RIDER PROFILES

It seems fitting that Gary Docking, who has been at the pinnacle of Private Driving for 25 years, should still describe himself as being ‘pathologically in love with it’. Private Driving (privately owned carriages as opposed to trade/commercial vehicles such as those owned by breweries) is an equestrian discipline steeped in tradition whose aim is to recreate the look of the 19th Century as closely as possible. Participants are judged on their overall presentation which means that the horse is not the over-riding factor - the correct harness, driver’s outfit and carriage all contribute. 

As a leading professional producer in his field, managing his yard of 10 horses and ponies near Midhurst in West Sussex, Gary exhibits, and wins, at multiple shows Nation and Europe wide per year. In between all of this he sits on the Councils of both the Hackney Horse Society and Carriage Driving Society, judges numerous classes and runs a series of lecture demonstrations in the spring. The number of Championships he has won, coupled with his years of experience, mean he truly is an expert in his field but he is still highly driven! Although he has already been awarded the ultimate accolade of producing the Show Champion at the British Driving Society Show at Smiths Lawn in Windsor 5 times, he freely admits that he is fiercely competitive and aims to win at the Horse of the Year Show this year with his groom Kate at his side. As Gary sums it up, “Being a producer you are only as good as your next rosette and as bad as your last result – 3 bad results and people assume you’ve lost your touch.”

Having come from a background in theatre and entertainment, he treats the ring as his stage. All the horses and ponies he accepts to produce for their owners have their own harness and carriage made to measure and he spends weeks perfecting his own outfits and even carries dozens of ties and matching handkerchiefs at any one time in his lorry to co-ordinate the ‘look’. He is a fierce custodian of preserving what is correct and his support team on the yard are indispensable in achieving his success, including Ann who tirelessly cleans and polishes his retinue of carriages until they gleam – every single time they go out!

The horses are generally worked every day in harness or long-reined, anything from 20 minutes to an hour depending on what stage they are at at the time. The star horse at the moment is an 8 year old Dutch Warmblood, Striker, a name which certainly befits the horse. The rest of the team include ‘Bob’, a 6 year old Welsh Section C and ‘Oosti’, a superb 5 year old Fresian who certainly has remarkable presence. All are fed a combination of Baileys No.4 Top Line Conditioning Cubes for non-heating energy and Outshine for coat shine. He admits that the right feed does make a difference in preparation time. ‘We used to have to allow an hour to get a horse ready and it now takes 10 minutes – they’re naturally shiny: we just have to brush them off.’ Driving horses may sometimes not be blessed with perfect conformation but, as Gary describes, ‘it is essential that they have something about them, an aura if you like, with plenty of movement and character.’

As only someone with his experience can say with any sort of authority, there is no short cut to making a horse a good horse. Therefore he is unimpressed with people who spend thousands on a carriage, harness and outfit but neglect to have a driving lesson. “You need to train before you gain,” as Gary says!

Obtaining such an impeccable record could not have been achieved without a head girl (well done Kate!), and, “a drop of Bombay Sapphire to keep me going! And perhaps sweeping?” Gary is obsessed that the yard is always spotless and Martin is extremely diligent in that area! Of course it hasn’t always been plain sailing to the top. Such a successful reputation, and admittedly an outspoken one, inevitably means that there will always be some people who dislike you. Many years ago, Gary had cause to regret abusing a collecting ring steward the year prior to attending the Newark and Notts Show. He was the only person in the collecting ring and warmed his horse up as usual. With no other competitiors forward he was confident he would win the class. The main ring classes carried on and the carriage driving was not called. The steward watched Gary for some considerable time and very much enjoyed walking over to him and explaining that the private driving had been held the day before!

Gary is available for private lessons at his base in Midhurst, West Sussex. Should you wish to book one he can be contacted: