Coaching & Training

Sarah is a Level 4 British Showjumping Coach with a Masters’ Degree in Sports Coaching who has been coaching for over 25 years. She is a British Showjumping Coach Educator and provides national training for Para Showjumpers.

She has helped riders progress from jumping unaffiliated tracks to competing internationally, as well as working with riders with physical or learning disabilities, and has worked with competitors from many equestrian disciplines, including showjumping, eventing, dressage and endurance. She enjoys working with all levels of rider, to help them achieve a successful partnership with their horse.

Her Master’s research was based around the application of strengths-based coaching in equestrian sport and this technique has proved extremely beneficial for building rider confidence and well-being, in addition to helping optimise competition performance.

Her many qualifications include:

• Level 4 British Showjumping Coach
• MSc Professional Practice in Sports Coaching
• British Showjumping Coach Educator
• British Showjumping Coach of the Year 2015
• Para Showjumping Coach
• British Showjumping Course Builder
• British Horse Society Intermediate Stable Manager
• British Equestrian Federation Youth Pathway Coaching Programme
• Applied Psychology in Equestrian Coaching (Centre 10)
• Testt Certified Coach
• National Development Programme for Coaching Excellence

Molly is a Level 2 British Showjumping Coach with years of experience working with horses and ponies in a wide range of disciplines including showjumping, eventing, showing and dressage.

She has ridden and produced a wide variety of horses, including backing and retraining, as well as starting young horses’ competitive careers for their owners.

She is passionate about helping riders build confidence and develop strong, trusting partnerships with their horses.

We offer a fantastic group training opportunity here through Team Marwood.

Team members are able to access discounted training on a weekly basis with performance profiling and unmounted sessions also included to back up the ridden coaching, helping to build a cohesive programme of development over the year, with membership renewed monthly.

For more information on this unique offer, for which there is an active waiting list, please contact us.

The mission of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Programme (TAP) is to support the transition of thoroughbred horses, bred for racing, into riding horses for both the competitive and non-competitive rider to enjoy.

Sarah is part of a team of high level coaches, with in-depth knowledge and experience of retraining racehorses, that have been selected to help deliver subsidised training across the UK.

Follow this link to book - The Howden Way | Find a coach

Sarah is a Testt®  certified coach, which means that she has undertaken training and assessment to deliver Testt®  training with riders to improve rider symmetry and balance.

What is Testt®?

Testt® is the “Thomas Equestrian Symmetry Types and Tests”, which was devised by Andy Thomas, who has 36 years Chartered Physiotherapy experience  and has spent the last 25 years assessing over 14,000 riders, ranging from elite Olympic athletes to complete amateur novices riding in all disciplines. From these assessments, Andy has identified three different types of pelvic asymmetry and correction that have a profound effect on both rider and horse performance, this forms the basis of the Testt® process.

Sarah uses the Testt® system herself daily and as found it to be hugely beneficial both on the flat and over fences. Among the many benefits the system can bring are:

• Improving rider awareness of what “correct” feels like – whatever positional correction is desired
• Better balance – whether through movements or in terms of rider position
• Better acceptance of the contact and engagement of the hindleg
• Better balance over a jump
• Better stability of the rider on a young/unbalanced horse

Testt® sessions with Sarah can be added on to any training session by requesting it in the booking notes, or can be booked as a specific introductory session which includes the equipment to continue the work at home.

Please note that Testt® certified coaches are not therapists or practitioners and have not been educated in any hands on therapy modality to correct asymmetries.

Sarah is a Para Showjumping coach and works regularly with Para riders on a national as well as an individual basis.

Para showjumping takes place across the UK, and includes four grades who currently compete from 60cm up to 90cm depending upon their grading. There is a championship at the British Showjumping National Championships every August.

Marwood Equestrian is set up to accommodate one day and multiple day camps, with a log cabin as a location for meals and unmounted training, plus hook up for overnight visitors and several stables separated from the main yard that are available as day boxes or overnight stables for multi-day training.

Camps are run several times a year and can be booked via www.Horsevents.co.uk

but can also be arranged as private camps for groups of friends or multi-day training provision for individuals travelling from further afield. To arrange private multi-day training or a private camp please contact us.