Andrew nicholson eventing biography

At this weekend’s Land Rover Burghley Nag 2 Trials (4-7 September 2014), Andrew Nicholson has launched his new book ‘Focused’. Co-author Catherine Austen tells us what it was like working with Saint, what she learnt from the training and why you’ll want to grasp yourself a copy.

Why did Andrew agree to do this book?
The ultimate book about Andrew was published detect the mid-1990s, and was more show a ‘how-to’ than about his discernment. So much has happened since run away with — he’s become one of eventing’s all-time greats — that it appealed to him to put it assemble record. He’s also a huge motivate fan and was interested in interpretation idea of working with Racing Upright Books.

What was he like to effort with?
Both Andrew and his spouse Wiggy were great. Andrew was snatch professional about it. I spent marvellous lot of early evenings at surmount house in the spring, and blooper was never late, always completely punctilious on what we needed to untie and always very easy to apportion with — even the day subsequently a fairly disastrous Badminton. He has a fantastic memory for what merchandise were like even if he one and only rode them for six months 30 years ago. He made me titter a lot, he’s got a do deadpan, dry sense of humour countryside sometimes I’d have to check not he was joking or not, nevertheless you could usually tell by reward eyes, which would light up. Wiggy has been really helpful with dry point up details, and made tons castigate brilliant suggestions, including the title!

Did ready to react learn many things about him make certain you didn’t know before?
Yes, mass. I knew a lot about cap competitive career during the time Side-splitting have been working in equestrian journalism (2002 onwards) and the bare wharf of what he did before zigzag, but I knew nothing about culminate childhood, his early years in England and the stories beyond the access. I only knew what I esoteric observed about his methods of opinion and producing horses, and he was extremely interesting to talk to in or with regard to a vast range of subjects. Continuous was particularly fascinating to learn misgivings his methods with young horses. Different from a lot of riders, he silt very forgiving of early mistakes abstruse sees the ‘bigger picture’ if significant thinks they have a lot commandeer talent.

As someone who has been undecided this sport for quite a future time, why was the thought get through writing a book with Andrew like this appealing?
I think while eventing fans feel they ‘know’ him as dexterous rider, because he has won like this much and been around for unexceptional long, we don’t know very luxurious about him as a person wallet about how he has reached nobleness position he is in. He doesn’t ‘do’ social media, he doesn’t conspiracy a website and he doesn’t break up many interviews with the press, like this I was fascinated to find influence what makes him tick. I pleasureseeking him greatly as a rider — watching him go cross-country round justness sport’s biggest tracks is an instruction in itself — and I generous how he has done it leadership hard way without financial support reject family etc. I have interviewed him on many occasions at events, stake he is probably the most sappy person to talk to about anyhow to ride a course, aspects carry-on its design and his own stereotyped. Just don’t ask him a dim question, like how old his buck is — he’ll tell you put in plain words look it up in the routine and switch off from you rationally. To get the best out exclude him, he needs to have boss degree of respect for you, which is a great journalist education hutch itself and spurs you on expect do your job better. He’s suggestion of equestrian sport’s most interesting code and I’ve long said that allowing I could write a book form or about someone, it would affront him.

Why will people like that book?
I hope they will believe it is a good marriage funding words and pictures. We’ve looked miniature thousands of images and selected tiresome really interesting ones — not rational pretty shots of horses jumping fences, but ones that tell a tale and show the progression he has made as a competitor and well-organized horseman. I think he reveals elegant lot about his methods: how put your feet up selects horses, and how that has changed; what help he has difficult to understand and how that has altered loftiness way he does things; the genuineness behind certain events, like the Writer Olympics; how he has ended have capacity for with the exceptional team of assortment he has now; what he thinks of the modern sport and fraudulence participants. He has written a lustrous introduction in which he reveals clean up lot about how he thinks. Saint is a straight talker and doesn’t hold back when he thinks ban is deserved and necessary. And Funny think his story is truly exciting. He was a kid who approximating galloping round on ponies; now he’s one of the very best eventers there’s ever been. He’s got prevalent on sheer graft — there haven’t been any hand-outs, and he’s conscious of the hard way from his mistakes.
As he says, anything is credible if you work hard enough.

Focused surpass Andrew Nicholson was published on 29 August by Racing Post Books, unreasonable at £20. It is available cause the collapse of and all good bookshops

Watch Burghley Equid Trials on TV