SOME horses are not one person’s hunter of a lifetime, but a hunt’s. Such is Ricky, stalwart of the Cheshire, veteran of four huntsmen and one whipper-in. He was bought for the hunt as a seven-year-old by Keith Shore for the Cheshire Hunt Horse Club, the group of members who provide the hunt horses.
“He was intended for eventing with a lady,” explains Kimberley Stanworth, who has looked after the stable for seven years, “but he was quirky, more of a man’s horse.”
For Shayne Francis, then huntsman, “he made me look good!” He explains: “He had so much scope and ability and made the Cheshire hedges look easy – although sometimes he would throw in the odd nap three strides out.”
Today, aged 21, Ricky will “trot and pop…
