Laigh Hapton Horse Riding

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Laigh Hapton Horse Riding Newly established fully licensed horse and pony riding centre. Specialising in private 1-2-1 lessons, building confidence and achieving goals.

All lessons given by Accredited Professional Coach

Do you watch Strictly?I’m not a regular watcher but do like to catch it occasionally The effort and hard work that the c...
11/10/2026

Do you watch Strictly?

I’m not a regular watcher but do like to catch it occasionally

The effort and hard work that the celebrities put in is incredible and that’s nothing compared to the dedication and years of commitment from the professional dancers.

Last week I heard Shirley Ballas say to one of the celebs, I think it was Melanie Walters that she was a little hesitant in her dance moves. The advice to her was

“Go Strong or Go Wrong”

That phrase made me sit up and take notice. It resonated with me because it summed up the training I was doing with Casino.

One of my problems was hesitating and going a bit too cautiously into the first fence. Trying too hard to get it right and consequently getting it a bit wrong.

The advice from my coach was “Go strong” especially into the first fence and the rest of the course flowed from there. Go strong, or kick on, there are lots of ways to say it.

Get the canter right - I’m sure I’ve mentioned that before - get a strong 12’ canter and ride on.

(When my boys did mounted games their favourite saying was “if in doubt, go flat out!” But I’m not sure that’s quite the same thing 😂)

So with all that in my head the “Go Strong or Go Wrong” advice on Strictly Come Dancing really resonated with me.

It’s actually great advice for a lot of things we do in life.

If you are going to do something then give it all you’ve got

Why go in half heartedly???

Why not commit yourself fully???

Try it. Make a commitment to yourself. The next time you are about to do something, whether it’s your weekly riding lesson, a session at the gym, a task at work or whatever it is….

Give it 100 %
Commit fully
Really go for it
Go Strong or Go Wrong

I’m prepared to bet you will see positive results….

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery….And if you have a good idea then why wouldn’t others copy it? 🤷‍♀️...
08/10/2026

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery….

And if you have a good idea then why wouldn’t others copy it? 🤷‍♀️

Fair enough - but please try to be a little more original 🙄

Another local riding school has started up an Adult Saddle Club and even called it the same thing !!

Ours was the original and runs weekly on a Monday evening from 6 - 8pm

We also have adult “Pony Camp” and another date is coming soon….

Watch this space.

But thanks local riding school, I’m glad you think “Adult Saddle Club” is a good idea and I hope you encourage lots of adults into riding.

Best of luck 😉

05/10/2026

So I posted before about coaches getting coached.

And I thought I would share the outcome of my recent endeavours.

I am not as young as I used to be, I certainly don’t bounce anymore and the fences seem higher than they used to…but I still wanted to jump and I’m not quite ready to give it all up yet.

I have owned Casino since he was three and he has only ever been jumped by me. If I don’t have confidence over a fence then that is only going to transmit to him.
So I wanted to get things right for his sake…..

But it’s not easy and I have still a few obstacles to over come.

The first was feeding.

If you want a draft horse to do a sports horses job you have to fuel accordingly.

Casino is fed for the job of riding school es**rt horse, lots of steady hacking where he has to take the lead but be steady and sure. This is quite different from what you would routinely feed a show jumper so we had to find a happy balance.
I tried a performance mix before and ended up on the floor of the practise ring at the riding club championships before I had even been over a fence so that wasn’t really an option.

I was advised to try oil because that gives a slow release energy…..
And it has worked!! It’s the right thing for my boy (thus far) so is now a regular part of his routine.

A lot of feeding of horses is gentle trial and error, make changes slowly and see what works best for your horse.
Watch this space

The second was my nerves. The only way to over come these was practice. So I booked the lessons, squeezed in sessions on busy days, traipsed out late at night when it was cold and dark and found the time to practice at home. I took advice from people who know and can communicate that knowledge effectively. I listened and tried and put in the graft.

The third thing to get right was the technicality. Casino is short and compact and doesn’t have a long stride. He doesn’t naturally cover the ground and needs pushed forward to an uphill 12 foot canter stride.

It’s back to asking a draft horse to do a sports horse’s job.

But once again I listened to the experts, built the canter and pushed on. I can’t say it loud enough. It’s all about the canter.
If you are struggling with your jumping - it’s not the jumping - believe me!!

It’s - All - About - The - Canter

Have a look at the video and judge for yourself. It’s not perfect. I know that. We touched a couple of poles but they didn’t fall.

And I know it’s only riding club, and it’s only 80 cms, but it was what I was aiming for, it’s what I was working towards and we got it right. It felt great!!

Get out there and do it folks, keep working, keep trying……

It is soooooo worth it 🩶❤️🩶

Who coaches the coaches?I have been lucky enough to have a few trips off the yard recently to go training with my own ho...
30/09/2026

Who coaches the coaches?

I have been lucky enough to have a few trips off the yard recently to go training with my own horse.

I have some riding club championship qualifiers coming up and I really needed to get some practice in.

The choice of coach is so important to me.
It really needs to be someone who has a proven track record, I want someone who can walk the walk and not just talk the talk!

I understand that it’s not essential for everyone but I think experience in the field is absolutely vital. It speaks to credibility if nothing else. 

Qualifications are important, but they are nothing without experience.  If I am learning how to guide my young horse over fences I want someone who has produced their own horses to a far higher level than I am aiming at - not someone who has read about it in a manual.

I had some fabulous lessons and am looking forward to more over the winter. It is so good to push yourself - or have someone else do it for you.

Even though I have been riding for nearly 50 years (😱) I am still learning every day and delighted that we have some great local
coaches in Ayrshire.
 
Thank you so much to Creighton and Wilmot@

28/09/2026

Riding school horses do a tremendous and difficult job.

They have to adapt to a number of different riders, each wanting different things and giving different signals.

In effect a riding school horse has to speak a load of different languages every day.

Jura had not done very much school work before we got him but rather had been more of a happy hacker, so it is very important for him to get some training and education in the arena now and again.

Ryan put him through his paces, in walk trot and canter and over ground poles mostly working on keeping him straight. They both did very well.

Quinten is very new to riding school life. He is only 4 1/2 so at the start of his education but is coming on really well. We have owned him since he was a yearling and brought him on very slowly.

He tries so hard to please and is still working on his strength and balance.
He is such a handsome chap though and I really do have a soft spot for him. 🧡🖤🤍

Saddle Club on Tour 🥳🥳Our Monday evening adults saddle club is all about learning how to look after and care for horses ...
27/09/2026

Saddle Club on Tour 🥳🥳

Our Monday evening adults saddle club is all about learning how to look after and care for horses - looking at all aspects of daily care and stable management.

However there is more to looking after horses than we can learn on the stable yard so on Monday we go on the road!!

We hit the road with the Horsebox to learn about loading and travelling horses and riding them away from home.

This is a bit of a one off (maybe) and we will be back to normal the following week.

The photo below is an old one of the boys a number of years ago but you get the idea…

Adult Saddle Club is for anyone who wants to learn more about horses than just riding. Maybe one day you want to loan or own a horse of your own, or learn a bit more so you can help a child or family member with their horses?

Saddle club can be booked on Hopoti now or message the page if you have any questions.

12/09/2026

Pop us a message.

We are looking for staff

One of my adult clients thanked me yesterday for what she called the “tough love” I had shown her. She called it a much ...
11/09/2026

One of my adult clients thanked me yesterday for what she called the “tough love” I had shown her.

She called it a much needed reality check!!

What did I call it?

The truth…

Just the truth….

Just factual information…

And that truth is that horses are hard work. There I said it. And yes it’s that simple.

Horse riding is hard work. Horse ownership is hard work.

Now don’t get me wrong it is also the most rewarding thing on the planet but let’s not deny that it is also hard work.

So in these days of instant gratification, where we get what we want immediately or delivered the next day, horses and horse riding is a bit of an anomaly.

Yes you can turn up one day and sit on a horse and get great photos for your socials feed. But that is not really riding. It’s not learning, it’s not improving.

Children see others on TikTok and think “Oh that looks good I want to do that!” (Not realising the months and years of work that have gone in before the reel was filmed)

Becoming a good rider is about putting in the hours, practicing, getting it wrong and trying again, learning, trying more, doing it again and again until we get it better and then get it right, and as soon as you’ve got that bit right moving on to another thing and starting all over again.

It doesn’t come easy but it does come.

Everyone has a different journey. Some find it easier than others and some achieve things more quickly.

Most people get there in the end but nobody, and I mean nobody gets there without trying.

The more you try, the better you get. The more you put in the more you get back out. It’s that simple.

We try to make the learning fun, we try to ensure you are making progress, we encourage, cajole, support and our aim is to help you develop and improve…

BUT WE CAN’T DO IT FOR YOU!!!

You have you do the hard miles, whether that means getting leaner, getting stronger, improving your cardiovascular fitness, trying harder or simply doing your best over and over again until it falls into place.

Because the end result is sooooo amazing it makes every effort worthwhile.
I can promise you that ❤️

Sometimes Ryan and I manage to get time off the yard at weekends - only thanks to Maddie taking the reins of course (par...
06/09/2026

Sometimes Ryan and I manage to get time off the yard at weekends - only thanks to Maddie taking the reins of course (pardon the pun!)

This morning we enjoyed a beautiful ride around Drumlanrig Castle and Estate courtesy of BHS Scotland and Ride Out UK

It was was pretty wet and windy to start with but didn’t dampen our spirits. What a stunning location with hills, paths, forest tracks and some decent canters over the park land.

The staff and volunteers were so helpful and cheery - what a lot of organising goes into making these events happen.

Casino and Roulette certainly seemed to enjoy racing up the hills and snacking on the foliage in the forest trails

Address

Laigh Hapton Farm
Darvel
KA170NG

Opening Hours

Tuesday 8am - 8pm
Thursday 8am - 8pm
Saturday 8am - 8pm
Sunday 8am - 8pm

Telephone

+447720252515

Website

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