Welcome to Hickstead, home to both Seven Oak Stables, and Blue Acre - two rival stables. Both offer opportunities for their clients to reach the highest level of excellence. Each stable differs from the other, so choose wisely and never forget, loyalty is everything... Meanwhile as the stables battle it out, there's trouble brewing at the university. Be careful, if you don't pick a side you may get caught in the cross-fire...
This is an chilled out rpg with a super friendly and relaxed atmosphere! Remember to sign up with your characters full name in all caps and don't forget to do your claims! Thank you and Welcome, we've been established since 10th March 2009 but unfortunately have had to close guest view of our boards due to multiple sites ripping off our hard work, such a shame! Come chat to us in Discord before joining if you like!.
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
Ty was busy helping the other grooms with their daily tasks. There was always something that needed to be done and Ty never said no if anyone needed help. The man finished sweeping barn aisle before a coworker reminded him of his flat lesson with Hiroko. He nodded and headed off towards the private pens.
Once the liver chestnut stallion was in the cross ties, the red head got to work - making sure the horse was dust free before he began tacking up. He slid his feet into his black tall boots and set his helmet on his head before doing up the chin strap and heading back to where the young stallion was. Hiroko was pawing on the concrete - clearly impatient. Ty raised his eyebrow and gave him a light smack on the shoulder. The stallion seemed to settle down after that, Ty sliding the bit into his mouth before adjusting the bridle.
He led Hiroko out to the outdoor arena - a little worried about how the lesson might go. The stallion needed a few rides outside before he settled into the routine of things. Ty realized that John had beat them, letting out a sigh. He was hoping that he was able to ride the stallion a bit before their lesson started. "Hi John, yeah. You can say that. I think someone is feeling his oats today. How are you today? Ready for the upcoming show season with Jett?" Ty stopped Hiroko by the mounting block and fixed his girth, making sure that the saddle was right before he got on - starting to work Hiroko at the walk.
Name:CHRISTOPHER THOMAS WHITE Horse: Duchess Level: Advanced Group or individual: Group Chosen week: May 6th Name:JONATHAN BRYAN TOEWS Horse: Slapshot (Sunny) Level: Beginner Group or individual: Group Chosen week: May 20th
Name:RORY ROSE WAY Horse: Joy to the World (Joy) Level: Intermediate Group or individual: Individual Chosen week: April 22nd
Name:RORY ROSE WAY Horse: Merlin's Magic Touch (Merlin) Level: Intermediate Group or individual: Individual Chosen week: May 20th
Name:TRISTIAN IVAN PARKER Horse: Arizona's Desert Storm (Arizona) Level: Beginner Group or individual: Individual Chosen week: May 6th
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
Ty knew he was being early when it came to buying Harlow a gift for their second anniversary. Though with Ryan Sport Horses being busy with foals being born and new horses coming in for training for the next competition season, he needed to at least start looking on what to get her.
As he didn't really want to drag his coworkers to come shopping with him, he decided on asking Cary. He knew Harlow better than Ty felt he did. Her siblings wouldn't exactly be too thrilled to help him shop for their evil sister. Ty had a quick bite of lunch before heading to the Silver Stag. It wasn't somewhere he appeared too often, though if they were going to walk down main street it was a perfect place to meet. He pushed open the revolving doors, smiling as he saw Cary was already waiting for him.
"Hi Cary, thank you for agreeing to help me with this. I really didn't know who else to go to about getting Harlow a gift. How have you been? Any ideas on where we should start?" Ty didn't even have a clue. The woman already had everything she could ever want thanks to her financial background. It wasn't like he had the funds to buy her a top showjumper either.
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
Ty had to realize not everyone had heard of his fathers. It wasn’t like they were Olympic riders or anything, but they both rode well enough to make their names known in the local community. He wasn’t one to brag about them though. They put in the hard work and effort it took to get where they were now and that was all that mattered to their family of three. He took a deep breath before sliding his hands to help slide the woman’s stirrups towards her foot, doing it on both sides before he left. “If you two are getting to know each other, just don’t put any pressure on yourself. These things take time.” It may have been a bit cheesy for him to say, but it sounded like something the woman needed to hear. He knew all to well about new partnerships when it came to riding.
“I’m someone who likes someone who doesn’t just talk the talk. You’ve gotta prove it.” He might have had an easy life compared to others, but having two fathers didn’t exactly make school or anything else for that matter easy. Ty nodded, glad he had remembered the woman’s other horses' names. It seemed as if one of them was starting to slow down. “I see. It’s an interesting choice, though it’s not an away clinic so I understand your decision.” He would have chosen the horse he had the longest if it was a clinician who wasn’t familiar with him and how he rode. Ty shook his head at her next question, glancing at the jumps to make sure they were the proper height before he answered her. “No, jumper derby. I did used to do the Hunters though when I was younger or if I get stuck with a younger horse again.” Beachy was the youngest, but she happily did her first year in the Hunter ring with Ty on her back.
The redhead shook his head and watched her ride. He knew better than to look at her for her looks, though he did have to admit to himself that she was attractive. “I see why she came with a warning label.” He had spoken to the other grooms about her during their lunch breaks. Little did he know it wasn’t too long after that when he had to start dealing with her. He glanced over to his boss, who was now checking his phone. It seemed as if he was hit with an emergency as he left the arena, leaving Ty in charge. “Yeah, I’ve got this.” Ty stood up straight again, watching as the pair walked around. “You can change direction at the walk across the next diagonal. Try riding off of the wall when you get down the long side. Keep him straight between your legs and hands.” He would have to come up with some warm-up jumps before he would get her to do a course or two. "After this lap the other direction you can start with a loose rein trot to let him stretch his neck."
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
Ty knew accidents happened with horses, though it felt ten times worse when it happened to the boss's horse. The grooms were all well trained enough with horse first aid to do what they could, but there was always the line that needed to be drawn about when to call the vet. He glanced over at the stallion who looked pleased with himself.
"He won't be too happy about not getting treats. I didn't realize until recently that he is a bit of an attention seeker. Has he always been like this?" Ty liked to think he knew Jett well enough by now, but knew little about his background and where he came from. He knew out of his three horses, Hiroko was the one that always wanted attention - often reaching over his stall door to anyone passing by for a pet on his liver chestnut nose. "It's really just part of my job, but thank you. Maybe I can compete this coming year after all." His fathers had insisted on paying for him to compete as it gave the two stallions he had a chance to shine and get noticed. Ty was honestly just happy riding at home and helping others get ready to show.
The red head nodded hoping that Jett would recover before the competition. "The vet was pretty hopeful about it. She said she'd come back in a few days to check the incision as well. Do you have another horse as backup?" Ty was lucky enough to have three of his own, though only two of them could jump at the same height. He felt a bit of relief when Ty hadn't interrupted anything too important. It was something he hated to do, though when a horse got injured - the owner needed to be informed. "Well as long as it was just shaking hands and not kissing them. It's something I'm not really looking forward to." He felt his shoulder shrug, glad it wasn't anything he had to do as of late.
"Don't tell me you had to do interviews or a press conference on top of all this?" August 10 2023
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
The grey horse perked his ears up as he walked along. Going on trails was something the horse was used to - being born at the farm belonging to Ty's fathers. It was something the family did to get their young horses used to it. This was different for the horse though, he could feel his rider was tense in the saddle.
Ty could hear another horse and rider approach beside them, making room beside them as he assumed it was Wendell. "That's exactly the greeting I was expecting from you. Honestly I just wanted to catch up. This isn't coming from Harlow. She has no idea I'm here." It was his best chance at extending an olive branch. He knew how difficult his girlfriend could be - especially to her own family. "Thanks for calling me old. I'm telling you the truth. How have you been coming along with Hilda lately?" Thankfully, they had the mutual topic of horses. It seemed to be something that ran in both of their families and despite riding at different barns - Ty wasn't really into the rivalry.
Captain kept in stride with the younger mare, starting to settle into his stride when the second horse walked beside him.
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
Ty had invited Wendell on a trail ride - having to keep it a secret from the prying eyes of Harlow. She would have had a total meltdown if she found out that he was spending time with her least favourite sibling. He got John to distract her and coach her a lesson while he began getting the grey stallion ready.
He was lucky that one of the barn staff had agreed to drive the truck and trailer over to Seven Oaks, where the trails began. The man hurried with his grooming session, wanting to get out before Harlow had time to ask any questions about where he was going. It wasn't long before Captain was loaded on the trailer and his show jumping tack was put in as well. The two drove off as soon as Ty had jumped in the truck and buckled his seatbelt. He chatted away as his coworker drove, glad he had someone to catch up with. About fifteen minutes later, they arrived pulling into the gravel parking lot.
Between the two of them, Captain was loaded off of the trailer and tacked up. Ty thanked his coworker and watched him drive off before leading the grey horse towards the fallen tree, using it as a mounting block to get on after he had checked the girth. The fresh air filled both of their lungs as they walked along the trail head, hoping Wendell and his horse weren't too far behind them.
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
Ty nodded. "Yeah, I had a lesson after work with Beachy and had to ride my other two. I swear I should just live here at this point." It was always late if he had to ride all three, though John was flexible in terms of when he could take his lessons. No one ever knew what was going to happen on a given day. "What barn did he come from again? Anyone I know of?" Ty did his best to know at least all the local barns - his parents did enough business with them for him to know most if not all of the owners.
He raised his eyebrow, this wasn't the first time he had heard about a secret horse. "I'll keep him a secret, I promise. Though promise me you'll tell them soon? They'll unfortunately notice eventually." John and Marie kept tabs on everything, which was the right thing to do - though a new horse in the barn would raise suspicion. "Oh? I thought you did. Anyone of interest though?" He tried not to get too personal with his clients, but most people knew about him dating Harlow - someone would have to be oblivious not to know.
"I understand that, maybe a few flat rides too at first? You know what you are doing though." He ran a hand down the back of his neck, feeling awkward at the moment. Riley had been riding as long as him, if not longer. Ty watched as the woman picked up the brush, she was doing his job for him. "You know John, always keeps me busy. No, no. Please let me at least help." He reached down towards the grooming kit and picked up the curry comb, starting on the opposite side of the neck. "I only am grooming for you and one other person, but she shouldn't be here until the afternoon."
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
It seemed as if this rider was impatient - clearly he was starting to get on her nerves. The grey horse was clearly picking up on the attitude from the rider by bobbing his head. "Really? You are giving me attitude?" Ty tried his best not to roll his eyes, he was at work after all. If John had known him better, he would let his own attitude loose. "Of course." He moved his hand under the girth to check, it seemed tight enough. "You can get on and I can check it again once you've warmed up."
Ty moved back, standing near the front of the horse - being close just in case the horse decided to move while the woman was getting on. "Well, we will see how you two work together." He believed in actions speaking louder than words - there were so many people who were all talk and he knew the type better than anyone. "I think you've got it all wrong. You are the cocky one, I've just said you knew who I was. I figure you are on the pulse on all the hot gossip around here." He could tell she was going to be a handful - thankful that he had been prepared by his parents. Once she got on, he glanced down to where she was looking and raised his eyebrow. Ty caught her glance and fixed her stirrups after he approached the side of the horse again. "And what made you choose him over the other horse?" If this was a new partnership, it was somewhat of an odd choice - though Ty had to remember that it was John coaching and not an outsider.
"I won a local derby class with one of my horses and John approached me and offered me the job." He had nothing to hide - though he truly wasn't expecting it. His parents were excited for him and were the ones who ultimately pushed him to take it. "You are all ready to go, enjoy your lesson." He nodded and walked away, not stopping until he stopped to stand beside John. This was apparently all part of his new job, though this wasn't exactly what he was expecting.
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
It felt odd having the morning off of work - though the horses had just come home from a competition, meaning they needed the day off from being ridden. He had a late night riding his three after helping out at the show. Though out of habit, he was up bright and early.
As he didn't have time to get groceries that morning, he decided to grab breakfast at Starbucks. Before he met Harlow, he would never have gone to Starbucks on his own. It was way too fancy for him, and he knew how to make his own coffee. Though it was Pumpkin Spice season, and he needed to have at least one before the drinks changed seasons. He drove off, blinking the sleep out of his eyes - it seemed that everyone else in town was sleeping still.
He pulled into the parking lot, parking his car before heading inside. The line was relatively long - everyone wanting to get their coffee before another day at work. Ty patiently waited in line, playing on his phone as he waited. Not being at the barn felt odd, though he was starting to learn that he needed rest too - he wasn't a machine.
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
Even when the boss was gone the barn was busy. There were people complaining why John was gone - resulting in Ty explaining that he was in London for the day. A few people were disgruntled, but accepted their fate. Ty himself asked another groom to give him a flat lesson with Beachie during their lunch break. The mare decided to throw a tantrum - it took the two of them a bit to settle after that.
He thanked his coworker and pat the mare on the neck, not knowing what was up with her. Usually, out of his three mounts she loved flat work. In the two years of working for the Ryan's, he knew that the horses acted odd when John was gone - it was as if they knew. When Ty dismounted and led the bay mare into the main barn, another groom came running towards him. "Ty, Jett isn't walking right. I just brought him in for a ride and noticed it." The red head lifted his head up, Jett was John's show horse - meaning he had to talk to the boss. Ty often tried his best to leave the boss man alone, as he was allowed to have his time away from the barn. "Great, just what we needed. Here, you look after Beachie and turn her out and I'll deal with Jett." The other groom nodded, gently taking Beachie's reins as Ty took Jett's lead rope. The man gently led the Stallion into a clean, empty cross tie. With one glance, he could see blood drip down one of his back legs.
With a sigh, he pulled out his phone and called the vet. It was a quick conversation and the team was on their way. Ty made his way over to the injured leg, seeing that there was a small gash - which if he was to guess would need stitches. While he waited for the vet, he pulled out his phone again - sending John a text, warning him about Jett. The vet arrived not that much longer and looked at the wound. "Someone had fun playing outside today I take it." The vet spoke, pulling out a saline solution to clean the wound with. "Of course he picked the day John isn't here to do this." And if he remembered right, there was a show coming up in three weeks.
The vet treated the wound and put stitches in - leaving Ty with instructions before he left. He thanked the vet and leaned against Jett's stall door. He checked his watch, knowing John would be home shortly. Sure enough, the man approached him. "Someone decided to throw a party in his pen and get a cut. The vet just left. He cleaned it out and put two stitches in. He'll probably have to be on stall rest for a few days though." It wasn't the best news but at least the horse wouldn't need surgery.
"Of course this had to happen on your day away. I do hope this didn't cause you to leave earlier than you wanted. But, I know how important Jett is to you." He knew John would do the same if something happened to his three - people were also lining up to have their mare's bred to Capitan and Hiroko. "Did you enjoy the visit? Or were they boring as usual?" Ty was sometimes glad he wasn't a pro rider - the media attention would drive him crazy.
self-belief and hard work will always earn you success
Ty fixed a jump close to him - double checking that the jumps were the same size. The 1.20 Meter group would be starting at 1.15 as warm up fences until John requested for them to be higher. He considered entering the clinic himself, Hiroko would be a happy stallion - though if he was going to compete he needed money.
He glanced over, seeing someone was late joining the group. Ty raised his eyebrow, not knowing how John would react to the late comer. Clearly, they knew each other. He was a bit surprised that the woman was warmly greeted. It took the red head a moment to realize the new woman, named Harlow apparently was talking to him. "One moment." He huffed, heading off to the mounting block - making sure the path was clear of horses. If someone was jumping 1.20 Meter jumps, they should know how to get on a horse themselves - or so he thought. "Do I need to check your girth too, or did another groom do that?" He carefully approached the grey, whom he had recognized from the paddocks.
Ty rolled the stirrups down, moving the mounting block closer so that the woman could get on her horse. He finally had a good glance at her - Ty did have to admit she was attractive, but only by her looks. "Harlow, right? I hear I'm supposed to be nice to you. Who is this you are riding?" Learning horses names was something he was starting to do - just like the other grooms were learning how his three were like. "John told me your name and I'm sure you know mine now." He usually wasn't cocky, though he didn't appreciate the fact that she was late.