Roger Roger is a Clydesdale cross Welsh Section D cob horse. He is bright bay, white blaze, long black mane and tail with black front legs and white socks behind. He is 15 hands tall and very experienced. He has the sweetest nature. He is a wonderful carriage horse with whom to give carriage driving instruction. He has a very soft mouth and will turn with the slightest movement of the reins. He listens to what you ask for and enjoys carriage driving probably more than being ridden. Roger has been with us for 14 years.
Millbrook Dandini, known as Danny or Dan
Danny is a Clydesdale cross Connemara cob horse. Gypsy bred in Ireland, he is a real character. He is 15 hands tall. He is bright bay with white socks and long feathers (hairs on his legs) which fly up in the air when he trots. He holds himself well and has pulled a carriage for weddings for many years. He used to be hired out to pull a cart, then was in a riding school for a couple of years before being bought to pull a carriage for weddings in Northern Ireland. He rides side saddle as well as pulls a harrow or a carriage. He is sometimes known by his knick name of ‘Houdini’ (the great escape artist) due to his ability to open gates, doors, feed bins and tie-up ropes! He loves to play with the youngster, Archie. Danny is a good horse to drive when you first learn to carriage drive. He has been with us for 9 years.
Archie
Archie is now nearly four years old, 14 hands and is full of mischief. He'll make 14.2hh when fully grown. He is probably an Irish or Welsh cross cob, black with four white socks and a blaze on his face, like Roger and Danny. He has a very inquisitive nature and tends to follow you around, enjoying human company, as well as playing with Dan. He has now started to carriage drive and is coming along nicely. Clive Price on the Isle of Wight introduced him to driving and did a brilliant job. Thanks Clive! He is one of the best horsemen alive. Archie has been with us for nearly 3 years.
Update: Archie was lightly backed last autumn and turned away. He has been driven as a pair since February 2010, firstly with Dan, who is so steady, and now with Roger as their paces match well.
This photo is of Archie driven as a pair with Roger in Newtown, Isle of Wight June 2010.
Lady Gigi is five years old and is a lovely ride and drive mare. She is 15.1hh
and is a pretty coloured cob, possibly gypsy bred as she is so settled
and calm. So far, nothing seems to trouble her. She has good high knee
action, and lovely feathers. She has a cracking walk and trot and
we hope she will work as a pair with Archie, possibly next year when
Archie is a little older and more experienced. Eventually, we hope to
drive all four horses as a team. Now that will be exciting!!
Stephanie Dale has shown numerous people how to carriage drive over the nearly fifteen years she has been driving. She has ridden since she was six years old and previously taught riding. Her greatest sense of achievement comes from taking people carriage driving who were previously a little frightened of horses. Comments such as “I’ve always been wary of horses, but being with Roger makes it OK” are typical. When riders come for a carriage drive, they usually finish with a big smile on their faces, beaming in the glow of learning a different way with horses.
Stephanie’s approach to carriage driving is that it is good fun, but the safety of the trainee whip (driver), passengers, horses and other road users is of paramount importance. She gives carriage driving instruction using the traditional English Coaching method of carriage driving as it is probably the safest method of driving and is recommended by the British Driving Society.
"The patience and teaching skills Stephanie has
shown are highly commendable! The session was presented in a first
class manner - clearly and concisely from start to finish and I have
learnt so much. Many thanks". L Bishop
Stephanie is also a Management Trainer and Business Management lecturer plus author of two books for lawyers (she is an MBA, Chartered Marketer and Solicitors Regulation Authority authorised trainer) so understands the different ways people learn, and adjusts her training style to suit the preferred method of learning for the individual concerned. This way, people tend to learn more quickly and get greater enjoyment from it.
Stephanie drives singles and pairs and plans to get back into driving a tandem this year.
Her aim is to encourage more people into this wonderful sport whether they have had any experience with horses or not. Carriage driving is an exceptional skill to learn, and one that very few people in this country ever have the opportunity to experience. Driving with Stephanie will give you the thrill of working with extraordinary horses, gaining their trust and co-operation so that both they and you have a great time carriage driving and you will gain a memory to last a lifetime.
Stephanie has passed the British Driving Society (BDS) Preliminary and Intermediate exams; the BDS Carriage Driving Road Driving Assessment test and the WATO Certificate of Competence (Welfate of Animals in Transit). Through her work as a lecturer, she has a clean Criminal Records Bureau check. Stephanie also successfully completed the Emergency First Aid for the Workplace course on 12 January 2010.
Roger Roger is a Clydesdale cross Welsh Section D cob horse. He is bright bay, white blaze, long black mane and tail with black front legs and white socks behind. He is 15 hands tall and very experienced. He has the sweetest nature. He is a wonderful carriage horse with whom to give carriage driving instruction. He has a very soft mouth and will turn with the slightest movement of the reins. He listens to what you ask for and enjoys carriage driving probably more than being ridden. Roger has been with us for 14 years. 
Millbrook Dandini, known as Danny or Dan 
Archie
