You don’t get to be #5 in the world just by being lucky, and Great Britain’s Gemma Tattersall is proof of that fact. During the 2017 eventing year, Tattersall earned a remarkable number of top-10 placings at the three- and four-star level, doing so not just on her top mount, Arctic Soul, but various members of her extensive, West Sussex-based string.
In addition to her 7th-place 2017 Badminton finish and career-best 3rd-place 2017 Burghley finish with the 15-year-old gelding Arctic Soul, Tattersall also claimed the second annual Event Rider Masters series last year. But Gemma herself is the first to admit that maintaining consistent results at the top-tier of eventing sport takes a lot of legwork – and a lot of time on the road.
"[Packing] only takes us 10-15 minutes, and that’s what it needs to be when you’re going three days in a row with four or five horses each day."
“Pretty much every single weekend [we’re on the road],” Tattersall says. “I might have one or two weekends throughout the whole season that I don’t compete. [This season], I’ve basically got eight horses who are two-star and above, and then another six to eight horses that are younger and coming through. I’ve got six 5-year-olds, but some of those won’t do too much next year. And then I’ve got two 6-year-olds and two 7-year-olds – so yeah, it certainly keeps me busy!”
Photo by Ben Clark.
Photo by Ben Clark.One tool that Gemma has found invaluable when it comes to maintaining her busy yard: organization, and lots of it. “We don’t necessarily do multiple trunks by discipline, but we would pack all the saddle clothes in one, all the cross-country boots in another, show jumping boots and rugs in another—so we sort of have multiples of everything because we have so many horses. It’s just a case of keeping everything in order.
This is how Kasey Perry-Glass got ready for WEG (including her packing list)
“We’ve gotten very, very good and very quick at packing,” Tattersall continues. “It only takes us 10-15 minutes, and that’s what it needs to be when you’re going three days in a row with four or five horses each day. You have to be super quick to be able to turn the lorry around and not spend hours doing it.”
So just what sort of products and equipment make Gemma’s essential packing list? We caught up with Great Britain’s top eventer during a busy day at the yard to find out.
1. Tack Trolley
"We use a Stable & Barn Tack Trolley, which they gave to us at Badminton last year, and we love that for the three-day events. It just carries absolutely everything – from medical kits to shampoos and brushes to [sewing kits]."
Photo by Jon Stroud.
Photo by Jon Stroud.2. Custom Saddles
"I use Childéric Saddles, which I absolutely love. They’re literally made for me and fit me so beautifully. I have various types of widths and the way they’re made to fit specific horses. For example, Quicklook has [a Childéric saddle] that’s specially made for her because she’s quite a strange shape. They fit the horses beautifully and they also fit me."
Photo by Ben Clark.
3. A Curated Collection of Grooming Supplies
"My mom [is] a little bit obsessed with choosing grooming stuff. My girls will just go along with whatever she asks because they’re really nice! She’ll always have a big, long, flicky brush, a body brush, and a shining mitten thing. And then we have a particular brush that we use for their quarter markings. [We don't have a] specific brand—we just choose things we like!"
Photo by Jon Stroud.
Photo by Jon Stroud.4. Warm-up and Tendon Boots
"I like using Weatherbeeta boots—the nice, fluffy ones for warming up for dressage are really nice. For cross-country, it varies, really, but I like Veredus tendon boots for the front [and hind]."
Photo by Jon Stroud.
Photo by Jon Stroud.5. Neue Schule Bits
"I use Neue Schule bits a lot. I like the way they fit in the horses’ mouths. I have various different thicknesses of Neue Schule lozenge snaffles—some of them are loose-ring, some of them are D-ring, but literally, pretty much my whole yard goes in some Neue Schule, lozenge-type bit."
Feature photo by Jon Stroud.