Catering to the competitive and non-competitive horse rider

Horse riding has become an increasingly popular sport in South Africa. This trend is partly due to the pandemic. People realised that they wanted more quality of life, a luxury life in the country and sports that complimented it.

It has resulted in more people seeking out equestrian properties and private residential estates that offer this, along with the required facilities, have become most sought after.

Top equestrian estates

There are estates that specialise in non-competitive equine facilities while others also cater to competitive horse owners. Top equine residential estates include Waterfall Equestrian Estate, Blue Hills Equestrian Estate, Saddlebrook Estate, Glenferness AH, Beaulieu Country Estate and Kyalami AH to name but a few.

Nowadays, equestrian estates offer everything that people looking to escape the countryside are looking for. Properties in Kyalami, for instance, that boast beautiful scenery along state-of-the-art equestrian facilities.

Cath McFarlane, award winning showjumper and trainer who is now an equestrian consultant at Seeff told Property24 that equestrian properties in Kyalami range from R3.5million to R35 million. It can be a lucrative type of property with rentals ranging from R50,000 to R150,000 a month.

State of the art facilities

Estates that are closer to the city may want to focus more on the professional equestrian rather than those doing the sport for leisure purposes. Inge Silen, Broadlands Equestrian Centre ambassador, explains:

“Equine sport seems to have evolved to focus more on competition and training for the various disciplines, and less social/recreational riding – especially the closer you get to the highly populated city regions. This could be due to less space available for leisure riding, as well as the riding areas that are available being inaccessible or unsafe.”

So, what should equestrian, or ‘wannabe’ equestrian estates offer horse riders – particularly if they are professional? When it comes to professional arenas care and attention is a top priority. “We see more finely bred and imported horses that are more valuable and therefore the accompanying emphasis on health and longevity of the horse. There is now more particular attention to arena surfaces and consistency of going for sport horses to try and prevent unnecessary injuries or joint wear and tear,” says Silen.

Catering to the leisure rider

Those residential estates further afield can focus on the leisure rider who’s after scenic routs and space for hacking. “Residential estates can offer safe bridle paths and green belts for pleasure hacking as well as fitness training for sport horses – away from traffic and intruder worries. Some residential estates also offer communal training arenas which can also offer communal training equipment (jumps) for competition riders. In a community of like-minded residents, this can work well!”

Ultimately these types of riders will enjoy the communal setting where they can socialise and ride in groups for safety and to make friends. “Communal stabling and grazing/paddock facilities, together with arenas and bridle paths, will be an asset to an equestrian residential estate. This can also provide a focus area for specialist practitioners to come in and offer services.”

Horse and rider comfort

Ultimately, most equestrians are looking for comfortable spaces where they can socialise and progress in their sport (if they want to). While South Africa benefits from having mostly good weather, the winter season and rainy months should also be considered. There’s nothing worse than feeding and clearing manure on a wet, stormy winters day.

There may also be riders that don’t enjoy doing basic yard and field duties such as mucking out, poo picking and feeding. People also go on holiday so estate managers should consider the very lucrative option of offering part or fully assisted liver where part- or full-time staff take care of all the hard work for residents.

Getting the balance right between equestrian services and offering the right facilities where riders can school in comfort will go a long way to making an estate more attractive.