I am not a horse person. This is not because I dislike horses – I find them impressive and noble creatures. I simply didn’t grow up around them. My contact was limited to the occasional horseback outing: a leisurely walk, a brisk trot and, if I was lucky, the quick thrill of a gallop. Such action was, almost inevitably, followed by sore buttocks.
A more comprehensive and pain-free approach to horse-handling is offered at Wimpole Home Farm, Cambridgeshire, which from April to October offers lessons in heavy horse driving. The undisputed stars of the one-day sessions are Wimpole’s magnificent Shire horses, which on weekends can usually be seen pulling visitors on the farm’s capacious wagon.
Courses are designed for up to four people, though when I attend there are only two of us. My colleague is Jennifer Forrest, who works for the National Trust, owner of Wimpole Estate. Unlike me, Forrest knows her way around a horse, and even keeps one of her own. Our instructor is Emma Warner, the farm’s 24-year-old head horseperson. She is assisted by the even younger head groom, Abi Erian.
Warner introduces us to our charges for the day. Captain is a 16-year-old gelding who stands 17.2 hands tall (1.78m). Two stalls down from Captain, 12-year-old Alfie stands at an even more imposing 18.2 hands (1.88m), and weighs approximately 750kg. The average lifespan of a Shire horse is 25 years, Warner tells us, which puts Alfie and Captain squarely in their middle years.
We begin by grooming. It is a gentle and natural way of bonding with the horses, says Warner. I am handed an assortment of brushes to get the dust out of Alfie’s coat and to coax recalcitrant bits of hay out of his wiry mane. I brush downwards from behind his ears, then along his formidable flank, before tending to his trunk-like legs. I can’t tell if Alfie finds it soothing, but I do.
The long, flared-out hairs at the bottom of the Shires’ white “socks” are called feathers. They are a key feature of any show horse, but they take a long time to grow so must be brushed with special care.
Next, I clean Alfie’s hooves. A tug on his lower leg is all it takes for him to raise one of them into my hand. Warner gives me a gouge-like hoofpick to dig mud and debris out of the enormous cavity, avoiding the central soft tissue known as the frog. “You can do it quite hard,” she says, demonstrating on the front hooves.
For such large animals, the Shires are incredibly docile. We lead them out towards a nearby paddock. Their heavy gait on the farm floor makes a series of lazy shuffle noises followed by resounding clops.
Our first task is to drive the horses using long reins while following them on foot. This is also our opportunity to learn the basic commands: “walk on”, “walk over” (for a left turn), “wheesh” (for a right one). Further encouragement is signalled by smacking of lips, rather than the usual clicking of tongues. “Children come into the stables and click their tongues at the horses,” Erian explains. “We don’t want them to be bolting out the stable.”
I trundle behind Alfie, and soon enough we fall into a steady pace. “Shires are draught animals, built for endurance rather than speed,” Warner reminds us, “so the key is to find a pace at which they can keep on going all day.” After a while I take over Captain’s reins. He seems less eager to follow my instructions than Alfie, often slowing to a halt when I want to make him turn.
After a teabreak, we are taught how to put the working collars on to the horses. Made of brass and leather stuffed with rye-grass, collars allow the horses to pull a load. They are unwieldy, and raising them over the Shires’ heads takes more strength than is apparent from Warner’s demonstration.
Back in the paddock, we attach the collar to a sledge. “Walk on, Alfie,” I say. And we’re off, bumping and sliding over the grassy field. We are not moving faster than the average horse-and-plough, but it is exciting to be in motion, and in control of such a splendid creature. Again, upon switching horses, Captain seems less inclined to play along. “He’s a bit lazy today,” says Erian.
Over a light lunch, Richard Morris, the estate’s manager, tells me about plans to transform Wimpole into a fully organic farm. One important step will be to make all agricultural work less reliant on diesel-powered vehicles. And that, he adds, is where Shire horses could have a significant role to play in the future.
In the meantime, we must return to our horses for the day’s climax. We put the working collar back on to the stubborn Captain. This time he is harnessed to a green one-horse carriage, which Forrest and I will take turns driving. Warner demonstrates, and then hands me the reins.
As I drive the carriage towards the 17th-century hall, Warner teaches me one more order: “Trot on.” This time Captain complies, and I am flushed with satisfaction.
Forrest is in the driver’s seat on the way back to the farm. I can sit back and take in the estate’s landscaped gardens (also the scene of an annual scything competition) from a unique vantage point. The day has been a success. All that remains is to groom and feed Alfie and Captain before letting them out into the paddock with the other horses.
What, I ask our instructors, do they most enjoy about working with Shires? “They’ve definitely got the wow factor,” says Warner. Erian agrees: “The best part is going to shows with the horses all dolled up, feathers white and harnesses shining. People really appreciate it.”
“Now you’ll have to come back and do the intermediate course,” Warner tells us, as we say goodbye. That one involves learning to drive a two-horse carriage. I can’t wait.
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The details
Wimpole Home Farm offers one-day heavy horse driving courses (beginners and intermediates) for £115. Contact: Wendy Oakley, wendy.oakley@nationaltrust.org.uk, 01223 208987