Island Life Magazine Ltd October/November 2007 | Page 75

EQUESTRIAN

life

Photo: Robert Booth instructing Poppy Green
It took two years to go through planning
and then we built the stables and school
first.” He points to the American barn
housing 15 looseboxes. “We lived in
caravans while we built our house.”
It’s been hard work for Robert and Lyn
and there are no days off when it comes
to working with horses. Robert spends
over five hours a day just teaching and
he and Lyn do everything themselves
with a little help from Helen Furnell, who
mucks out for them in the mornings.
“I don’t usually teach on a Friday or a
Sunday because it gives us a chance to
catch up on all the things we haven’t done
here,” he says. There’s not much time for
socialising. It’s limited to the odd trip to
a local pub for supper when they are too
tired to cook, or they attend an instructor’s
conference or visit a horse sale. They see
their daughter Emma, who has her saddler’s
workshop at Rodgebrook, every day, and
the Booths could only be described as a
close-knit family, dedicated to their horses.
“My work is split between teaching and
working the horses,” says Robert. “We take
horses for breaking and schooling, and we
usually have some competition horses of
our own. We’ve got one grade A, which
we’ve had for a long time. We bought him

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unbroken. I’ve also got a five year-old
that I’m jumping and we usually have a
few young horses to bring on and sell.”
Does every horse in the yard come with
a price tag? Even the grade A? “More
or less,” Robert answers. “It depends on
what mood we’re in and how poor we’re
feeling. The grade A is getting older and
ought to be got rid of…” he jokes and
immediately you know that Robert will not
be selling his grade A. Not at any price.
But, in spite of the dressage training
and the competitive eventing of
the past, is it showjumping that
Robert prefers nowadays?
“Well yes,” he says. “I’ve always
been interested in all aspects of riding.
I still am really, but showjumping is what
we do with our own horses, and show
jumping is really what I like best.” And
it shows through his training of others.
Two of Robert’s best known island pupils
Poppy Green, 16, who showjumps ponies,
and Hayley Webster, who is competing in
Young Riders have both qualified again
for the Horse of the Year Show (HOYS).
“Poppy is in her last year of ponies and
she has qualified in the Newcomers and
Foxhunter classes. Hayley has also
jumped at HOYS and I’ve taught her

since she was tiny on ponies. She’s got
three or four horses now,” says Robert.
Back in the arena, the training session
has finished. The horse is hot, and the
rider tired, but pleased with the improved
performance. Robert reaches for, what
must by now be, a very cold cup of tea.
“Same time next week?” the pupil asks
hopefully. “Well no, I can’t do next week,”
Robert replies, rather apologetically.
“Oh. Are you going away?” the pupil
enquires. “Just to Hickstead,” Robert
replies casually. The pupil is immediately
interested and demands to know whether
he is competing. “Just a couple of
1.30m classes,” is the answer and
Robert adds, as if by way of explanation,
“it’s just little holiday for us really.”
The fences in Robert’s arena are no
more than 1metre in height and the
pupil is fully aware of how difficult it
is to compete a horse at Hickstead
and ‘just jump a 1.30m class.”
It is then that you realise that Robert
Booth is both competitor and teacher,
and what could be better than being
taught by someone who ‘does’?

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