BD Presents Exclusive: Sophie Wells on Training

With less than one month to go until BD Presents, the training event of the year, we caught up with host Sophie Wells to discuss her approach to training and what spectators can expect to learn from this superstar rider and coach.

What do you find most rewarding about the training process?

Working with an animal that doesn’t speak the same language as you and whose communication style is very different regarding your body language and the different aids. You're training a horse that is probably ten times your size, so to communicate from the smallest signs, I think when you step back and look at it like that, it's incredibly special and that's for any horse of any level. Obviously, when you get to the higher levels it's incredible, but working with any horse at any level, it's very humbling to think that we can dance with a horse. The relationship is so key and I think that's the most rewarding thing.

What does developing that partnership with a horse mean to you and how crucial do you feel it is to the training process?

I reflected on it after Paris quite a lot actually, because how do you prepare a horse to go into an environment with thousands of people without being able to do that in practice? I think it's all about building a relationship, reinforcing positive reactions, them trusting you and the training process more than they're scared of the environment. The relationship is key and if they trust you and can relax in those situations that's incredibly special.

Working with Joe (Joe Midgley Horsemanship), I've become more aware of our unconscious communication and body language and how horses use subtle signals, like a flick of an ear, to communicate. I think the more we work with this, the more we can build the trust and the communication to achieve what we want to do at any level.

How important is it to have people you can go to for support and different perspectives?

I've always loved working with different trainers who have different experiences with different horses and riders.

Joe’s brought in a very different side of things and that’s been eye-opening to me. As much as we all feel like we do some work from the ground, it's probably very different. For example, at the minute, I've got a young horse that when you put the bridle on shows some tension. You wouldn't notice it if you're not looking for it, but then occasionally she'll explode whilst being ridden. Joe's perspective helped me realise how little moments start stacking until it's too much, but a lot of the time we just wouldn't notice them because they're not jumping up and down and being dangerous.

It’s also two-way, I gave him a lesson on his horse the other day and you forget how much the training of what he's trying to achieve within the physical body training is so relative to what we're wanting in  dressage. I think we can learn a lot from different areas and having experienced people to talk to massively helps. When I did my UKCC level four and the youth coach pathway, although we were from different disciplines like rowing and other non-equestrian sports, there were so many similar situations and experiences.

Being able to share experiences means that often by the time you've talked things out, you've pretty much come to a conclusion yourself, but you need that person to talk to. We can all get bogged down in our own problems. It doesn't have to be with horses. It can be with anything in life. You can get very tunnel-visioned in what you're experiencing and sometimes you need to take that step back. Having somebody to talk to really helps with changing your perspective and approaching it in a slightly different way.

Some of the sessions you're doing at BD Presents are looking at training across different disciplines. What are the benefits of bringing elements from different disciplines and adding variety to the training?

Well, I don't like leaving the floor! But we do quite a lot of poles for variety, to work on something specific or just for fun. I also do a lot of hacking. For me, it's important that the horse can still be a horse, have fun, and are not ‘drilled’ in the arena all the time.

I coach various disciplines and more recently, got into western. At first glance, you're like, wow, this is weird and different but then when you start to get into the detail of it, and how we want the horse to use their body in a light and sensitive way, it's very similar. We want the horse to pick themselves up off the forehand, be responsive to the leg forwards and sideways, and be in the most balanced place in self-carriage in pretty much every discipline. Yes, the carriage may be different, but they're still in self-carriage and holding themselves there. There are so many very similar elements, which I think is fascinating. We might get there in slightly different ways, but you learn from that, can think outside the box, and use it in different situations if something's not working.

Has there been a horse that's stood out as one that you've learnt a lot from through the training process?

Diana, who I went to Paris with. Thinking back to three years ago, she would explode or try to blow out of that situation with just me trying to get on her. Now I’d approach it in a very different way, because I know more, and I’ve had that help, but back then, I couldn't do that.

I think it was in 2021 that she qualified for the LeMieux Nationals at Novice  after coming second at Port Royal with 79% or something bonkers, but then we went to the Nationals and came last because she just didn't cope with the situation and atmosphere. So, I had to go back to the drawing board. I used much of what I know now, but it took much longer because it was a more diluted process. I didn't ride her for six weeks and focussed on groundwork.

It was a big wake-up call. Obviously, at the time I thought that's it, I failed. I can't even get on, but to come out the other side, I learnt to slow it down because when you're not achieving what you set out to, you can get impatient and tense. Then your heart rate rises, your muscles tense and everything in you changes so sometimes when our expectations are lower and we take smaller steps, we achieve more. Diana massively taught me that. She's always been able to be talented, but it's the real foundations and basics that we rely on for the rest of their career and that’s the most important thing. If you get that right, they'll progress quickly within the training because they're smart animals.

Also, Donny, who retired this year, actually taught me that not every horse needs to be a Grand Prix horse and if you find where a horse is comfortable and they can excel, that is their version of Grand Prix. Of course, if you're searching for Grand Prix horses and that is your absolute aim, a horse may not work out. However, I think para has helped me there because we don't need the piaffe, passage or the tempis, and it's allowed me to experience a horse excelling at a lower level. I used to be ultra-competitive and believed you had to be at the top, and well, Donnie, has taught me it's great to excel at what you're good at.

Do you have any advice for someone new to training or starting out with a new horse?

I would say, get the right help. Find somebody who can guide you from the beginning, so you get the basics right. It will pay off further down the road. People often ask if they’re good enough to come to a lesson or clinic. Yes, absolutely, because it's where we all start and it puts the foundation there for the rest of it, and as long as someone's willing to learn I get as much enjoyment out of someone who's doing their first intro, as someone aiming for Grand Prix because it's about their journey.

From a coach perspective, of course, some people will want a bit of a quick fix and it'll be an added extra to what they're already doing. Others will come and want to invest in your training method and be guided more holistically. If that's the case, then I want to know where they've come from, their strengths and their weaknesses, and where they want to get to so we can start to put a plan together on how we're going to get from here to there in the best way possible for the horse and rider. Obviously, sometimes a rider's aspirations are very high and may be quite unrealistic in the time scale given, but you've got to be able to be the voice of reason, to say, okay, that is doable but maybe you need to allow a bit more time or investment in different elements of the training. There's a lot to consider. The psychological and physical aspects as well as the daily care of the horse are all involved in how you're going to get there within the training. It's a conversation that we have so that you can make the best decisions for the horse and rider.

As we approach BD presents, what are you looking forward to?

I've been to the past version, the National Convention, for years since I was about 13 so to be involved is an honour. I think the focus on the relationship between horse and rider, the communication and having the horse and the rider in a happy place, for me, is one of the biggest things that we want to put across. And it's always difficult, isn't it? As flight animals, horses react differently to crowds and things. That's the reality. I think everybody can relate to that. They're not going to be brave in every situation, but it’s remembering we're the consistency and the thing that's there every time they're in a different scenario, so hopefully, some of the methods we’ll use to help the horse be more confident and trust the rider helps.

It’s also the first time Diana’s come back out after Paris. She's been on holiday but after about a week she had physically recovered and started to get a bit excited about everything. It's hard because after a Games they are at the peak fitness of what they've probably ever been. I can imagine, if I was asked to have a holiday for a month, the first week would be amazing, and then I'd probably be climbing the walls so we’ve kept a bit of variety for her. She loved the crowds by the end of Paris. I think she'd made friends with everybody, so hopefully, this will be a positive experience coming back out as well.

Obviously, it's amazing to be doing it alongside Becky too, and she's had an incredible year. She's an inspiration to so many of us. I think everybody's been through phases of not having horsepower, so it's fantastic to see that she's got not just Bomb, but an amazing group of horses coming through. It's an honour to be doing it alongside her and looking forward to seeing Bomb do his thing as well!

Join us for BD Presents

Join us at Hartpury University & College on 23 and 24 November 2024 for BD's training event of the year, BD Presents. 

Tickets are now on sale and available to purchase online. 

LEARN MORE HERE