Equestrian Inspirations: Emma Jackson
Successful Co Down horse rider and producer now also offers breeding services
This country has been blessed with a huge amount of equestrian talent, not only in the form of the equines themselves, but also the people who handle and ride them. Horse&Field would like to feature some of these people, across all the disciplines, and give recognition to their achievements. If you know of someone who should be featured, please email: horseandfield@gmail.com
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Anyone who has been around equestrian circles in Northern Ireland over the past decade at least will have heard of Emma Jackson. Emma has been riding and producing horses and ponies across the various disciplines with huge success for many years - whether it is registered show jumping, where she jumps and wins up to 1.35m; eventing, where she had incredible results over a number of seasons, including in some of the highly competitive Young Event Horse classes at Balmoral Show and Dublin Horse Show; or Working Hunter, where she has competed successfully against some very accomplished combinations, at local equestrian centre shows and right up to the Northern Ireland Festival.
Emma credits her mum, Violet, for her love of horses and all things equestrian - Violet had a real passion, which she passed on. She did everything with Emma when she was a child, including teaching her how to ride - in fact, Emma was riding nearly before she could walk! Emma started jumping on 12.2hh ponies and was competing from the age of seven or eight. She went on to be a member of Ards Riding Club as a teenager, which she really enjoyed.
Violet is still involved in the equestrian industry herself; she has a couple of young horses at home and has been known to judge Working Hunter classes.
For several years, Emma was based in rented premises near Comber and rode for various clients across the equestrian disciplines. She produced young horses, introducing them to the world of competition and bringing them on, alongside competing more experienced horses at the higher levels. Emma has since expanded her interests to include breeding activities.
Around three years ago, she and partner Aaron Ross decided they wanted to build something together, a family home as well as an equestrian base. They found a plot of around 33 acres of mainly hilly ground between Saintfield and Ballynahinch in County Down, with only a barn on it. They saw its potential - it is spacious, centrally located and easy to find - so they bought it and, in the short time since, they have transformed it into an equestrian haven… Glasdrumman Stud.
Aaron designed the layout they wanted and has built it himself, with some help. They have built a house for themselves and initially constructed 10 stables inside the existing barn, as well as a 65m x 35m sandschool with a fibre and sand surface. They added a lean-to, tack room, wash bay and solarium to the barn, along with bigger stables for the stallions. They have since added more sheds; the latest barn went up about a year ago and brings the number of stables to 25. They have a horse crush outside, which they use for scanning and artificial insemination (they do both AI and natural coverings). The new barn, along with seven internal stables, has a youngstock area, which is ideal for housing youngsters through the winter. Meanwhile, the broodmares live out.
A lot of horses previously ridden by Emma end up coming back to her…
“I used to event ‘Silken Allure’ (very successfully); the mare is now back with me as a broodmare and is in foal to ‘Kylestone Cashel’!” says Emma.
Emma currently keeps five stallions on site, namely Creevagh For Sure, Ashfield Cassanova, Kylestone Casall, Bannvalley Whisper (Irish Draught) and Vanderbitt. She tries to give them a normal life, so they are ridden and competed alongside their covering duties; they are treated like any other horse.
The yard is kept busy, as alongside the normal day-to-day chores and exercising, horses are brought in for sales preparation and people come to view horses, including well-known owners, such as Richard Sheane of Cooley Farm in Co Wicklow and Carol Gee of Fernhill Sport Horses in Co Kilkenny.
Emma’s reputation not only stretches the length and breadth of Ireland, the horses at Glasdrumman are owned by owners from all over the world, including a former American Olympian!
Emma and Aaron are breeding their own youngstock, as well as covering other people’s mares; they sell some as foals or youngsters and are trying to keep some to put under saddle to build the name of the stallions.
Emma’s schedule is busy, between working with the stallions and riding.
“I collect semen either first thing or in the evening and I ride during the day. I try to change the course of fences in the sandschool every week or take the fences out altogether and do flatwork,” Emma says.
They make their own haylage and that’s just as well, as they go through it quickly, with a big bale only lasting a day and a half!
Emma has been sponsored by well-known feed manufacturer TopSpec for a good few years and gets all her feed supplies from Rowan Equestrian. TopSpec have a variety of feeds with something to suit all Emma’s equines, including chaff, conditioning flakes, 14% mix, a range of balancers and ‘turbo’ flakes!
Emma is quick to point out that “the young ones are mainly fed haylage and chaff, which doesn’t ‘blow their brains’ and they are turned out whenever possible”. She tries to run a relaxed yard and the horses are very chilled in their stables. Karen mucks out and tidies up, while Emma rides (although Emma mucks out one day a week to give her a day off). Corey helps with various other tasks.
Emma has had a great year with ‘Vanderbitt’ and ‘Kylestone Casall, winning numerous show jumping classes, but she loves working with young horses, breaking them and getting them started. She has produced horses that have gone up to five-star level and even round Badminton!
Emma is a very versatile rider, competing in show jumping, Working Hunter and eventing. She loves it and doesn’t ever get sick of it!
She says: “I don’t get on a horse and think ‘this horse has to go this way’ - I work with the horse”, (which, judging by her results, clearly works!).
Emma recognises that she could not achieve the results she has without a really great back up team behind her: “Ronnie Ross checks the stallions regularly and keeps them right; while Karen, Corey and Aaron’s sister Leanne have been very helpful and others come and help too!” she says.
As the New Year commences, Emma says: “The plan is to get the babies out and see what happens - which of them jump, which might go down the Young Event Horse route etc. Meanwhile, the big show jumpers are on a break until the end of January.”
With the breeding season just around the corner, 2024 looks very exciting for Emma, Aaron and Glasdrumman Stud!
