As well as being an event rider herself Stephanie Erikson (above) also grooms for Charlotte Price and at Adelaide she had two horses to look after, Kinnordy Gambia in the CCI4* and Dustman in the CCI2*. But Stephanie had no intention of having either of her two horses dusty during the event and had a vast array of grooming goodies to help keep them clean.
This is just part of Stephanie's grooming kit
“I can’t cope at an event if I don’t have all the necessary cleaning stuff, not just for the horse but for the rider as well. I have the usual saddle soap for cleaning all the gear and then I have various cloths, sponges and brushes for keeping everything else clean. You can almost guarantee that while your rider is warming up for dressage the horse will get some slobber on itself somewhere, which has to be wiped off before they go down the centre line. Then it’s always good to have other cloths handy in case you have to wipe the horses mouth or the riders boots. I use Pepi Spray to help the horses coat shine and I use sugar water to help the quarter markers stand out.”
Kinnordy Gambia looking good on dressage day
Stephanie went on to explain that to make her sugar water she boils some water and then mixes in the sugar. After letting the water cool down she will spray it onto the hair which makes it sticky and helps the makers stay in place.
“You have to be sure to wash it all out properly after your horse has finished but that almost goes without saying because the horses get so hot at this time of year that we do seem to spend quite a bit of time in the wash bays here.”
What can't you do without at an event?
