Success stories The story of Bold Josr by Becky Wingett

I bought Bold Josr, now known as Bertie, nearly 7 years ago to become a bit of a happy hacker to share with my mum and a general allrounder for me to have fun with. His sire, Josr Algarhoud, was a very successful flat racehorse which gave high hopes for Bertie, sadly this didn’t work out. He only raced 4 times at Chepstow, Windsor, Wolverhampton and Kempton placing either last or second from last. His racing owner and some jockeys all agreed that whilst he had the speed, he didn’t have the right mindset to be a successful race horse. His records aren’t very clear where he was or what he was doing in-between racing in 2008 and arriving into my life in 2013.

Coming with him however was a lot of issues and bad habits. When he was nervous, anxious or just fed up of work he would either run backwards or spin, he also suffered from weight loss which was especially difficult during his first winter with us but he now has a very balanced diet which allows him to maintain his weight all year round. Add to this that he is also injury prone and the slightest tweak or twist can cause his leg to balloon up dramatically and his natural clumsiness doesn’t help!

However, these issues allowed us to work through them together allowing our bond to grow stronger so that when he does find himself in tricky or stressful situations, he can look to us for support. He now enjoys life competing at Dressage with his scores increasing into the 70%s, Showing, especially in the RoR classes, and unaffiliated Show Jumping. Being an ex racehorse, he has such a strong work ethic and learns quickly, which makes my job a lot easier. We’ve also had the opportunity to do sponsored rides and charity rides and every year we ride 100 miles in October for Heart UK during National Cholesterol Month which he loves as he gets to hack out a lot!

Working with him has been an experience that has shaped me as a rider but also a person. He has helped me become a rider with a capital R rather than a passenger. He’s also taught me a lot about patience, understanding and my biggest lesson to date, arguing with a horse is just a waste of time! He may not of been the easiest choice for a first horse, but he’s definitely been the best and I feel so privileged to have such a special boy in my life.