Shoes decide the hour

What a stirrup actually wants

A stirrup is a metal ring your foot rests in, not a pedal it grips. It wants a closed toe, a back that stays on, and a sole flat enough to sit still and firm enough not to fold under the iron. Ordinary trainers do all three. So do light walking shoes and any boot with a low heel.

What it does not want is a shoe that can slide off, a toe that is open to a hoof, or a deep chunky tread that catches when you want your foot out in a hurry.

What does not work

• Sandals and flip-flops — nothing holds them on and nothing protects the top of your foot
• Slides and clogs, for exactly the same two reasons
• Heels of any height
• Shoes straight out of the box that you have not yet walked in

None of this is about looking the part. You are also walking on sand and forest track before and after the ride, not only sitting in a saddle.

The rest of what you wear

Long, comfortable trousers: leggings, soft jeans, tracksuit bottoms. The inside of your calf rests against the saddle for about 1 hour, and bare skin there is what makes people sore afterwards — not the riding itself. Shorts are a decision you regret before the hour is out.

A riding helmet is available to every rider and goes on over whatever else you have on, so a cap underneath is not the answer to sun. Put cream on before you leave the hotel: the pine section of the trail is shaded and the shoreline is not.

What to leave in the room

• Anything loose in a pocket — a phone that works its way out at a walk lands on sand or trail
• Bags, unless they sit flat across your body and stay there
• Jewellery you would be unhappy to lose in a forest

If you would rather not ride with a phone in one hand, photographs and video are on sale at the riding centre itself and paid for there. No figure for them is published here, so ask what you are buying before you agree to it.