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Text: Martina Kiehas Photography: Susanne Giltrup
HORSE RIDING IN HERNING
The average person might think that there is not much going on in Herning – horse riders will see it differently. Horse riding is often associated with snobbism- the kind of sports for rich people. This might be true for some countries. In Denmark, however, horse riding is quite popular and Herning has a lot to offer for anyone with an interest in horses.
All roads lead to riding stables There are five registered riding clubs in Herning and many other privately run stables. Riding schools, such as Herning Rideklub or Hammerum Rideklub are the places to contact, if you would like to learn how to ride a horse. If you are confident about your riding skills and would prefer to ride without supervision, you might be lucky enough to find a horse owner who does not have sufficient time for his or her horse and is happy about you exercising it. The riding clubs also announce competitions on their websites, so if you are not interested in getting on horseback but want to watch others who do so, this might be just the way to spend a Saturday afternoon.
Four-legged Stars in Herning Apart from these competitions, Herning hosts some high-profile events. The highlight of the horse riders’ calendar
is for sure the European Championship that will be held in Herning in August 2013. However, there is also an annual highlight that attracts horse riders from all over Scandinavia and Germany: the horse trade fair“ Hest & Rytter” that is always held in March. One part of the trade fair are the stands where you can buy everything a horse rider can possibly dream of- there are also competitions and the stallion licensing, where Denmark’ s most promising young stallions are presented.
Jane Giltrup – student and horse rider There are many horse interested people around AU and TEKO and one of them is Jane Giltrup. Jane is a Danish girl who grew up in Brazil and began riding horses when she was 7. However in order to get to know the country her parents are from, she decided to study in Denmark, which brought her to Herning. As a true horse-addict, she did not want to give up on her hobby and looked for a horse to buy. Jane stumbled over Willini and fell in love head over heels. Since then, Jane and the Danish mare are inseparable and are training for competitions. Even though Jane has enjoyed her studies here and says that she met great people, she still plans to move back to Brazil after graduating – together with Willini.