The first report for the development of the Athletic Skills Garden for the Equestrian Sport has just been submitted to the Gemeente Midden-Delfland (the municipality where we hope to establish the Horse-Garden).

For the past few months we’ve done research on the feasibility of developing a public equestrian space where we can stimulate people to exercise with their horses. To do this we’ve considered the wishes of both the municipality and of the equestrian sport and combined these to discover what the requirements are for each party. To organise such a public exercise space effectively and efficiently, we’ve doven into the literature about the Athletic Skills Model. This model is practically and scientifically based and therefore provides an excellent basis for the development of our own public Horse-Garden.

Of course, horse and human are different in so many ways, which means we cannot apply what we know about people directly to our equine partners. We’ve thus additionally done an extensive background research on the growth and development of young horses. This is essential information that we will use when designing the elements of the Horse-Garden to ensure that they are of the right intensity for horses at different stages of their development and thereby preventing injuries. 

The research behind this report was the first step towards the establishment of a new and unique public equestrian facility. Together with Gemeente Midden-Delfland and Stichting Equestrum we will continue working on the next phases towards realisation.