Leonie’s riding career began with a naughty little pony, aptly named Little B (you can imagine what the B stood for!)   Not one to be daunted Leonie persevered and soon began to excel through The South Berkshire Pony Club. She was quickly drawn towards dressage and her talent became evident in her many appearances on the Area teams, culminating in winning the PC Team National Championships on Finnegan’s Rainbow at the age of 16.

 At this time she began her affiliated career with the help of Lindsay Jenkins, successfully training her Pony Club horse to advanced medium and regional qualifications. These exciting times led to Leonie being given the ride on Grand Prix horse Shiwago, who she competed at PSG at the age of 18. Before heading to Bristol to read Biochemistry, Leonie was heavily involved in BYRDS, training with the likes of Jennie Lorriston Clarke, David Trott and Harry Boldt.

After a successful degree from Bristol and 3 years spent developing her naturally curious mind, Leonie responded to an advert from Lynne Crowden for a rider at Woodlander Stud. It was a fantastic experience working closely with Cath Creemer and receiving training from the German classical trainer Michael Beining. She continued training with Michael when she moved to the Half Moon Stud, where she produced some fantastic horses, including Blind Faith, and began training her first Grand Prix horse Caitano.

All horses have different personalities, so they all need different training approaches to get the best work from them.

 I never impose a training structure on a horse and expect it to bend to my will, but rather work with a horse to gain a rewarding outcome.

 We never stop learning, so every training session that I give I bring a wealth of knowledge and lessons that I have learnt to help solve the problems in front of me.

 The scales of training provide an excellent training framework, but I know that horses can only progress as quickly as they are physically able. I would rather spend months teaching elasticity in the back, than simply teaching tricks to move them up the grades.

 I am passionate about correcting the rider’s alignment and believe that we cannot expect our horses to be straight when we are crooked! So I have series of exercises to help correct the rider’s posture.

 I understand the psychology of riding, and bring that all my lessons. I provide easy to follow exercises as homework to help my pupils stay motivated and break down the areas that they are struggling with into manageable, achievable portions.

 I believe that dressage is an art form not a science and we are constantly changing. Every time I ride I strive to be better, and try new ideas and new ways to help others to improve.

 I hope that my teaching brings people clarity not confusion and a chance to build a rewarding relationship with their horse, no matter what level they are riding at.