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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 .