springing. The ride will be worth the extra cost in terms of horse and passenger comfort.

We need to understand much more about the principles of traditional vehicle design, based as they are on horse anatomy, and the laws of physics. We can then make informed decisions about the effects of designs which stray from these principles. This might include being aware that the load we ask our equine to pull should be reduced if the wheels are small and the tyres wide. Maybe we should look critically at the motion of the vehicle. Is it smooth and level? Is any bounce transmitted to the horse’s back, and can passengers with bad backs tolerate it? Are our horses perhaps gamely putting up with a range of factors which make pulling the vehicle more difficult for them?

You and your equine should be as comfortable as possible when exercising and pleasure driving. You’re both worth it!

Future articles will look at issues such as:• harness developments which would work better with modern vehicles• traditional driving practices which might still have a place in pleasure

driving.

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.dickyjim.co.uk

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