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Sophie
Pierce |
Writer and Broadcaster |
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It’s quite a spectacle. As waves crash on a Cornish
beach, a thoroughbred horse and its rider gallop through the surf, pulling a
man on a kite board. As the horse
pounds along, the surfer jumps the waves, which act like mini-ramps for the
board. The age-old relationship
between man and horse is reaching new heights. This is horse surfing, a new extreme sport, and the
latest variation in the ever-evolving world of board sports. It was invented by a stunt horseman, 26
year old Daniel Fowler-Prime, when he was staying with a friend in
Cornwall. He says it started after
they were feeling a bit bored one day. “We hitched up a mountain board to the
back of a car, and tried to ride it.
Then we did the same with a motorbike, then I thought, why not try it
with a horse?” Daniel is a horseman of tremendous ability. He’s made a profession of his daredevil
riding. He’s been in films - including the Da Vinci Code – he performs in
live arena shows, doing anything from jousting to Wild West riding, and he’s
an equine specialist, advising on the use of horses in anything from
children’s programmes to Hollywood blockbusters. He has a company called The Independent Horse, which
he says is about taking horses into the world of extreme sports, and coming
up with new ideas with what you can do with them. “There’s a hell of an adrenalin kick when
you’re hanging off the side of a horse, and that’s one of the things with
extreme riding, there’s always that thought that you can lose your bottle at
any time. We’re trying to push the
boundaries of what we can do with horses.” Daniel believes that he’s the first person in the
world to come up with the idea of horse surfing. He’s worked with two Cornish kite boarders,
Matt Smith and Denzil Williams, who were the first surfers to try the new
sport out. Both admit to being somewhat apprehensive, as
neither is familiar with horses. Matt says preparing for the first surf was
quite daunting. “The horse was massive
and powerful, and it was ramped up and raring to go. As we pulled off I was a bit unsure about
how it was going to go, but Daniel was really good on the horse, he
controlled it so we got a good, tight rope, and we got a good constant speed
up.” Horse surfing combines aspects of various board
sports. The board rider does a water
start– like in water-ski-ing – where he stands or squats in the surf, his
feet strapped to the board, holding a bar attached to the tow rope. Then as
the horse moves off, the surfer has to press down on the board and start
moving too. It’s quite a skill. The sport is still in its infancy and Daniel and his
team are working to improve it. They’ve experimented with various boards, and
a kite board is currently the most successful, although they’re trying to
custom design a board which will ride very high in the water but which can
also be used to ‘edge’ – to perform jumps and turns – in the surf. They’re also trying to refine the launch
system to reduce the pressure on both the horse and the surfer, and are
designing a special saddle for the horse (to which the tow rope is attached). Of course what is special about this new board sport
is the involvement of the horse – a living creature with its own
temperament. One of the board riders,
Denzil Williams, says his ride was thrilling. “It’s different from being
pulled by a speed boat in that it’s a darn sight more shallow and
unpredictable. I tried two different
horses – one was very well behaved and gave a good but slowish ride, the
other was very wild, but it was really fast and exhilarating.” Is there not a concern that pulling a board puts too
much strain on the horse? Daniel
Fowler-Prime says not. “This is not as
heavy as ploughing and not as light as normal driving. People have questioned the pulling to the
side, but if you look at polo you can see that the horses accept it. The horses we use are athletes, they are
used to trick riding, and we always make sure they are warmed up and fully
prepared, and none of them have been injured while we’ve been surfing.” The new sport is still very young, and you’re not
likely to be seeing it on the average British beach just yet. But for those board sports enthusiasts
looking for a new thrill, horse surfing could be an exciting option –
especially on days when there’s no wind and no waves. 793 words www.independenthorse.com Tel: 01895-820400 Daniel Fowler-Prime is running week-long horse
surfing courses this summer: they cost from £850 He also runs the British Extreme Horse Riding
Association – a small membership fee entitles members to take part in
training weekends for horse surfing and other extreme forms of extreme riding |
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