‘I’m so proud of how far we’ve come’: young rider jumps ‘beautiful’ bridleless cross-country round

A young rider who completed her first cross-country round without a bridle said she is proud of the journey she and her pony have made – and has dreams of eventing bridleless in future.

H&H reported in June that Thea Harkness had been showjumping her pony Yoda without a bridle, and she has now taken it a step further over natural fences.

Thea’s mother Jessica told H&H the 14-year-old had contacted many local venues to ask if she could compete bridleless but all said no.

“She said she wanted more footage of her doing it, so she could send it to them to show she’s in control and as safe as doing it with a bridle,” Jessica said.

“So we went to a local cross-country venue that had recently had a competition, so the jumps were all still flagged, and she jumped round the course as if it was a competition. It was a beautiful round.”

Jessica rode alongside her daughter, on her young mare, throughout.

“Yoda was super happy and chilled,” she said. “There was one bit where we went through a hedge line and there was a jump quite soon afterwards, and she took it at an angle and he just locked on. She has complete control and steering; he’s maybe not the bravest pony and will put in a stop but without the bridle, it’s like there’s a whole new level of trust.

“He looks so happy and just locks on to all the jumps. She talked to him the whole way and I don’t know how much he understands! But he seems to know exactly what she wants.”

Thea told H&H that she and her pony have so much trust in each other, doing something like this “feels completely natural”.

“I have to pinch myself sometimes and think about how utterly amazed I’d be if someone told me two years ago I’d be doing this,” she said.

“We are both completely at home bridleless and it really does bring out a whole different side to Yoda. I can feel his focus shift entirely on to me as soon as we ditch the bridle; he has to think in a whole different way, relying on the communication that comes from my seat, body and mind rather than a bit physically directing him.

“A big dream of mine is to be able to event him bridleless, and we are on our way to nailing each discipline in the hope that one day it will be allowed. I just love him to the moon and back and am so proud of how far we’ve come together and excited for what lies ahead.”

Jessica said that she understands venues have concerns about safety, but she and Thea hope to show that they need not fear.

“I think, realistically, we’re going to have to organise our own event,” she said. “If we do that first, hopefully it will grow, and more and more people will realise it’s doable and safe.

“The more we talk about the barriers, the more we can find ways round them.”

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