THE BARLEY CANTER is the latest innovation at Paul Webber’s 200-acre Cropredy Lawn stables and Solario Racing’s Red Cossack is one of the first horses to have “road tested” the new facility.
It may sound like the latest in a long line of Oxfordshire real ales but “The Barley Canter” is more of a tee-total tonic for Paul Webber’s charges at Cropredy Lawn.
Let the Master of Cropredy Lawn explain: “This is a half-mile, left-handed oval strip that is rotavated through a barley field. The barley will be harvested in the next few days but the canter will remain whether the field is planted or left fallow this autumn. Obviously this canter will only be usable during drier periods and will be out of action through the winter but we think that doing slower 1m-3m steady canters will prove to be a very useful alternative to our all-weather gallop. The horses seem to love this canter; it teaches them to relax, not to rush or get too keen which can happen in shorter, sharper canters.”
For a horse like Red Cossack who has been a tad too keen in his races to date…this could be the making of him! Today, he did a solo spin along “The Barley Canter” and he seemed to relish his new exercise surroundings under regular pilot, Danny Hannig.”
“The Wind That Shook The Barley” was a success both artistically and commercially for director, Ken Loach. Red Cossack, aka “Rebel” (…Without A Cause?) breezed through the barley today and barely a barley ear twitched!
