Your stories: £200 Petplan pony champion

When Katie Evans spotted a £200 piebald pony for sale, she had no idea he would take her to championship glory. Frankie VII proves that every horse can shine in the dressage arena regardless of breed, background, or price tag. 

Bought as a two-year-old for just £200 from an advert on Facebook, Frankie, a 13.1hh piebald gelding, certainly wasn’t bred for dressage. However, Katie from North Wales saw potential. “We were actually looking for something to back and sell on as a kid’s pony,” she admitted, “but Frankie had such a love for work that we decided to keep him.” 

“We didn’t think of him as a dressage horse at first,” Katie recalled. “We started out just doing some unaffiliated competitions over winter, but he kept surprising us with how much he loved it. He really enjoyed learning and thrived on new challenges, so eventually, I decided to give British Dressage a go. I wasn’t expecting much, but he’s absolutely blown us away.” 

Within their first year competing with BD, their journey led them to an incredible achievement at the 2024 Petplan Summer Area Festival Championships, where they topped the Preliminary Bronze class as a wildcard entry. Reflecting on the win, Katie admitted, “It was totally unexpected. Frankie wasn’t even on the original qualification list, so getting the call that we’d qualified with a wildcard was a huge surprise. Being there felt like such a privilege. I went into the test just hoping to ride a nice round, but to come out on top was unbelievable.” 

Frankie and Katie achieved further championship success, claiming second and fourth place at the 2024 Cavago Associated Championships in the CHAPS Preliminary and Novice Bronze classes. However, for Katie, as with many competitors, success isn’t measured in ribbons. “It’s about enjoying the journey of just getting there,” she said, “ I don’t go into competitions focused on winning. My goal is to ride the best test we can and come out smiling.” 

Katie also emphasised how she feels success in dressage isn’t just for big-name riders or expensive horses - every horse has strengths and she has focused on making the most of Frankie’s. “I know he doesn’t have the flashy paces or medium trots of a warmblood, so to pick up those extra marks, I’ve focused on the bits where he is naturally strong, such as accuracy, transitions and lateral work, where his compact build is actually an advantage.” 

A structured and progressive approach to training through the levels has helped Katie to bring the best out of Frankie, as while his love of learning made the initial training “very easy,” it also began to present a challenge: “He’s got one of those brains where you have to keep teaching him something new, which can be hard sometimes.” Katie explained that competing with BD has given them new goals to constantly work towards: “It’s definitely helped to keep him busy; there’s always something to work towards, and we're always trying to tweak, fix and improve wherever possible – even just looking at the test sheets and seeing what other riders are doing helps me to see what we could improve.” 

The pair’s journey also highlights the importance of support. While Katie had successfully produced Frankie herself, thanks to her experience from freelance work with a variety of horses, she found she needed some guidance as she entered the sport.  “Starting with BD felt slightly overwhelming with all the different paths you can take.,” she explained, “I wanted to try everything, but having my trainer Stena Hoerner to guide me was so valuable. BD also has training days, which are great for anyone starting out, especially if you don’t have regular access to a coach.” 

Katie and Frankie’s story serves as an inspiration to anyone considering taking their first steps into dressage. The pair’s journey is proof that dressage success isn’t just about breeding or big budgets - it’s about partnership, training, and a willingness to embrace new challenges while having fun. With the right mindset and support, any horse and rider can have their moment to shine.  

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Do you have an inspiring dressage story that you would love to share? No matter where you are in your dressage journey, whether you've recently made your test debut, overcome the odds, or have been a long-term member progressing through the levels, we would love to hear how you fell in love with the sport and why you chose to join British Dressage! 

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