The BGA meets Miss Black Equestrian

We spoke to Ashleigh, also known as Miss Black Equestrian about her experience in the horse world and how things can be improved to be more inclusive and diverse.

TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOURSELF.

I got into horse riding through a family friend of my parents. This is how most of my riding has come about. I got into riding games ponies and because I wasn’t afraid of riding the challenging ones, I was used as the crash test dummy, which I loved!

I was also heavily involved in athletics and competed nationally in the Long Jump. I fell pregnant at 16 with my daughter, Phoenix and have a very supportive family around me. My parents weren’t horsey at all but my Auntie was interested in racing. I used to watch her get dressed up for a day at the races and I was in total awe.

YOU ARE A GROOM YOURSELF, WHERE DID IT ALL BEGIN?

It just kind of happened – I am not the best rider but I am very happy and comfortable being on a horse. I have worked for Chloe Roddick and Neil Mullholland amongst others. At Neil’s I was the Assistant Travelling Head person. Horses really keep me grounded and I think they will always be a huge part of my life.

WHAT HAS YOUR EXPERIENCE OF BEING A GROOM BEEN LIKE?

Overall it has been a positive experience. I am lucky that I haven’t experienced any noticeable barriers and have always felt welcomed, but I am aware that this isn’t always the case.

TELL US ABOUT MISS BLACK EQUESTRIAN

I just came up with it – I would also love to receive an MBE one day and the initials fit well! I love being able to be the representation that so many need to see. It is an easy route for me to promote diversity through equestrianism, especially through racing.

WHAT MORE DO YOU THINK CAN BE DONE IN EQUESTRIANISM TO IMPROVE DIVERSITY AND INCLUSIVITY?

I think there needs to be more representation and show more images of ethnically diverse people. They are out there and so should be used to help promote. It is usually the case that black riders are portrayed as novice.

WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE IN THE FUTURE?

I would like to see the leaders in the sport do more. We need to see them showing that they are willing to support a more inclusive and diverse world.

YOU ARE INVOLVED WITH A CHARITY – CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THEIR WORK?

Yes, I work with Key4Life who uses methods to help rehabilitate guys who are at risk of going to prison or who are in prison to help give them tools to learn how to cope when they come out.

This work is incredibly rewarding and is a huge passion of mine. They chose to sign up for our programmes and we recently took horses into one of the prisons so the prisoners could learn more about boundaries, emotions, and feelings.